I Was Playing The Arkham Games Recently And When I Got To Arkham Knight And Heard Jervis Call Batman

Madeline Daresbury

~::Basics::~

Full name: Madeline Daresbury

Alias: The March Hare

Age: 29

DOB: 3/14/1987

Weight: 159.5 lbs

Gender/preferred pronouns: Female, she/her

Born: Gotham General Hospital, Gotham City

Job: Criminal, ex-baker

Sexuality: Asexual, Aromantic

Appearance:

Hair: Brown, has two long strands over her shoulders the rest is cut in a boy’s style.

Eyes: Amber

Height: 5'11

Build: On the slimmer side of average with a fair amount of lean muscle

Normal clothing: Usually unmatching. Prefers earth-toned colors over bright, popping colors

Costume: A white long-sleeved dress shirt under a dark brown waistcoat with a dark orange bow. High-waisted brown shorts with vertical striped tights and combat dress shoes. A belt holds two kamas at her waist. Carries a golden pocket watch. Wears either a hat with brown hare ears or a hare mask

~::HISTORY::~

Before becoming a criminal:

Childhood

(1-11)

Madeline grew up in what she thought was a loving home with her parents, older brother Marcus and little brother Ryan. Her mother owned a bakery (something she would later inherit).  Her father was a martial arts teacher who taught her Taekwondo and gymnastics, along with how to use close-combat weaponry.

Despite the fact that her parents loved her dearly, Madeline’s family had an interesting outlook on life. They firmly believed in survival of the fittest. They could be harsh and strict, and taught their children “survival skills” in ways that those outside the family would consider extreme. Madeline was the strongest and most capable of her siblings. Because of this, she developed a mindset where she felt the need to protect everyone who’s “weaker” than her... which in her mind is most people. 

(12)

When Ryan became sick (pneumonia), her parents didn’t realize the severity and thought he would fight it off. It quickly escalated and, in the end, killed him. Madeline was devastated, but so were her parents, who blamed each other and later divorced.

By this time Marcus was in his second year of college, Madeline was tossed between two people who didn’t know if they could raise a child. Madeline’s father became obsessed with her health, and whenever she stayed with him, she was on a rigorous diet and workout schedule. Her mother, on the other hand, tried to distract herself with work. Madeline, when with her mother, spent more time helping out in the bakery than doing her school work. One week she’s being hounded to be on a strict schedule, the next she’s trying to help run a business. 

(15)

After a few years of separation, Madeline’s father decided it would be better if he moved back home. Her mother knew she couldn’t keep running a business and trying to raise a teenager all by herself; she already had issues with overworking. In the end, she decided to drop Madeline off with Marcus. Marcus, while not thrilled, understood the importance of taking her in. He had his own life and was trying to save up to get a better apartment for his girlfriend. 

Marcus was, for the most part, distant and focused on his life, leaving Madeline to her own devices.  With her new freedom, Madeline chose to focus on work, mainly keeping her and Marcus’s home clean and keeping up with school work. Madeline continued to follow parts of her dad’s schedule while mixing her mother’s work ethic in. While it kept her distracted, it also prevented her from making many friends, as she was always ‘busy’. Her unusual maturity, workaholic nature, and tendency to be a little too overprotective also kept people away. 

(18)

Around the time Madeline turned eighteen, Marcus slowly started to push her away. He believed that she was mature enough to be on her own, and the way she followed in their parents’ footsteps had been making him increasingly uncomfortable. He didn’t immediately kick her out on her own, but slowly created distance and made it clear that they needed to separate. Madeline resisted the change for as long as she could but eventually caved to her brother’s wishes. From there, it took her a while to get settled on her own. At one point, she was even sleeping at her place of employment. 

(20)

Even with all this, Madeline still managed to get into Gotham University, where she graduated with a degree in business. Her college life was relatively uneventful. She was an excellent student, but her workaholic nature and lack of friendships continued. After she graduated, she would take over her mother’s business. 

How she became a criminal:

(25) 

Madeline, after graduating, took over her mother’s business. For a while, it was all just normal work, but after a few years, she began getting big and odd orders for colorful and lopsided cakes and Alice in Wonderland-themed… everything. Someone different came to pick it up every time, leading Madeline to believe a bunch of people had strange tastes - this was Gotham, after all. They seemed harmless; never once did they steal anything, and they always paid-- albeit with some fantastic, whimsical chatting. 

(26)

A year later, Madeline had mastered the strange dialect that the people from “Wonderland” used. She didn’t know what was going on with them, but if it helped her sell sweets, she was willing to play along. 

This all became clear when a short, blonde man, looking like he walked out of a fairy tale, came in. He spoke in the same manner as the other people from “Wonderland”, and always wore a top hat, which had to be a good century or two out of date. His name was Jervis Tetch, and Madeline had no idea that he was the “Mad Hatter.” After making an order that Madeline had long since accepted as “normal,”  he asked if it was her “Unbirthday.” 

“I’m…sorry?” Madeline asked. 

“Why, of course it is!” the man said. “Oh, you simply must come over for tea and cake today!” 

“But… I’m usually the one who makes the cakes…” Madeline pointed out. 

“And? Have you ever tasted your own desserts?” 

“I have to,” Madeline said. 

“I mean, really, truly, sat down and enjoyed them?” 

That made her stop and think. When was the last time she had cooked a dessert for herself? 

“So… I can make any dessert I like, and the other citizens of Wonderland will be there to celebrate my unbirthday with me?” Madeline asked, skeptical. 

“But of course!” Tetch laughed. “Can we expect to see you tonight? You mustn’t be late for your own unbirthday party, you know.” 

Madeline thought about it for a moment. “Can I invite other people?” 

“To your unbirthday party? Of course! The more the merrier, I always say!” 

Madeline didn’t want to admit that she was a little scared to go with Tetch. But he seemed harmless enough, and she felt better knowing that she could bring Marcus and a few friends along. Besides, she got to make her mom’s carrot cake recipe for the first time in forever. 

Her “unbirthday” was mostly Tetch talking to people that nobody else could see. Madeline was constantly asked if he was okay. The tea, at least, was fine, and of course, everybody loved the carrot cake-- even Tetch’s imaginary friends. 

“He’s fine,” she said. “He’s not dangerous, and he buys my cakes all the time. Besides…it’s been a long time since anyone’s invited me to anything.” 

They became fast friends soon after-- odd looks be damned. As time went on, however, Madeline began to suspect that not all was well in Wonderland

(27)

This friendship would later be tested when Jervis asked her to become “The March Hare” of Wonderland, in order to help him find Alice. After much inner conflict, she decided to dive into the rabbit hole and join the tea party.

Criminal career (29)

As the March Hare, she has been The Mad Hatter’s right-hand for two years and aided him in multiple crimes.

Her criminal exploits include kidnapping, breaking and entering, robbery, and physical violence against authority figures. 

Because of Madeline’s kind face, she’s been able to get much closer to whoever Tetch deemed as Alice. 

Madeline is more or less his full-time sidekick and muscle, doing things such as going out for him and handling his more labor-intensive work. Still continuing to cook for him of course. 

She helps him break out of Arkham whenever she escapes from Blackgate, (due to her being seen as more stable). 

Madeline, despite being capable of it, never killed any of the mind-controlled citizens-- just traumatized them and left them injured to some degree.

Personality traits:

Madeline is what most people would consider a good person; polite, extroverted, and always willing to help. These traits, however, can make people forget her criminal exploits with Tetch. Madeline may be kind, but she will do anything for those she cares about. Madeline doesn’t give up in the face of a problem. For better or for worse, she’s in it for the long haul.

Madeline is a very loyal and devoted person. She’s also incredibly organized and good at managing chaos. While she doesn’t enjoy hurting people, she sees it as a necessary evil she’ll do for the sake of those closest to her. Madeline is fairly polite and always willing to let people cry on her shoulder. Madeline continues to diligently work out and improve some of her skills so she doesn’t lose them. She’s not blind to others’ flaws, but believes that their good traits should always outweigh them. 

Good Traits: Diligent, hard-working, loyal, patient, friendly, empathetic

Bad Traits: Obsessive, overprotective, overly-empathetic, overachiever, nit-picky, expects too little of people, codependent

ESTJ

Other info:

Abandonment issues

Professional baker.

Graduated from Gotham University college with a degree in business.

Doesn’t watch the news; she finds it boring/depressing.

Favorite book is The Wizard of Oz

When not cooking or helping Tetch, Madeline is a bit of a fitness fanatic; she works out regularly. 

Cartoonishly bad aim. Cannot use a gun or even throw a book at someone.

Trained in using a dual kama and educated in taekwondo (see earlier in the bio). 

Kept in Blackgate as she’s not technically mentally ill. Due to her good attitude, she is labeled as low-risk and only gets upgraded to medium-risk when Tetch escapes. 

Has been mind-controlled by Tetch on a few occasions. This has led to her obsessively checking any item given to her. 

Strongly dislikes March Harriet and the White Rabbit; she views them as “tainting” the book and characters. Has been forced to work with both on certain occasions.

March paused upon hearing the friendly voice and grinned. "Hello, Hatter I suppose I got all turned around."

March paused in her steps when she noticed the other hare sitting next to the Hatter.

"I suppose I have a clone or maybe I'm the clone. Hmm you also don't quite look like my Hatter. Don't suppose you have tea for another, the more the merrier right?"

● { @themarchinghare} ●  | { Pour a new cup! }

✂ - - -   “ Wait–wait! Hold everything– SILENCE March! ”

March was not making any noise.   “ Do you hear that? Someone is walking in our garden… The roses are talking about them behind their back– as they do… ”

He pauses. “ …March Hare is coming? What? –Did I send you two invitations, March? If so this other you is terribly late indeed… Oh, March Hare! Over here you silly lagomorpha!  ”

@wonderlandofone rabbit girls

What I love most is how well this could work. Alice is the one that knows hypnosis and brainwashes her brother till eventually he completely believes he is The Mad Hatter. Later something happens to Alice for Jervis to start searching for another girl to continue their tea parties.

OR Alice is always chasing after him forcing him to join her tea parties and adventures, mirroring what Jervis will later do to other girls and He hates it.

Jervis doesn’t want to be apart of her deluded fantasies, but at the same time she’s still his sister and he can’t just abandon her. He partly blames himself for her being like this thinking that when they were younger he wasn’t there for her or something of the like. So what does he do? He learns hypnosis and uses it to keep her happy. He may not want to be The Mad Hatter, but he can make her imagine that he’s willing. Jervis goes out to work while Alice stays home in the delusion that there in wonderland together.

For a while this works even if Jervis always feels guilty. Of course on day the cops find out and arrest him, believing he brainwashed his little sister. To make things worse what if she still has the disease Jervis would (to everyone in the court) obviously be taking advantage of his younger sister isolating her from everyone and trapping her in some sick fantasy. Jervis is then locked away in prison while Alice is taken to Arkham where they try to convince her he brainwashed her.

Imagine if she believes it. Imagine her one day angerly visiting him in prison and accusing him of all this being so disgusted before leaving.

Jervis loses it.

He becomes The Mad Hatter, after all he’s the insane one isn’t he? He took his poor poor sister and messed with her mind. He’s the villain he was just delusional about her wanting him. He remembers how happy she was when she Alice and how disgusted she was when she wakes up so he decides “Alice” should always be kept in Wonderland.

Gotham!AU where everythings the same except Alice Tetch is the crazy one and Jervis is trying to get away from her.

“But Jervis! It isn’t a tea party without the Hatter!”

N-no! Get away from me!

“FINE! You don’t want to spend time with your sister, i’ll make you because I love you, dear brother”

[text] Alright just wanted to be sure! [text] What can I say, I worry easier [text] Text me when you get here or if they’re are any delays! [text] I’ll hopefully see you soon and don’t bother repaying me what are friends for?:)

[text;] I'm so worried please text back please please please

[ t e x t ] i ’ m here , i think i am okay .

[ t e x t ] where are you ?

[ t e x t ] what happened ?

[ t e x t ] why were you so worried ?

[ t e x t ] my memory is failing me

Yeah I definitely wished they had gone about a few things differently. Like why not have Harvey Dent, Thomas Elliot, and Roman Sionis hang out with Bruce?

Imagine watching as Roman begans making passive aggressive comments to Bruce and erodes their "friendship", after all his parents are dead, who's his parents going to kiss up to now? Bruce going through his trauma only for one night his best friend Elloit comes rushing through the door talking about how "they're the same now" with a smile on his face. Imagine Elloit having to go to therapy the doctor being Mr.Crane. Or Bruce noticing how withdrawn Harvey's gotten and noticing the Bruises. It'd be so interesting seeing the dynamic with his friends.

While this is happening we can watch Gordon deal with Maxie Zeus, Killer Moth, a younger Scarface, and of course the crime families. While Zeus and Moth are not considered real threats with our "modern" rogues gallery they would be in a younger Gotham who has never had any cases like these before.

We could watch as Killer Crocs mocked in a circus or being abused by his Aunt but nobody being brave enough to stop it. We could still have Selina Kyle as she fits perfectly in, same with Cobblepot.

Gotham could be so much more if they either followed more of the comics or had a few extra ideas (make new characters based on the old or taking forgotten characters and putting them in. (CoughElizebethKaneCough)

Gotham could be so much better in my opinion, but I guess we'll just wait and see what happens.

tbh? gotham could’ve been so SO much better if they hadn’t tried to introduce literally all the BIG rogues that kinda….require batman being around first to exist

like penguin was a good choice for ONE big rogue and tbh? they should’ve kept it just him as the main rogue u see and just gone with more of the c and d list villains since there’s not much there character wise and they could’ve done what they did with zsasz and improved them instead of yknow….completely destroying everything good about the characters in the first place just to fit the narrative of the story (COUGHEDWARDCOUGH) 

and like cmon? it couldve been so fucking good to have the likes of calendar man and shit running around doing their thing being gordon’s villains before bruce becomes batman and then the rest of the rogues start showing up

Artist: salmon_41

To add on from what I’ve heard •Getting hatter-ed (Being manipulated or controlled by someone. “Dude that chick has got you hatter-ed") •We’re going into the sewers (Doing something stupid) • What’s the gas? (What’s the problem. Because of our Asylum pals love for chemical weapons it can be hard to figure out toxin it is.) • Basil Karlo (Copycat- Basil Karlo is Clayface who is known for “Riddle me this”. I’ve also heard Jane Doe, which means the same thing, but not as popular. ) • Masked (Being shady or two-faced, sense the latter isn’t exactly the smartest thing to say) • You’re laughing (Another way of saying you’re crazy) • Throwing lightning bolts (Being overdramatic or exaggerating, inspired by Maxie Zeus)

Gotham Slang

Okay, so I’ve recently realized that us Gothamites have developed the world’s most bizarre vernacular and literally no one outside the city can understand half the stuff we say. As such, in an attempt to be helpful I’ve put together a few examples with translations and sometimes origins:

Riddle me this (do I need to explain this? when you want someone to explain something)

Flip a coin (not used the way other people use it - it serves as more of a abstract threat about getting mad eg. “Don’t make me flip a coin!”)

Pull a Harley (fall in love way too deeply way too quickly)

More [something] than scars (when there is a large amount of [something] - because have you ever looked at Zsasz?)

Like finding Alice (used when something’s hard to find - it’s the equivalent of the saying “Like finding a needle in a haystack”)

Get umbrella-ed (get murdered, usually specifically mob-related; named for that infamous incident when Penguin killed a dude with an umbrella)

Mad Hatter's quirks relating to the Lewis Carrol books

Traits directly from the book:

These are just a reference for me to look at for future Batman fanfiction and shitposts because I want to get them right, and perhaps for anyone who hasn’t read the book Alice in Wonderland. If Jervis is truly trying to mirror the Hatter to the letter, he should get all of these. 

If you want to see the traits alluded to instead, they’re under the cut. If you’re interested in some of my personal headcanons, they’re also just under the cut.

Anyways, here we go.

- According to illustrations, he’s small and wears a proper dress shirt, coat, and bowtie, along with a large hat with a card stuck in the top reading “In this style 10/6”

- The Hatter appears in chapter 7 and 11 of the book and not in Through the Looking Glass. He’s with the March Hare and the Dormouse, who can be percieved as his best friends.

- If you attempt to sit down uninvited at his table, he’ll shout “No room! No room!” even if there’s tons of room available.

- If you sit down without his invitation, he’ll be grumpy. Even though the Hare does this, Jervis can offer you wine even if there’s no wine at the table, calling you out for sitting without an invitation.

- He has an odd need to cut Alice’s hair. “Your hair wants cutting.”

- “Why is a raven like a writing desk?” This is the most common question he’ll ask people. Those who get it right will put him in good spirits with them.

- The answer to the riddle, by the way, is “I haven’t the slightest idea” or just saying you don’t know. There is no answer. Lewis Carroll never came up with an answer until a bunch of fans of his work wrote to him, so Jervis stays faithful to the book.

- He’ll easily confuse you if you contradict yourself. For example, when Alice says that “I mean what I say” is the same thing as “I say what I mean”, the Hatter replies with the notion that it’s like saying “I see what I eat” is the same as “I eat what I see”.

- He has a pocketwatch that tells the day, month, and year instead of the time. And it’s two days off.

- He can’t tell the time because he believes that it’s 6:00 all the time. This is because Time, who is described as a person, doesn’t like him, and thus stopped moving for him.

- 6:00 was British tea time back then, which explains his obsession with tea.

- He loves stories, and will demand one from others.

- He also sings. Yes, he sings. “Twinkle twinkle little bat, how I wonder what you’re at. Up above the world you fly, like a tea tray in the sky.” Luckily, that’s all.

- He’s also no stranger to rude remarks, even calling Alice stupid at one point.

- There’s a point where he tries to shove the oversized Dormouse into a teapot. I like this idea because I like imagining Jervis grabbing Riddler by the hair and slamming his head into a teapot.

- He collects hats to sell them, so he has a large variety.

- He has a large fear of the King and Queen of Hearts. In fact he gets extremely anxious in these situations when under a lot of pressure and fumbles when he speaks to the point where he even fucks up a few of his movements, biting a piece out of a teacup instead of his bread.

Jervis’ possible quirks according to the books:

These aren’t particularly attributed to the Mad Hatter, but can be used as references that are good to know. Most of these are about Alice or Wonderland in general.

- Alice prefers picture books, so, being in a place of imagination, it would make sense the Mad Hatter would like them more. However, being a genius, he will read regular books if he really must. He just finds them boring.

- Despite speaking more than proper English, there are some made up words sometimes from the book that Alice or the characters use, like the infamous phrase “Curiouser and curiouser,” which was a word made up and coined by Lewis Carroll. Though, it’s not considered a legit word. Examples also incluse “pleasanter”, Expect Jervis to use a few of those.

- The metaphors are very odd and almost always come from the books, and are hard to understand. For example, “shutting up like a telescope” means to get smaller.

- At one point, Alice gets confused about who she is, believing herself to be another little girl instead of Alice. It would make sense for the Mad Hatter to call other people he believes to be “Alice” by that name, believing they’re just confused over who they are.

- He’ll sometimes speak to animals as if they’re people. Does he expect them to answer? Maybe.

- Alice is actually learning French. It would make sense for Jervis to deliberately learn French for this purpose. He just might be bilingual.

- Alice carries around a box of comfits and enjoys marmalade. Jervis might be more favorable to sweets.

- Most of the denizens of Wonderland are animals, so it can be gussed that Jervis would have a love of them.

- “We’re all mad here,” says the Cheshire Cat. Jervis could very well know he’s nuts and just rolls with it. Hell, he might even desire it, possibly refusing psychoactive treatment.

Personal headcanons:

- It’s already been established he’s short as fuck, but hey.

- Jervis names every supervillian and hero in Gotham after a character in the book. For example, Jonathan is the March Hare, Batman is the Jabberwocky, Joker is the Queen of Hearts and Harley is the king, things like that.

- He has very proper English and uses complex vocabulary, as well as made up words from the book. The only ones who can really understand him completely are Scarecrow, Riddler, and Batman, who have read the books front to back to understand him.

- He has a copy of Alice’s Adventures with him at all times. He’ll hand it to someone if they can’t understand what he’s talking about. Scarecrow dubs it “Jervis’ dictionary”.

- To calm himself down from a particularly harsh schizophrenic episode, he hums some of the rhymes from the books.

- The rhymes and phrases he mutters to himself when it gets quiet also dictate what mood he’s in. Usually he’s pretty cheerful, but the poems get darker as the more disgruntled or sadistic he feels.

- He’s prone to suddenly stopping himself in random conversations and quiet situations to squeal that he’s late or something like that. He’ll continue to freak out for a good thirty seconds before calming down and continuing to talk like nothing happened.

- No one actually knows what he’s late for, but reminding him of it is a good way to stop him in his tracks for a good few seconds. The only time this doesn’t work is with a serious event going on or if he’s upset.

- His most prized possessions are his hat and his copy of Alice in Wonderland, but in case those are every destroyed, he has, like, twenty other duplicates at home.

-He is bilingual in both French and English.

- He’ll take a hammer to any copy of the Burton movies he comes across.

“Thank you and come again!” Madeline was ecstatic, it had been quite a while since she had attended a party. Although she couldn’t help, but wonder if she should have asked for directions and time. Thinking about running to try to check him she then spotted an envelope on the counter. Snatching it up, she immediately opened it. ~ You Are Cordially Invited to the Mad Tea party ~ Located: Guildford Main Street, 1589 At: 6:00 p.m.

The invitation was short and to the point so she didn’t think much of it. Looking at the clock she eagerly awaited to get off work so she could go home and get ready. Time skip 5:03 p.m. Slipping on a pair of black flats, Madeline looked herself over in the mirror one last time to make sure everything matched (This was something she often struggled with). Luckily, the simple orange skirt and green shirt worked well together. Finally, she grabbed the invitation and began walking towards Guildford Main. Finally at 6:08 she arrived, smiling she nocked on the door.

Party Pastries

𝓣𝓱𝒆 𝓗𝓪𝓽𝓽𝒆𝓻 ʜᴀᴛᴇᴅ ʙᴇɪɴɢ ʟᴀᴛᴇ, ᴀɴᴅ ɪᴛ ᴡᴀs ᴀɴ 𝓪𝓬𝓺𝓾𝓲𝓻𝒆𝓭 𝓽𝓻𝓪𝓲𝓽. ʜᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ᴅᴇᴠᴇʟᴏᴘᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴏɴ ʙᴇʜᴀʟғ ᴏғ ᴀ ᴘᴀʀᴛɪᴄᴜʟᴀʀ 𝓻𝓪𝓫𝓫𝓲𝓽, ᴀɴᴅ ᴀs sᴜᴄʜ ʜᴇ 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭𝓷'𝓽 𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓷𝓭 ᴛʜᴇ ɪᴅᴇᴀ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇ ᴡᴀs ɴᴇᴀʀʟʏ 𝓛𝓐𝓣𝓔  ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘɪᴄᴋ-ᴜᴘ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ᴀʀʀᴀɴɢᴇᴅ. 𝓔𝓢𝓟𝓔𝓒𝓘𝓐𝓛𝓛𝓨 𝔀𝓱𝒆𝓷 ɪᴛ ᴡᴀs ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ 𝓽𝓻𝒆𝓪𝓽𝓼 ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ᴏʀᴅᴇʀᴇᴅ - ғᴏʀ ʜɪs ᴛᴇᴀ ᴘᴀʀᴛʏ 𝓵𝓪𝓽𝒆𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓭𝓪𝔂, ᴏғ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜɪɴɢs!

ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴏғ ᴀ 𝓻𝓪𝓽𝓱𝒆𝓻 𝓵𝓪𝓻𝓰𝒆 ᴠᴀʀɪᴇᴛʏ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴀʟʟ ᴏғ ᴡʜɪᴄʜ ʜᴇ ʜᴏᴘᴇᴅ ʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴏɴᴇ ᴅᴀʏ ᴄᴏɴᴠɪɴᴄᴇ ʜɪs 𝓐𝓵𝓲𝓬𝒆 ᴛᴏ ᴛᴀsᴛᴇ-ᴛᴇsᴛ ʜᴇʀsᴇʟғ. ʜᴇ ᴡᴀɴᴛᴇᴅ ʜᴇʀ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ 𝓗𝓐𝓟𝓟𝓨 ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ᴀʟʟ, ᴀɴᴅ ɪᴛ ᴡᴀsɴ'ᴛ 𝓱𝒆𝓻 ғᴀᴜʟᴛ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜᴇ ғᴀᴋᴇ 𝓐𝓵𝓲𝓬𝒆𝓼 ʟɪᴛᴛᴇʀᴇᴅ ᴛʜᴇ sᴛʀᴇᴇᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ 𝓹𝓵𝓪𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓬 𝓫𝓪𝓰𝓼. sᴜʀᴇʟʏ ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴀʙʟᴇ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇᴀʀ 𝓻𝒆𝓼𝒆𝓶𝓫𝓵𝓪𝓷𝓬𝒆, ʙᴜᴛ ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴡᴇʀᴇ 𝓗𝓐𝓡𝓓𝓛𝓨 ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇ ᴡᴀs ʟᴏᴏᴋɪɴɢ ғᴏʀ.

ᴛʜᴇ ғᴀᴋᴇ 𝓐𝓵𝓲𝓬𝒆𝓼 ʜᴇ ʙʀᴏᴜɢʜᴛ ᴛᴏ ʜɪs ᴘᴀʀᴛɪᴇs ᴜsᴜᴀʟʟʏ ᴇɴᴅᴇᴅ ᴜᴘ ʙᴇɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ 𝓜𝓐𝓢𝓚𝓔𝓓 𝓡𝓐𝓑𝓑𝓘𝓣𝓢 ʜᴇ ‘ᴄᴏɴᴠɪɴᴄᴇᴅ’ ᴛᴏ ʀᴜɴ ᴇʀʀᴀɴᴅs ᴀɴᴅ sᴇᴀʀᴄʜ ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʀᴜᴇ 𝓐𝓵𝓲𝓬𝒆, ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜ ʜᴀɴᴅʟɪɴɢ 𝓹𝓪𝓼𝓽𝓻𝓲𝒆𝓼 ᴡᴀs ʜᴀʀᴅʟʏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʏᴘᴇ ᴏғ ᴊᴏʙ ʜᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ɪɴ ᴍɪɴᴅ ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇᴍ. ɪᴛ ᴡᴀs ɪʀʀɪᴛᴀᴛɪɴɢ, ʜᴀᴠɪɴɢ 𝓖𝓤𝓔𝓢𝓣𝓢 ᴡʜᴏ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅɴ’ᴛ ᴅᴏ sᴜᴄʜ sɪᴍᴘʟᴇ ғᴀᴠᴏʀs ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ 𝓗𝓞𝓢𝓣. ᴀɴᴅ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ʜᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ʙᴇᴇɴ sᴏ ᴋɪɴᴅ ᴀs ᴛᴏ ɪɴᴠɪᴛᴇ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ɪɴᴛᴏ ʜɪs 𝓦𝓸𝓷𝓭𝒆𝓻𝓵𝓪𝓷𝓭, ᴛᴏᴏ!

ᴀᴘᴘʀᴏᴀᴄʜɪɴɢ ʜɪs 𝒇𝓪𝓿𝓸𝓻𝓲𝓽𝒆 𝓼𝓱𝓸𝓹𝓹𝒆, ʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅɴ’ᴛ ʜᴇʟᴘ ʙᴜᴛ ғɪɴᴅ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ 𝓢𝓐𝓜𝓔 𝓖𝓘𝓡𝓛 ʀᴀɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴜɴᴛᴇʀ, ᴛʜᴇ 𝓖𝓘𝓡𝓛 ʜᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ɢʀᴏᴡɴ sᴏ ғᴀᴍɪʟɪᴀʀ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ʜɪs 𝓹𝓻𝒆𝓿𝓲𝓸𝓾𝓼 ᴠɪsɪᴛs! ᴏʜ, ᴀɴᴅ sʜᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ʙᴇᴇɴ sᴏ 𝓚𝓘𝓝𝓓 ᴛᴏ ʜɪᴍ ᴀs ᴡᴇʟʟ, ᴡʜᴇᴛʜᴇʀ sʜᴇ 𝓻𝒆𝓪𝓵𝓲𝔃𝒆𝓭 ɪᴛ ᴏʀ 𝓝𝓞𝓣. ʜɪs ᴘᴀsᴛʀɪᴇs ᴇᴠᴇɴ ᴡᴇʀᴇ 𝓢𝓣𝓘𝓛𝓛 sɪᴛᴛɪɴɢ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ʙᴏxᴇs ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴜɴᴛᴇʀ, ɴᴏᴛ ᴏɴᴇ 𝓶𝓲𝓼𝓼𝓲𝓷𝓰 ᴅᴇsᴘɪᴛᴇ ᴛʜᴇ 𝓣𝓘𝓜𝓔 ɪᴛ ʜᴀᴅ ᴛᴀᴋᴇɴ ʜɪᴍ ᴛᴏ ɢᴇᴛ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ! sᴜʀᴇʟʏ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ sᴜᴄʜ 𝓖𝓔𝓢𝓣𝓤𝓡𝓔𝓢, ʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴏɴʟʏ ʀᴇᴛᴜʀɴ ᴛʜᴇ 𝓱𝓸𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓽𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓽𝔂 ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀɴ 𝓘𝓝𝓥𝓘𝓣𝓐𝓣𝓘𝓞𝓝 ᴛᴏ ʜɪs ᴘʀɪᴠᴀᴛᴇ ᴇᴠᴇɴᴛ?

ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀ 𝔀𝓪𝓻𝓶 𝓼𝓶𝓲𝓵𝒆, ʜᴇ ᴀᴘᴘʀᴏᴀᴄʜᴇᴅ ʜᴇʀ - ɴᴏᴛ ᴡɪᴛʜᴏᴜᴛ ᴘʟᴀᴄɪɴɢ ᴅᴏᴡɴ ʜɪs 𝓹𝓪𝔂𝓶𝒆𝓷𝓽 ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴜɴᴛᴇʀ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀ ᴛɪᴘ 𝓗𝓔𝓐𝓥𝓘𝓔𝓡 ᴛʜᴀɴ ɴᴏʀᴍᴀʟ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴀᴄᴄᴏᴍᴘᴀɴɪᴇᴅ ʙʏ ᴀɴ 𝒆𝓷𝓿𝒆𝓵𝓸𝓹𝒆.

❝   W𝘩𝑦 𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑟, I 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝘩𝑜𝑤 𝘩𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑦 𝑦𝑜𝑢’𝑣𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑑𝑒 𝑚𝑒 𝑏𝑦 𝑠𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑦 𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑦𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛! M𝑦 𝑎𝑝𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑑𝑦, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑡𝘩 𝑎 𝑠𝑐𝘩𝑒𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑒 𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑘𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑠 𝑚𝑦 𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑖𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑏𝑒 𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑝𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙. I 𝘩𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑛 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝘩𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑦 𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟, 𝑤𝘩𝑒𝑟𝑒 I 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝘩𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠. I𝑡'𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝑚𝑦 𝘩𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝘩𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑡 𝑚𝑦 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛𝑡, 𝑠𝘩𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝘩𝑜𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑝𝑡, 𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑠..?  ❞

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