Babblings of the Moon.

When Crystal told him she was pregnant, Arthur thought maybe things were going to get better. Crystal had been funny lately, always with a headache, or not in the mood, but he guessed being knocked up might account for that. Crystal seemed happier too, she sometimes hummed and walked around with one hand over her belly.

Arthur started to think about life with a kid. This radio quiz show stuff was just for starters. He’d been thinking lately, why not TV? He was going to make it big, soon, and by the time the kid was five or six, well, he’d be able to buy the kid stuff, right? Show the kid the good life he never had. Kid’s dad would be a TV star, and Arthur would take the kid to games and everyone would say, “Mr. Brown, I love your show, and is this your boy? Looks just like his dad.”

Of course, things didn’t turn out that way. Crystal’s kid was a girl. He got his TV gig and lost it. Turned out a man can’t do a damn thing in Gotham without the Batman giving him the stink-eye. The girl turned out to be sneaking little thing, and if Crystal had just had a boy, Arthur might have been able to take the kid along on jobs, show him the ropes.

He didn’t realize until the Robin kid shows up that the girl is out running around in a costume. Makes him feel a bit differently about her. Stephanie. Well, of course she ran and tattled to Batman, but still. It’s like she’s following her old dad. In a way.

He started paying a little more attention to her, then. Well, he spent a little bit of time in jail too, and of course Steph never visited, why should she? She was hanging out with Batman, now, no time for her loser dad. And the more he thought about it, the more he wondered if that wasn’t a good thing. Artie had a bad back, and when he let himself think about it, he knew he didn’t really have a future. Maybe once he’d wished his kid would follow in his footsteps, but he wasn’t so stupid, anymore. Artie knew he wasn’t even big time. He wasn’t insane enough, and was okay with that. He’d do something else, if there was anything else to do. But he didn’t want Steph growing up to be just like him.

But Batman, now. Batman’s big time. If Steph is under his protection, well, maybe she’ll turn out okay.