Claire listened while trying her best to memorize what each gadget did.50Please respect copyright.PENANApTehq67lNm
These weren’t just flashy props—they were more precise, more grounded than anything she'd seen in a movie. Almost everything had a backup system or some kind of emergency override.50Please respect copyright.PENANAsxNRsW4XUm
Calling this place a “safehouse” was generous.50Please respect copyright.PENANAeeH0wnFDO1
It was a bunker. A battle-ready one.
“That’s the comm terminal,” Nightwing said, pointing to a row of devices on the wall.50Please respect copyright.PENANAZdxeaafbsa
“If you need to reach us, hit this. But only during this window—”
“—before the reset kicks in,” Robin finished, matter-of-factly.
Batman added next. He handed Claire a slip of paper with a long string of numbers and symbols.
“This is the door code. You’ll need it to get in. No keys, no fingerprint ID, no voice recognition—none of that survives the loop. Memorize it.”
Then came weapons hour.
His voice dropped, colder. He picked up a gun and handed it to her, but didn’t let go immediately.
“Only use it to protect yourself. Never to strike first.”
His gaze cut through her—through muscle, bone, marrow.
“I know you’re not a bad person, Claire.50Please respect copyright.PENANAWHUxNUl4UQ
But that doesn’t mean you won’t make a bad choice under pressure.50Please respect copyright.PENANAFO8gpJxkgI
This is a weapon, not magic. It doesn’t solve problems. It just ends them.”
Claire swallowed and nodded.50Please respect copyright.PENANAQSpVJZ00Qz
I’m a good citizen.50Please respect copyright.PENANAgXd77wxScl
Really.50Please respect copyright.PENANAhXq1iLLdGD
I’ll aim it at the crack, and only at the crack.
They circled back to the crack.
Notes spread across the table. Claire had drawn a few sketches—long shapes, sky proportions from what she saw with her eyes closed.
“What if it’s not just appearing,” Nightwing said, “but actually… approaching?”
“Then the point of contact is her,” Batman replied, circling her name at the center of a page.50Please respect copyright.PENANAgArnEPCNI9
“It’s fishing. Claire’s the bait.”
Every conclusion went onto paper.50Please respect copyright.PENANACHWFagYbCb
Paper remembered. Claire had to remember too. Just in case paper didn’t make it through.
By the next noon, Claire was slumped over the table, hand still resting on a sheet labeled PLAN F.50Please respect copyright.PENANA6QSUwVqgrb
Her head buzzed, vision blurred, like someone had pressed rewind on her brain.50Please respect copyright.PENANAEEjvCQAZMY
It was happening again.
“No…” she tried to say.50Please respect copyright.PENANA39c94QTvVB
But all she managed was a twitch of the fingers, a faint tap on the letter F.
Footsteps.50Please respect copyright.PENANAPFkFXleEzH
Someone approached.
Arms wrapped around her.50Please respect copyright.PENANAtVB6XRHquc
Firm, steady. Familiar.50Please respect copyright.PENANAiliyGdIodF
There was the faint scent of shampoo in the air—clean, comforting.
She squirmed, barely.
This isn’t my bed, she wanted to mumble.
But she had no strength. Her body gave in to the embrace, tucked beneath a blanket.
Right before slipping under again, only one thought remained:
Screw it. I’ll just come back tomorrow.
50Please respect copyright.PENANATBG3HZc7eX
Claire got used to it. For real.
She hadn’t expected to find rhythm in the repetition—not just survive, but start to live well-ish, like some glitch-proof war correspondent who recalibrates her memory each morning before heading back into chaos.
Every day started the same:50Please respect copyright.PENANAoJRTNzQDYx
She woke up and wrote down the number of times she’d repeated the day.
She wasn’t sure if her count was accurate anymore, but at least it gave her something solid to check against.50Please respect copyright.PENANA91UjVM4D7D
Something to prove she hadn’t snapped.
Then she opened the café.
The soft ding of the door chime gave her the daily illusion that the world was still spinning as usual. The hiss of the espresso machine kicked in. She counted the seconds.
Waited for the footsteps.
If Claire’s bagels weren’t available until 10 a.m.—50Please respect copyright.PENANAVuYEJJTvbv
That cop named Dick would show up. In uniform. Hands in pockets. Always on time.
If Claire mentioned ghosts, or sounded a little unhinged—50Please respect copyright.PENANAfIrZPdieYC
Like asking, “Do you think a soul can get stuck in a single moment?”50Please respect copyright.PENANApRnkgUznwF
Or, “If today is yesterday again, then where did yesterday go?”50Please respect copyright.PENANAqMTvJH61RK
Or anything else that made her sound like she needed to be gently escorted into psychiatric care—
The informant at the counter would discreetly alert Nightwing.
That’s how she found out “I might be having a breakdown” was an actual trigger phrase to summon a superhero.
She sometimes wondered:50Please respect copyright.PENANACzxIgx9wJb
Who designed this whole failsafe system? Batman?
And sure enough, Nightwing would show up later that night.
Looking very much like he was “just passing by.”
Then he’d sit down. And start coaxing answers out of her.
But honestly?50Please respect copyright.PENANAvlK3Rdi8rd
She’d already discovered a faster method.
Just leave a bagel on the balcony at 11 p.m.—50Please respect copyright.PENANAffLUyFuXuE
Worked three out of three times.
So depending on her mood, Claire chose her summoning style.50Please respect copyright.PENANAcpu9eVH5zL
Same result either way. Just different openings.
Still, she preferred the “mental breakdown” version.
Especially since Nightwing always looked visibly conflicted when it happened.50Please respect copyright.PENANAkuqddtGne0
Every time, he’d stare at her for a few seconds, calculating how much he should trust her today.
That expression—hesitant and tight—like she’d just told him the Earth was about to explode, and he had to smile back and go, “Cool. Let’s finish this coffee first.”
He had range.
Worry. Frustration. Doubt. Guilt.50Please respect copyright.PENANAuvX2RCiauV
Claire kept a mental chart: Nightwing’s Emotional Weather: Today’s Forecast.
In some twisted way, it felt like watching a drama series.
And she liked it.
Because in this endless loop, the only thing that really changed…50Please respect copyright.PENANAlcFpSyXBEw
Was the light in his eyes.50Please respect copyright.PENANAmcCe5eyGag