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Jul. 29th, 2008 09:37 amIt's a simple plan. She finds the bar just before the polls open, and follows the crowd of nearly a hundred street people to the polling station, just needing to catch them in the act.
She never gets the chance.
Just as they're approaching the station, an home homeless woman starts wailing, out of control.
"My eyes!" she screams, "my eyes! I can't see!"
Mo, Dinah's target, is conveniently near the distraught blinded woman, and clamps a gloved hand over her mouth before she can say anything else. He cringes away when the bearded man snaps at him, "what the hell did you pour down her throat?"
Mo has no words, and Beardie turns away in disgust, fielding the rest of his poll fixing flock down the street. "C'mon fellas, we don't want to be late."
Dinah doesn't follow. She can't. Still in the shadows of an alley, in the trash and the dirt, she stares, transfixed, as Mo closes his other hand over the old woman's nose and forces her down.
Paralysed with horror, Dinah watches him murder a blind old lady.
It's only when he drops the body to the floor like a lump of meat and strides away that she finds herself able to move. Not after him, but to the old lady. Fishnets tear as her knees scrape the road, and she gathers the woman into her arms, but already much to late. Eyes clouded with tears, Dinah holds her head back and wails silently.
By the time despair gives way to anger and determination; and she gets to her feet to chase Mo, he's already out of sight.
"No..."
The old woman murdered by Mo wasn't the only victim of the moonshine. As evening approaches and she starts hunting down her quarry, Dinah begins to discover more bodies. Three in the space of a few hours; faces distorted in pain, hands cold against stomachs or mouths, one in a pool of his own vomit. Each time, she finds the body too late to save them, and the even more people she finds looking sick and scared, are too scared to tell the woman in the costume what might be wrong.
The night is a failure, and Dinah just gets angrier and angrier. It doesn't occur to her to go to school the next day. She'll just have to ask around, and starts around the bars in the neighbourhood of the poll in question. It's not until the sun starts setting that she discovers a successful tactic.
Before Dinah can even start asking questions, as soon as she sits at the bar, the bartender passes her a glass of some brown sticky liquid.
"Uh, I don't drink."
"It's caramel water, sister." He's gruff, but friendly, giving Dinah a sort of patronising look. "None of the girls drink when they're walking. You are working, aren't you?"
He thinks she's a prostitute. Clearly it must be the fishnets - Dinah wonders for a second why her Mom never mentioned this, but she decides to go with the line. "Sure - but right now I'm mostly looking for Mo. He owes me, you know - for yesterday."
"Oh yeah," the barman says with a wry smirk. "I heard he was paying the local girls to take the aftrenoon off and vote. How much you squeeze him for?"
Dinah twitches her mouth sideways to give a look she hopes is naive hope. "$10?"
"I love to see Mo pinched but you sold yourself cheap, kid. You can find him holed up in the Wayfarers. And then get your butt back to school."
She wishes all bartenders were as cool as Justin. But this guy's rough concern makes her smile anyway as she slips out and heads towards the Wayfarers - a run down hotel a few blocks down. She gives the same 'working girl chasing payment' story to a half-interested receptionist, and sneaks her way up to the only occupied room in the place. There, Dinah crouches at the door and peers in the keyhole, to where her Mr. Beard is busy taking his frustration out on Mo. And the walls of the room.
"What was in those bottles, Mo? What was in those bottles?"
"But - but - you tol' me not to waste any more money, or - or - "
"Moonshine. You bought rotgut street liquor. You got any idea what the Roman's gonna do t'us if this turns into an election scandal? Do ya? It's not about some cheez precinct, Mo. It's a damn Empire we're messing with."
Mo takes the beating badly, and ends up cowering on the floor. "I can fix it, Larry. Honest to god. I can fix... fix..."
"You'd better." Larry pulls Mo up by his lapels, Outside, Dinah guesses what will happen and scurries away, hiding around a corner in the corridor. Just as she gets around there, the door is opened by Mo flying through it, surrounded by old bottles.
"'Cause what they'll do to us will make death look pretty!" Larry shouts from inside as the door slams back. as Dinah watches, Mo gathers up the bottles and runs out of the hotel.
Bottles.
Moonshine.
Oh god, he's going to kill them all.
Dinah gives him a head start to avoid Larry's notice, then follows, sliding down the banister and leaping into the street past the astonished receptionist.
"Hey!" she screams, "MO!"
He jumps, shattering the bottles in his hands, and looks back in fear before he starts running away.
It was stupid, shouting, but no more stupid than trying to run in these heels, what was her Mom thinking? Dinah sprints after him, following him out into the crowded main street.
"You're not getting away from me, you murderer!"
People turn to star at her, but they don't get out of her way, and he's already on the bus.
"I" Dinah puts on another spurt on speed and reaches out with her Mom's leather gloves towards the back of the bus.
"Won't." She's going to make it..
"Let..." aaagh!
Getting hit by a car behind her wasn't part of the plan. She's thrown back against the hood, and has to whip her legs up to prevent them being crushed to shatters against the bus.
"YOU!" As she rolls back, she recognises Larry at the wheel. Apparently he came to the resuce of his colleague, but Dinah really won't let him. She continues to roll, straightening out her feet to send her heels straight through the windshield, and into his face.
So that's why her Mom wore these ridiculous heels. She follows through and tires not to think of the grossness of sitting in the unconscious guy's lap as she drops down to reach for the brake. She fails, and the car slams into the back of the slowing bus, which she guesses is for the best.
One down.
Out of the car, Dinah leaps onto the roof of the bus as people crowd out in a panic. Among them is Mo, but instead of milling around the crash site, he tires to run away.
Dinah leaps after him
Her heel slams into his back and he falls to the floor, but still has enough fight in him to turn and punch his assailant in the stomach. He kicks her, and knocks the wind out for a second. Dinah responds to that by kicking him hard in the chin, and punching his face with enough force to knock him to the ground unconscious.
"I told you you wouldn't get away with this."
She stays until the police arrive, and arrest Mo and Larry on the witness statement from the Black Canary. she poses for a picture with one of the officers who apparently has always been a fan. They take the men away.
Within the week, Larry and Mo will receive visitors and later be found dead in their cells.
Someone got away with it.
She never gets the chance.
Just as they're approaching the station, an home homeless woman starts wailing, out of control.
"My eyes!" she screams, "my eyes! I can't see!"
Mo, Dinah's target, is conveniently near the distraught blinded woman, and clamps a gloved hand over her mouth before she can say anything else. He cringes away when the bearded man snaps at him, "what the hell did you pour down her throat?"
Mo has no words, and Beardie turns away in disgust, fielding the rest of his poll fixing flock down the street. "C'mon fellas, we don't want to be late."
Dinah doesn't follow. She can't. Still in the shadows of an alley, in the trash and the dirt, she stares, transfixed, as Mo closes his other hand over the old woman's nose and forces her down.
Paralysed with horror, Dinah watches him murder a blind old lady.
It's only when he drops the body to the floor like a lump of meat and strides away that she finds herself able to move. Not after him, but to the old lady. Fishnets tear as her knees scrape the road, and she gathers the woman into her arms, but already much to late. Eyes clouded with tears, Dinah holds her head back and wails silently.
By the time despair gives way to anger and determination; and she gets to her feet to chase Mo, he's already out of sight.
"No..."
The old woman murdered by Mo wasn't the only victim of the moonshine. As evening approaches and she starts hunting down her quarry, Dinah begins to discover more bodies. Three in the space of a few hours; faces distorted in pain, hands cold against stomachs or mouths, one in a pool of his own vomit. Each time, she finds the body too late to save them, and the even more people she finds looking sick and scared, are too scared to tell the woman in the costume what might be wrong.
The night is a failure, and Dinah just gets angrier and angrier. It doesn't occur to her to go to school the next day. She'll just have to ask around, and starts around the bars in the neighbourhood of the poll in question. It's not until the sun starts setting that she discovers a successful tactic.
Before Dinah can even start asking questions, as soon as she sits at the bar, the bartender passes her a glass of some brown sticky liquid.
"Uh, I don't drink."
"It's caramel water, sister." He's gruff, but friendly, giving Dinah a sort of patronising look. "None of the girls drink when they're walking. You are working, aren't you?"
He thinks she's a prostitute. Clearly it must be the fishnets - Dinah wonders for a second why her Mom never mentioned this, but she decides to go with the line. "Sure - but right now I'm mostly looking for Mo. He owes me, you know - for yesterday."
"Oh yeah," the barman says with a wry smirk. "I heard he was paying the local girls to take the aftrenoon off and vote. How much you squeeze him for?"
Dinah twitches her mouth sideways to give a look she hopes is naive hope. "$10?"
"I love to see Mo pinched but you sold yourself cheap, kid. You can find him holed up in the Wayfarers. And then get your butt back to school."
She wishes all bartenders were as cool as Justin. But this guy's rough concern makes her smile anyway as she slips out and heads towards the Wayfarers - a run down hotel a few blocks down. She gives the same 'working girl chasing payment' story to a half-interested receptionist, and sneaks her way up to the only occupied room in the place. There, Dinah crouches at the door and peers in the keyhole, to where her Mr. Beard is busy taking his frustration out on Mo. And the walls of the room.
"What was in those bottles, Mo? What was in those bottles?"
"But - but - you tol' me not to waste any more money, or - or - "
"Moonshine. You bought rotgut street liquor. You got any idea what the Roman's gonna do t'us if this turns into an election scandal? Do ya? It's not about some cheez precinct, Mo. It's a damn Empire we're messing with."
Mo takes the beating badly, and ends up cowering on the floor. "I can fix it, Larry. Honest to god. I can fix... fix..."
"You'd better." Larry pulls Mo up by his lapels, Outside, Dinah guesses what will happen and scurries away, hiding around a corner in the corridor. Just as she gets around there, the door is opened by Mo flying through it, surrounded by old bottles.
"'Cause what they'll do to us will make death look pretty!" Larry shouts from inside as the door slams back. as Dinah watches, Mo gathers up the bottles and runs out of the hotel.
Bottles.
Moonshine.
Oh god, he's going to kill them all.
Dinah gives him a head start to avoid Larry's notice, then follows, sliding down the banister and leaping into the street past the astonished receptionist.
"Hey!" she screams, "MO!"
He jumps, shattering the bottles in his hands, and looks back in fear before he starts running away.
It was stupid, shouting, but no more stupid than trying to run in these heels, what was her Mom thinking? Dinah sprints after him, following him out into the crowded main street.
"You're not getting away from me, you murderer!"
People turn to star at her, but they don't get out of her way, and he's already on the bus.
"I" Dinah puts on another spurt on speed and reaches out with her Mom's leather gloves towards the back of the bus.
"Won't." She's going to make it..
"Let..." aaagh!
Getting hit by a car behind her wasn't part of the plan. She's thrown back against the hood, and has to whip her legs up to prevent them being crushed to shatters against the bus.
"YOU!" As she rolls back, she recognises Larry at the wheel. Apparently he came to the resuce of his colleague, but Dinah really won't let him. She continues to roll, straightening out her feet to send her heels straight through the windshield, and into his face.
So that's why her Mom wore these ridiculous heels. She follows through and tires not to think of the grossness of sitting in the unconscious guy's lap as she drops down to reach for the brake. She fails, and the car slams into the back of the slowing bus, which she guesses is for the best.
One down.
Out of the car, Dinah leaps onto the roof of the bus as people crowd out in a panic. Among them is Mo, but instead of milling around the crash site, he tires to run away.
Dinah leaps after him
Her heel slams into his back and he falls to the floor, but still has enough fight in him to turn and punch his assailant in the stomach. He kicks her, and knocks the wind out for a second. Dinah responds to that by kicking him hard in the chin, and punching his face with enough force to knock him to the ground unconscious.
"I told you you wouldn't get away with this."
She stays until the police arrive, and arrest Mo and Larry on the witness statement from the Black Canary. she poses for a picture with one of the officers who apparently has always been a fan. They take the men away.
Within the week, Larry and Mo will receive visitors and later be found dead in their cells.
Someone got away with it.
