BAE Chapter 52

“Zatanna may be able to help. Luthor’s defenses won’t be strong against her brand of tricks,” Barbara tells Alfred. “Is she in Gotham?”

“Difficult to say,” Alfred replies. “She’s putting on a show at the Monarch Theater every week.”

Barbara sighs. “But is it really her? Does she have a show tonight?”

“No.”

Great. A cold call. Barbara puts the PIN in her phone to access the hidden contact list and taps for Zatanna. There are quite a few rings, but Barbara waits confidently. Most people don’t ignore calls from this number.

“What’s the occasion?” Zatanna asks.

“Apologies, Miss Zatara. This is Batgirl, not Batman.”

“What kind of trouble are you in?”

“You know, I might’ve been calling to score tickets to your show for a date,” Barbara replies. “Did you think of that?”

“How’s Bruce?”

“Who?”

“How’s Batman?”

“You tell me.”

Zatanna sighs. “I was afraid of that.”

“Can we talk?”

“I suppose.” She gives an address, which Barbara relays to Alfred. It takes several minutes to reach the place: a modest, old-fashioned, gothic apartment building in midtown. It’s a dense neighborhood, not poor, but definitely not rich.

BAE

Barbara chooses to go to this meeting as Batgirl. They’ve met once or twice in action, but only briefly. They are barely acquaintances. But Zatanna was always a close friend and Ally to Bruce. She has at least a little respect for what the bat stands for.

Barbara enters the building from the roof, descending a spiral staircase to the third floor, where she makes her way down a narrow corridor tiled in black and white. The door at the end has an old-fashioned knocker. Barbara taps it twice.

“Come in,” Zatanna says.

Barbara finds herself in a modest but cozy one-bedroom full of books and antique furniture. The lights are off and the apartment is almost chilly; the heat isn’t on.

Zatanna is in an armchair, wrapped in a fluffy, purple robe that is a stark contrast to Aki’s sultry satin. It is clear from Zatanna’s presentation that she is not trying to seduce anyone.

“It’s been a few years,” she says. “Have a seat.”

Barbara can read between the lines. The unused apartment; no offer of even a handshake… Zatanna is not really here. That’s a projection or a magical illusion in the chair.

“I’ll stand. I need your help.”

“You wouldn’t have called otherwise.”

“I need to get into Lex Luthor’s safe at his place here in Gotham.”

“You want the Arcane Arts to help you shoplift?”

“I want the Arcane Arts to help me take a big risk. If it pays off, we can help the victims of the Seed Attack. If it doesn’t pay off, we’ll have a big disaster that’ll be my fault. Are you interested?”

Zatanna doesn’t reply right away. “Of all the things that you could be worried about, why this? Is it personal?”

“Not really. I don’t mind what the attack did to me. I’m starting to enjoy it.”

Zatanna looks intrigued.

“But I feel like I’m the only one who can see the writing on the wall. The Seed Formula can radically alter the body much more easily than any other method that’s widely available. It’ll be bad enough when the stuff is on the street and you can slip it to anyone. The real problems start when people start tinkering with it. Getting it to do other things. We need a solution. The sooner we have it, the less damage there will be.”

Zatanna nods. “That’s a good pitch.”

“It’s the truth.”

“Well, you have my vote.”

“I’m going to need some magic. Luthor will have serious security. Can you get in there and get something for me?”

Zatanna looks taken aback. “What? No. No chance. I’m not even in Gotham. And I’m not getting on Luthor’s bad side for anything lower stakes than an interdimensional crisis. Or at least world domination.” She takes a drink from a glass that wasn’t in her hand a moment ago.

“Oh, come on. How would you like it if you woke up one day with a penis?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never thought about it. You said that you were enjoying it.”

“I am. It feels good. And being with women is different.”

“Oh, you aren’t using it on men?”

“Come on. How many guys are going to let you?” Barbara folds her arms.

“More than you’d think. I said that I wouldn’t rob Lex Luthor. I didn’t say that I wouldn’t help. But you won’t like it,” Zatanna predicts.

“Where are you?”

“San Francisco.”

“How can you help me from there?”

“I can project myself into your body.”

Barbara frowns. She puts her gloved hands on her hips. “You can what?”

“Project into your body. I’ll control you. You’ll do the magic instead of me. It’s forbidden magic, but I’ll bend the rules if it’s consensual. Not something you would want to do against someone’s will.”

“What would this entail?”

“It’s easy for you. You’re just along for the ride. I have to do all the hard stuff.” Zatanna looks down at the drink in her hand. “The downside is that I’d be in your head. You’d have no secrets. And no control until I left. I understand if you aren’t comfortable with it.”

She’s proposing something pretty intimate. And Barbara doesn’t love how **** it will make her. Zatanna hasn’t always been one of the good guys, and she is asking Barbara to assume all the risk, which is twofold: Barbara would be putting her trust in Zatanna and risking Lex Luthor’s wrath.

Should Barbara try what Zatanna is proposing?

Or pivot to Selina?