"Enjoy your life today. Yesterday is gone, and tomorrow might never come."
- "Takeshi Yamamoto" (Katekyo Hitman Reborn!)
...
Meanwhile, at Gotham General Hospital
Barbara was in the hospital bed, and she was very serious as she watched the news about the Phantom Thief on the TV in the room.
Cassandra is sitting next to her on a chair, watching with Barbara.
"You seem really interested in that person called Phantom Thief."
Cassandra asks Barbara with a few sign gestures.
"Hmm?"
Barbara was surprised for a moment and then curiously asked, "Why do you say that?"
"When watching other TV programs, you've never been this serious."
Cassandra gestured.
"Well..."
Barbara pondered for a moment and then said, "I'm paying so much attention to the news about Phantom Thief because my father is the police commissioner, and Phantom Thief is a criminal he's trying to catch. So, I keep up with news about Phantom Thief in the hopes that he will be caught someday."
'She was lying.'
Cassandra thought to herself.
She couldn't understand the real meaning behind Barbara's words, but Cassandra could tell from her body language that what Barbara had just said wasn't true.
Cassandra didn't know why Barbara was lying to her, but she didn't intend to reveal it.
Because she was also sure that Barbara only wanted the best for her and had no bad intentions.
Since Barbara didn't want to talk about it, Cassandra would not ask.
Also, Barbara hasn't told Cassandra her secret identity, but Cassandra has a pretty good guess.
The reason was simple.
She had once seen Batgirl patrolling at night, and at that moment, Batgirl was swinging from one building to another using a Grappling Gun.
Even though it was only for a few seconds, Cassandra saw Barbara's shadow when Batgirl moved her body in a very quiet manner.
Cassandra is pretty sure Barbara is Batgirl, but she can't be completely certain about her identity.
She believed Barbara's interest in Phantom Thief may have something to do with her secret identity as Batgirl, and that's why she's lying about it.
Barbara didn't want others to know she was the Batgirl. Cassandra came to this conclusion, but she wasn't sure why.
Cassandra's life was very monotonous because it was always the same.
She could just stand on the roof and watch the sun come up and go down without doing anything else.
She doesn't have a cellphone and never uses the internet. A few months ago, she couldn't even read a single word.
She had no idea how to read books or newspapers. Barbara taught Cassandra to read slowly and carefully.
Without her, she wouldn't have been able to understand the news, even though she still didn't understand much of what she read.
So, Cassandra doesn't know much about the Phantom Thief, Batman, Robin, Batgirl, or any other heroes or villains other than the fact that they exist.
From the day she was born, Cassandra hadn't talked to more than one hand's worth of people, including Barbara and Dean. She had gotten this far by using only her martial arts skills.
Because of this, Cassandra now has a distinctive personality and viewpoint that are uncommon among people.
Cassandra doesn't understand many of the unspoken rules and norms that most people take for granted.
For example, why would Batman or Batgirl cover their faces and not let others know who they were, even though they were doing good deeds?
If Barbara herself cared so much about the Phantom Thief, why did she pretend to do so in her father's name?
Cassandra couldn't figure it out.
Even though she doesn't understand a lot of things, she doesn't go asking for answers unless she really, really wants to know.
"Do you really hate Phantom Thief?"
Cassandra looked at Barbara with her pure eyes and gestured with her hands.
"If I'm being honest, I don't really hate Phantom Thief. I know he is not bad and that he is funny. I even like that about him sometimes."
Barbara did not expect to shake her head, which showed that she doesn't hate the Phantom Thief.
Cassandra could tell Barbara was speaking the truth, which confused her even more.
Even Cassandra, who doesn't pay much attention to the news, knows that heroes and villains are supposed to be enemies.
As Batgirl, Barbara and the Phantom Thief should be enemies.
But Barbara said she didn't hate him, which left Cassandra puzzled even more.
"What the Phantom Thief did was wrong. Even though he doesn't hurt people as much as other criminals and doesn't cause panic, it's still wrong for him to steal other people's things without their permission for his so-called magic shows. More importantly, this kind of bad behavior doesn't lead to good results."
Barbara saw Cassandra's confusion and decided to explain.
Barbara continued, "Phantom Thief did something wrong. It's not a big mistake, but even small mistakes have consequences. That's why my father, Robin, Batgirl, and many others are so determined to catch him."
"But,"
Barbara added, "I think they might not have sent Phantom Thief to prison if Robin or Batgirl had caught him instead of the GCPD. They would probably try to find a way to get him to change his path and convince him to change his ways."
Hearing this, Cassandra's pupils slightly shrank.
'Even the smallest mistakes have consequences... But what if you make a big mistake?'
When Cassandra thought back to what had happened when she was nine, she felt a mix of feelings.
She didn't show it but continued to ask Barbara about Phantom Thief.
For some reason, she suddenly became curious about the Phantom Thief.
"What do you think Phantom Thief's real identity would be like?"
Cassandra gestured to Barbara and asked.
"I'm not sure, I guess he's probably a magician who loves what he does but isn't too interested in anything else. He seems to be very kind and sometimes a little bit playful, and he's very young, probably in his early twenties."
Barbara speculated.
"That's just my guess of the Phantom Thief; as for what he really looks like, I don't know, and no one does."
Cassandra nodded absentmindedly.
At this moment, she suddenly stood up, gestured at Barbara a few times, and walked towards the door.
"Wait, Cassandra, where are you going?"
Barbara was about to call Cassandra, but she had already left the room and closed the door.
'This is really hard to figure out.'
Barbara sighed helplessly and thought to herself, 'I've known Cassandra for almost half a year, but I still feel like I know nothing about her, just like the first time we met.'
Just now, the strange look in Cassandra's eyes didn't escape Barbara's eyes.
Barbara didn't say anything about it.
...
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