The Night of The Haters (DC fan fiction)

[hobbyfan]

Preamble: This one goes back to when the Wonder Twins were in college, and the issues they have to face are so very real in the here & now. Characters copyright DC Comics/Hanna-Barbera/WarnerMedia, except for new creations.

Chapter 1:

Craig Grant was a rising star on UCLA's football team. A sophomore, Grant was inserted into the lineup due to an injury, and has led the Bruins to three straight wins heading into the annual rivalry game with crosstown rival USC, which was to be played on Thanksgiving weekend.

Four days before the game, Grant, who lived in Los Angeles year round, went out with his girlfriend, Kathy Pearson, and four friends, to a small all-ages club about a mile from campus. Understandably, Grant was besieged for autographs from adoring fans until the bouncers moved his party to a private booth.

Around 10:45 pm local time, Craig and his party started for home. However, Craig found the tires on his car were missing, replaced with cinder blocks. Abruptly, he was set upon by three masked men, as a fourth held Kathy, holding one hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming. Her eyes widened with horror as she saw one of the men raise a cinder block directly over Craig's head.

"He never deserved to have you in the first place.", the man said, as the sickening thud of the block making contact with Grant's skull echoed through the club's parking lot.
====================================================
It was 1:30 am Metropolis time. Daily Planet reporter/photographer Jimmy Olsen took a call from UCLA freshman Jessica Franklin.

"Jimmy? Is Joanna with you?", she asked, referring to her roommate and best friend, Joanna Fleming, Jimmy's girlfriend.

"She's sleeping.", came the reply. "What's the trouble?"

Jessica quickly filled Jimmy in on the murder of Craig Grant.

"Geez, Joanna just came home earlier tonight for Thanksgiving, and she's headed home to Gotham later this morning. If my boss wants me on this, we'll fly out later."

"Jimmy? What's going on?"

Joanna, as Jayna, staggered out of bed, wearing a blue lace nightgown.

"Jessica just called. One of your classmates was just murdered.", Jimmy replied, filling her in.

"Craig is a year ahead of us.", Jayna replied. "We've met, and it's his girlfriend who is in civics class with Jessie & I."
=====================================================
"Apparently, someone doesn't like the idea of mixed relationships on campus out there.", Perry White opined later that morning at the Planet. "Grant's the 4th student murdered in the last month because of it."

"And the first one at UCLA.", Jimmy put in. "According to Joanna, the others were at USC, Pepperdine, and UC-Davis. Same MO. Victim had his skull caved in with a cinder block while his girlfriend was forced to watch."

"We have someone at our West Coast bureau that can handle this.", White said. "You and Joanna can just go on to Gotham for Thanksgiving."

"Yes, sir."

Five minutes later, Jimmy reached the parking lot, where Jayna, with a bonnet over her head to hide her pointed ears, was waiting.

"Any luck, honey?", she asked.

"Perry's already got someone in LA on this. To me, that's code for, he thinks it's too big for us."

"Too big? Seriously?"

"Babe, when you stop and look at the big picture..."

"Oh, wait. I get it. Ours is a mixed relationship, too. If it got out that you were privy to all of my identities..."

"Then you're a target, too."
=================================================
Back in Los Angeles, Clark Kent, on loan from WGBS-TV, had been asked by his old boss to look into the Grant murder. However, his interview with Cindy ran into an unexpected snag.....

"She's not talking to any reporters, Mr. Kent.", Alex Pearson, Cindy's uncle, said. "We warned her it was not a good idea to accept a date with that young fellow, but she didn't listen."

"Mixed relationships are rather common out here, from what I gather.", Kent replied. "I'm sure you've heard of Quincy Jones and Peggy Lipton, for example?"

"Celebrities is one thing. Common folks mixing races is another. Good day."

"Now I know why Perry asked me to look into it. ", Clark thought as he left. "If Jimmy brought Jayna back out here on short notice, he'd be putting her in danger."
==================================================
To be continued.

 

[hobbyfan]

Chapter 2:

Jimmy returned to Metropolis three days later. As Joanna, Jayna was on her way back to Los Angeles, formulating a plan of action of her own.

"Superman said that Cindy's uncle wouldn't allow her to talk to reporters, and probably is forcing her to keep quiet about Craig's murder completely. Hope that changes come Monday.", she thought.

"Cindy's originally from South Carolina.", registrar's assistant Moira Hayes said when Jessie & Joanna inquired on Monday morning. "She's transferring there today, scared out of her mind after what happened a week ago. Her uncle's moving out there, too, and paid the security on their apartment this morning."

"The police are going to want to talk to Cindy, so why run?", Jessie asked.

"She already gave a statement to the police, and indicated at that time she was figuring on packing up and moving, because her uncle didn't like Craig in the first place."

Later that night, as the Night Phantoms, Jessie & Joanna searched the Pearsons' now vacant apartment for clues, and found nothing.

"The entire apartment has been cleaned, spic & span.", Jessie concluded. "Might as well head home."

"Not entirely.", Joanna replied, holding a note pad that the police had missed. "Seems Cindy had plans to stay in town until her uncle convinced her to move ASAP."
===================================
"Cindy was happy here until Craig was murdered.", Civics professor Horace Dewey said when interviewed the next day after class. "She was attracted to Craig not because he was a popular player, but there was something of a mutual attraction. He saw something in her when she tried out for the cheerleading team, and was one of the last ones cut."

"Craig could've had any girl he wanted.", Jessie concluded when the roommates returned home. "He chose Cindy, and it gets him killed. Why?"

"Because they're both from mixed families.", Joanna replied. "Cindy came to UCLA because her parents didn't want her attending South Carolina in the first place, and figured her Uncle Alex would steer her in the 'right' direction socially & romantically."

"Craig was from a mixed marriage, too?", Jessie repeated.

"Yes. His mother had lost a baby a year earlier, and made a deal with a sperm bank. She didn't care who the donor was, and didn't want to know."
===================================
"Craig was the product of desperation.", Paul Grant said when interviewed by Clark Kent. "My wife couldn't have kids anymore after the miscarriage, and took a chance when she was given the phone number of the sperm bank. She hasn't taken Craig's death too well, and won't be happy until they find his killers.

Meanwhile, Felicia Greene, one of Cindy's closest friends on campus, had abruptly quit the cheerleading team, and was considering transferring, just as Cindy did.

"I'm originally from Arizona, so I'm entering the transfer process to head home.", she told Jessie on Thursday morning. "I've seen too much of this already."

"If you run, then the killers win.", Jessie replied. "They stay in the shadows, when they should be exposed and brought to justice."

"I've already gotten death threats.", Felicia said. "My cousin was at Pepperdine, and they caved his head in six weeks ago, just 'cause he was making out with a white girl. Love has no boundaries, you know?"

"That's true, but some people don't understand."

"They don't want to understand, Jessica. Period."
=================================
Back in Metropolis, Jimmy was working on an unrelated story when he was approached by Hale Camden, who represented a group called the One World Order.

"Word on the street, Olsen, is you've been making some time with that alien chick from, what do they call it? Don't be too cozy with her, man."

"Free country, Camden. Why don't you join the current generation?", Jimmy cracked. Luckily for him, Camden was alone.

"Just sayin'. It wouldn't look good for the Daily Planet to lose its newest star reporter so soon.", Camden said as he walked back to his car, and left.

"Now, how would he know Jayna & I are together?", Jimmy wondered. He soon got his answer when he returned to his apartment to find the door and the surrounding walls splattered with graffiti. Behind him, Lois Lane came up the stairs.

"What happened here?", she asked.

"Your guess is as good as mine."
================================
To be continued.

 

[hobbyfan]

Chapter 3:

The next morning at the Daily Planet, Jimmy met with Perry White & Inspector Bill Henderson.

"The One World Order is a hate group, all white supremacists.", Henderson said. "Seems they're on the hunt for the Wonder Twins for some reason."

Jimmy started to bring up his burgeoning relationship with Jayna, but Perry spoke up for him.

"To me, they're just like any other kids their age.", he said. "Seems Superman and the Justice League are letting them develop social lives in their secret identities, but it's also exposing them to this One World Order. Those nuts threatened Jimmy when he was working on an unrelated matter, and vandalized his apartment."

As Henderson left, Jimmy thanked White for his help.

"Don't mention it, Jimmy.", Perry said. "Camden is wanted in six states for his hate-filled attacks on minorities. He went after you to get not so much the Twins' attention, but Superman's as well."

"Would one of those states be California?", Jimmy asked.

"Yes. He's been named a suspect in the murder of Craig Grant and three other college students, all African-American, in the last month. If I were you, Jim, I wouldn't be planning any dates with Jayna anytime soon, to keep her out of danger."

"I understand, sir."
===========================
Back in Los Angeles, Bruce Wayne paid a call on Joanna, except she wasn't home, but Jessie was.

"She's out shopping.", she said. "Should be back within the next half hour."

"Have her call me at this number when she gets back.", Wayne said, handing Jessie a card with a phone number on it. Said number was for a hotel in the city where Bruce was staying while in town for a conference.

"I'll do that, Mr. Wayne."

As Bruce reached the lobby, Joanna finally returned, and Bruce led her to the community room. There, he closed the door.

"Something wrong?", Joanna asked.

"Very, or didn't you get a message from your brother? His girlfriend's been attacked."

Joanna gasped.

"Don't worry. Mary Lou's okay, just shaken. John happened to get there just in time. Even provided the license plate number of the getaway car to the police. Thankfully, he didn't engage them in battle."

"Mary's innocent.", Joanna said.

"I know that, but someone knows about her relationship with John, and the fact you're dating Jimmy. They vandalized Jimmy's apartment in Metropolis last night. They call themselves the One World Order."

"I thought I had a suspect, but he fled town.", Joanna said, referring to Alex Pearson.

"Pearson's clean. I checked on him.", Wayne replied. "The last thing I want to hear is you suiting up to try to shut the One World Order down."

"The thought hasn't crossed my mind." Joanna had her fingers crossed behind her back.
===============================
Later that afternoon, Bruce had stopped in Metropolis, and met with John and his live-in girlfriend, Mary Lou Turner.

"How many of them were there?", Bruce asked.

"Three.", Mary Lou replied. "They all wore ski masks, as usual. Looked like the same guys that killed Tommy Mayerson two weeks ago, just for dating the daughter of one of his teachers."

"What I don't understand", John added, "is why they think they can decide who goes out with whom."

"Because there are people who don't believe in the natural progression of the social scene among young people.", Bruce said. "Your sister may soon be running into the same problem once she gets back here."

He then told them about Jimmy's apartment being vandalized.

"Inter-racial dating's been a thing since at least the 60's, maybe even before that.", John put in.

"This is true.", Bruce replied, "But the people in charge of hate groups like the One World Order would rather that ordinary people don't copy celebrity couples of mixed races."
================================
It was now a week before Christmas. Hale Camden continued to stake out Jimmy's apartment, which had been cleaned up. To the right of his window stood a rifle.

"If that alien girl shows up, she's done.", he said to himself.
================================
To be continued.

 

[hobbyfan]

Chapter 4:

Around 9:05 pm, Lois paid a call on Jimmy, accompanied by Inspector Henderson. Seeing this, Camden closed his window, and pulled the curtains closed. He turned, and found three Metropolis police officers waiting for him.

Across the street, Henderson filled Jimmy in.

"We got a tip that Camden had rented an apartment, and had you staked out for over a week.", he said. "Waiting on your new girlfriend."

"She won't be back for another few days, at least.", Jimmy replied, doing his best to cover for Jayna. "Probably on a JLA case."

Abruptly, there was a commotion, as Camden tried to run away, but was finally restrained and put into the squad car.

"What I can't figure is how he got information on you and your lady.", Lois said.

"That makes three of us.", Jimmy replied.
================================
Wallace Fitzhugh, a prominent city businessman, had posted bond for Camden two hours later, and he wasn't happy.

"Your obsession with the Exorian is bound to attract not just Superman, but the entire Justice League.", he said.

"We're beneath their notice. Why not get their attention?", Camden asked.

"Because I'd rather be under the radar. Superman means too much to the people of this city, and to go after his young proteges would have him at our doorstep in less than a day."

"Then why can't I lean on Olsen some more?"

"Idiot. That still brings Superman into the fight before we're ready."
=================================
Joanna and Jessie returned to Gotham City on Christmas Eve, having been alerted to the prospect of OWO operatives possibly being in the city.

"Jimmy, as of right now, is planning on coming in for New Year's Eve.", Joanna said. "Barring another meeting with the OWO, of course."

"I wouldn't advise it.", Jessie warned. "These guys play for keeps."

"I know, but so did the Wild Wolves, and they were dealt with."
===================================
To be continued.

 

[hobbyfan]

Chapter 5:

The One World Order had somehow gotten a permit for a rally at Robinson Park on New Year's Eve. Hale Camden was the lead speaker, as his patron, Wallace Fitzhugh, remained away, the better to prevent the police in either Metropolis or Gotham City from learning of his involvement.

"Look at what's happened over the last 20 years!", Camden declared. "Mixed marriages are everywhere!"

Before he could continue, Camden was stopped by Gotham police, who'd found out his permit was a fraud. It was all police commissioner James Gordon could do to keep the mob, made up mostly of African-Americans, from going after Camden, especially after it got out earlier that day that he was wanted for extradition back to Los Angeles in connection with Craig Grant's murder.

The next morning, a courier representing Fitzhugh arrived at police headquarters to post bail for Camden. Gordon wasn't having it.

"I'm sorry, but Mr. Camden is being extradited today back to Los Angeles on an outstanding warrant.", he said.

"My employer is willing to provide legal representation.", the courier said. Gordon shook his head.

"City judge has already made an emergency ruling to send him back. He was almost killed last night."
==================================
In Metropolis, Jimmy had returned home after a hot New Year's date with Jayna, and went to work on Fitzhugh. Checking with various informants, Jimmy made some discoveries that he shared with Perry once he returned to the office, unaware he was being followed.

Twenty minutes later, Jimmy left the office, and returned to his car. Vincent Brooks, hired by Fitzhugh, resumed trailing Jimmy, only to be stopped. By Superman.

"You and I need to talk.", Superman said.

In his brownstone office, Fitzhugh had learned of Brooks' arrest, and fumed.

"Everything is falling apart!", he cried. "It can't happen that fast."

"But it can, and it has."

Supergirl appeared in the doorway. Without giving away a previous relationship with Jimmy, she quickly captured Fitzhugh, and brought him to Metropolis PD, meeting with Jimmy, who had gathered evidence on Fitzhugh, linking him to the OWO and the murders.
=============================
A short time later, Jimmy & Supergirl were on the roof of the Planet building.

"Thanks, Kara, for all your help.", Jimmy said.

"When my cousin filled me in, I couldn't resist the urge to help. I can understand keeping Jayna out of this at the end, to protect her and Zan. Speaking of whom, maybe we can do a double date sometime?"

"Zan's already taken, Kara, but might be open for just one night."

Supergirl kissed Jimmy, and flew off as Clark joined Jimmy.

"You're turning into a super chick magnet.", he said.

"Maybe, but wouldn't that ruin my reputation?"

"What reputation?", Clark shot back, laughing, as the two returned to the office.
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The end.