It had been almost a year since Barbara Gordon had taken up the moniker 'Batgirl', and she still had yet to get used to the distinctive rogue's gallery that her mentor and friend had antagonized.

Thankfully, the one thing she'd managed to adapt to with ease was the fact that her mail could, at any time, be booby-trapped. Growing up as the daughter of a police commissioner in the most crooked city on Earth had prepared her for that, and Barbara had taken to screening her every package before opening it.

So, when she received a package from an anonymous sender, she had naturally been dubious of its contents. But, despite her initial misgivings, repeated investigations had revealed only a small DVD in the box. Since Barbara didn't believe in such nonsense as the occult, she decided to place the disc in her player-though she did remain at a respectable distance in case the disc exploded.

She needn't have bothered. The disc simply whirred to life in the player, and a pair of golden words appeared before a black-and-white spiraled background: 'Combat Training'. Barbara rolled her eyes and groaned, folding her arms.

So, this was from Bruce. The man always did have a lovely way of surprising her. No doubt this was some tape to teach her on some newfound Tibetan kung-fu or the like. Barbara waited for the screen to change, only to blink in surprise at the sight of a young female mime with white makeup and black-painted teardrops on her face.

"So... Not from Bruce." Barbara spoke slowly, arching an eyebrow as the mime waved cheerfully to her.

Subtitles came on the screen below the mime, and the girl on-screen directed the woman's attention to them. +Hello! I'm Rachel Roth, but you can call me Ms. Mime!+ The mime did a wave and a happy bow, her smile widening. +Today I'll be teaching you the greatest self-defense of all: the art of miming!+

"Yeah... No." Barbara spoke slowly, walking over to the television to switch it off. However; before she could, another figure entered the video shot: a man in a dark ski mask. He moved threateningly towards Ms. Mime, only for the girl to seemingly deflect his attacks with a series of invisible walls.

Well, if nothing else; this disc would serve as entertainment until Barbara went out on her nightly crime hunt. She watched Ms. Mime outlined either a baseball bat or a golf club in her hands, swinging it hard into her assailant.

Much to Barbara's surprise, it had a visible effect on the man; knocking him to the ground in an unconscious heap. Ms. Mime turned back to the camera with a grin, twirling the invisible weapon in her hands.

+As you can see, the art of miming is actually an art of chi manipulation. By harnessing the power of belief, we can actually affect reality!+ Ms. Mime enthusiastically waved her hands as she conveyed her message to Barbara; then flopped backwards as if onto a comfy couch. +Or something like that.+ She waved her hands, a grin on her face as she remained in a perfect sitting posture despite having only one foot on the ground.

Barbara's eyebrows shot up to her hairline, and she let out a low and appreciative whistle at that. Holding a pose like that required some serious muscles, and the girl on-screen wasn't so much as wobbling. "Maybe there is something to this 'chi manipulation'..." Barbara spoke slowly, remembering how Bruce himself had gone through similar training.

+So, if you're now ready to begin your lessons, let's begin with the basics: the invisible wall!+ Ms. Mime hopped from her invisible couch to settle into a relaxed stance, flexing her arms gently. +Try and keep up!+

Barbara rolled her eyes, settling into the same pose. Clearly, Ms. Mime didn't realize she was instructing a well-trained vigilante. Barbara had little doubt in her mind that she'd be able to 'keep up'.

The woman watched intently as the girl began to move in a smooth and flowing manner, very similar to a practitioner of Tai Chi. Then she placed both hands on an invisible surface before her, smiling happily and gliding her hands along the wall.

Barbara followed suit, a grin slowly settling along her face as she began to really get into the rhythm of miming. Loathe though she was to admit it, moving like this was really relaxing to her muscles. She might need to make this a regular workout pre-vigilantism.

The heroine looked to the television with a smile, eager to hear what was next from Ms. Mime. And yet... She couldn't help but think that there was something wrong about all of this; that things should be different somehow.

Ms. Mime produced the answer to that riddle with a gesture to her own uniform, looking directly at Barbara as she began to mime words once more. +Of course, even the most practitioner of mimes still needs an outfit to fight crime in. This should come as second nature to any hero, be they sanctioned or vigilante.+

Barbara nodded sagely, looking back to her dressing room anxiously. She glanced back to the television to find new subtitles on screen, and hurriedly read them silently in her head. +Don't worry; you can put me on pause to assemble your new outfit. Look for something in black and white; those are the true colors of a silent defender of justice.+

Well, Barabara didn't know about silent; but she was certainly a defender of justice! What had Bruce been thinking, anyways? Dressing in all black might scare criminals, but it would terrify common citizens as well! He should be showing that every darkness is banded in light, as long as it's set on a just cause!

Determined to make up for her mentor's lapse, Barbara rushed to her dressing room, grabbing her usual armor and a spray kit she'd usually reserved for giving things camouflage. A few changes to the ink later, and she was on her way giving her crime-fighting outfit a nice set of white stripes along the torso.

She added a nice and lacy spiderweb of white onto her arms, marking her wrists and ankles with black bands. Her lower armor and boots she left mostly as is, though she did paint the toe of each shoe a nice and pristine white. After all; what better way to show that the path she walked was pure and just than to show a snow-white coating on her footwear?

With that, Barbara smiled, gathering her armor in her arms and returning to the video, playing it as she began to suit up.

+Now, I hope you haven't started to get dressed yet; because this is really important!+ Ms. Mime conveyed, now miming applying makeup to her face. +You need to get your skin covered before so much as thinking about putting on your outfit! A mime's identity must be kept a secret, after all!+

Barbara nodded sagely at that, pausing the video and running back to her dye station, glad the ink was perfectly safe for human use. She hurriedly stripped naked as the day she was born, then began to play long strips of white paint along her body, until she was a fresh white from head to toe. The whole time, all she could think about was the spiral in the background of the video; a strange symbol that had ensnared her attention and captivated her mind.

Were she a more occult-minded heroine, perhaps Barbara could have stopped what was to come next. Unfortunately for her, she saw no reason to stop the video-though she did keep it paused to apply a pair of black bat symbols to her cheeks with mascara. She didn't bother to cover her eyes with makeup; her cowl was there for that.

Satisfied with the work she'd done so far, Barbara skipped soundlessly back to Ms. Mime, eager to hear what the incredibly performer had to sign next.

+Very good; now we're looking the part! Let's get you dressed in your miming outfit; then we'll have you good to go! Who knows, you could even be as great a hero as me; or Batmime!+

Barbara blinked at that last word, which sounded oddly familiar to her. She knew that her mentor was known as Batman; so it couldn't refer to him... But then who-

She silently started with shock as she remembered that Ms. Mime was waiting for her to get dressed. That was sloppy of her; a performer must never keep her audience waiting!

The heroine hurriedly slipped into her outfit, from her boots to her cowl. The second she slipped the half-helmet over her head, Ms. Mime gave her a silent round of applause, and Barbara bowed deeply.

+You've done spectacularly! All that's left for me is to teach you some of miming's greatest techniques; then you'll be good to go out and fight crime!+

Barbara beamed with enthusiasm at that, bouncing on her heels and smiling happily to the television before her. What was she thinking earlier; that this video wouldn't be useful? Already it was reinforcing the art of miming she'd learned so many years ago! She awaited Ms. Mime's next instructions eagerly, unaware that she'd already begun to forget traditional martial arts.

+Okay, so let's begin with the first of a mime's advanced arsenal! The invisible lasso!+ Ms. Mime circled a hand in the air, as though she was spinning a rope over her head. She cast the imaginary object forward, then mimed reeling it in. +Now, you try!+

Barbara hurriedly followed suit, picturing the weight of the rope in her hand; the feel of the air against the cord as it swung through the air again and again. Then, with a heft of her shoulders, she cast the line forward.

Her lasso snared a nearby training dummy on her first try, and Barbara beamed with pride. Of course she'd hit it; she was a natural! Besides that, this surely wasn't the first thing she'd caught with an invisible rope, was it?

Her thoughts drifted as she reeled in the line, physically moving the training dummy closer and closer to herself with every pull of her arms. Yes, she'd certainly caught Captain Cold once with this; and even the notorious Killer Croc had been snared by her invisible reins!

The heroine had no idea that with every action she mimed, she only sank deeper and deeper into an existence that had been hypnotically programmed into her brain. Instead of panicking like she should have, she only smiled and played deeper into a fantasy so vivid, it was becoming reality.

+Very good! Of course, you knew how to do that already; didn't you? So I'm sure that you already know of the invisible pitfall!+

Barbara nodded, miming a large hole in the floor beneath her. She soundlessly laughed and pulled the training dummy in, watching as it fell to her basement. Still, it would be a pain to bring it back up; so she hurriedly mimed an elevator for the bulky thing, carting it back up to her side just in time for Ms. Mime to begin signing again.

+As you should know, a mime's greatest strength lies in their imagination. The heck with any of the Lantern Corps; miming is the real imaginative force in this world!+ Ms. Mime seemed to get extremely enthusiastic here, jumping in the air and punching her fist towards the sky triumphantly. With that, the video clicked off, leaving Barbara alone in her room.

Though the recording had ended, Barbara couldn't help but nod in agreement. Darned straight! Miming was by far the most effective way to fight crime; that's why she'd become Batmime in the first place! She rested her hands on her hips confidently, only to frown at the feeling of something along her waist.

She looked down in confusion to find a utility belt wrapped snugly around herself. That was odd; she couldn't remember ever having owned one of these. Why would she need them when her mind held every tool she'd need?

Barbara unclipped the belt and tossed it onto her couch with a happy smile. She'd probably borrowed it from someone. Huntress, maybe. Either way, that was none of her business; she had crime to fight.

She took a few deep, silent breaths; focusing her mind at the task at hand. She was Batmime. She was Batmime. She was Batmime. She let out the last breath with a large smile, completely unaware she'd just erased all thoughts of Batgirl from her mind, instead having accepted the new identity as her own.

Then, dressed in her traditional bichromatic attire, Batmime set out into the night, determined to dole out some silent justice.