Silence - Adopted By Elizabeth Olsen

18.

Lizzie's POV
It's been three weeks since Casey talked to me for the first time. She hasn't said a word since then and I kind of regret telling her she doesn't have to talk if she doesn't want to.

Of course, I want her to be comfortable and happy, but sometimes it can be very frustrating. I tried contacting her grandmother a few times, but still no answer.

The last time I checked her invoice is full. I know I should probably go to the police station or something, but a part of me is too afraid to lose Casey.

Scarlett and Rose left two weeks ago, much to their disliking. It felt weird at first to be without our little family, but it also gave me the chance to improve my bond with Casey. A chance I happily took.

It's almost Halloween and from what I understood, Casey hasn't properly celebrated it yet. So right now we're costume shopping and it's one of my favourite things ever.

"Would like to go as a... Princess?" I ask her as we walk inside, seeing a bright pink princess in front of us. She gags making me chuckle.

"Alright no princess. How about... A cowboy?" I ask as we see the next costume. Her eyes light up, jumping up and down in excitement. I look for a costume in her size along with accessories.

She eagerly takes it from me when we approach the dressing room. I'm about to ask her if she needs help, but she already closed the curtains so I just sit there, patiently waiting.

It takes a while before she gets out with a big smile on her face. I cover my mouth with my hand, trying my very best not to laugh. She has her costume backward, but I don't think she even cares.

She is walking out with a fake pistol in each hand, shooting at every object she sees like she is in an action movie starring Jason Statham. "Honey, maybe we should try something different?" I try to suggest, not liking the idea of her carrying around fake weapons.

She looks at me intently before slowly nodding her head. "How about a police officer?" I ask her. We can just buy fake cuffs instead of a weapon. She shakes her head.

"Okay, why don't you go see for yourself?" I question. She nods her head happily, taking a look around. It's hard to costume shop for a child, especially when they don't vocalize what they want.

She eventually comes back with a few costumes. I can make out an astronaut costume, a corn costume, and another costume I can't quite make out.

"You're okay over there sweetie?" I shout at her dressing room. She sticks out her thumb from behind the curtains before getting back to fitting on her costumes.

The astronaut is cute, but I don't really think it fits her. If she wants it that's what she gets, but I don't think that is going to be the one she wants.

A while later she walks out in a corn costume which is hilarious and I wouldn't be surprised if she choose this one.

Convinced she has found the perfect one, I walk a bit further from the dressing room to look for candy to hand out during trick and treating.

That's the upside of being in a small local town. Three days for Halloween and there are still costumes and candy. You shouldn't try this in LA since everything will be gone a week before Halloween.

"Casey, what candy do you want?" I ask as I'm standing in front of the candy section, next to the checkout. I hear some weird noises before she runs up to me.

It takes everything in me not to laugh at her. She is wearing a black fake body six-pack, along with a helmet with pointed ears and a black cape.

She looks up at me with furrowed eyes, as far as I can tell behind that giant mask. "I am Batman." She says with a deep voice.

I smile widely, looking at the woman behind the cash register who is witnessing this. She struggles trying not to laugh and honestly I can't blame her.

I take a deep breath, focusing my gaze on the candy in front of me before I break down in laughter. "Okay, Batman. What do you want?" I question get intently.

She thinks for a moment before she twirls her cape and points in the air. "Justice!"

"And what kind of candy?" I ask, enjoying this moment with every fiber of my being.

She hands me a random bag of candy before running off shouting some words I can't quite make out. To my own surprise, I'm not embarrassed, not even when she bumps into an older lady.

I'm just happy she is happy and doing whatever she likes. I'm proud of her for shouting into a public place even though she shouldn't actually do that. But I'm afraid that if I tell her not to, she'll think of me the same way she thinks of her grandmother.

How does she even think of her grandmother? She speaks nothing but kind of her, even though she is the one who-

"I can tell she is the daughter of an actress." The woman behind the cash register says, interrupting my thoughts.

"What?" I mumble in her direction, a bit taken back by her words. "I've seen quite a few Batmans over the years, none of them have been so convincing as she is." She smiles warmly. I return her smile weakly, worries taking over my mind.

'An actress'

She knows who I am. What if she goes to the press and tells about Casey? I'll have to explain, maybe Mia will take her from me then. No, I can't let that happen. I have to protect Casey. At all costs.

"Can you not tell anyone about her?" I ask the woman softly. "Don't worry, I won't tell a soul." She says with a sympathetic smile.

"Thank you."

"Of course. I have a kid myself, I know how strong those instincts are. Protect them at all costs right?"

"Yeah. I'm not ready yet for her to get dragged into my world." I answer her truthfully. Casey doesn't know what I do for a living yet and I'm planning on changing that soon, but I don't want her to be part of that world. Not until she can actively choose to be.

"Well as a mother of older children myself, I don't think you'll ever be ready. But kids can handle a lot more than we think they can." The woman says, making me think about my previous thoughts. What makes me think she can't actively choose right now?

Maybe she wants to be a part of that world, maybe she doesn't or maybe she doesn't know yet. But that's up for her to decide. It's not for me to say if she is ready or not to decide.

I take a deep sigh, knowing I'll have to tell her about my career pretty soon.

"Thank you... Sandra." I thank the woman sincerely after reading her name card.

"You're welcome, Miss Olsen." She winks at me.

"Please, call me Lizzie. You're the first one here who has recognized me." I tell her as we shake hands.

"Oh, I doubt that." She chuckles in response.

I'm about to ask her what that is supposed to mean, but Casey walks in and places her costumes on the counter. Yes, costumes as in multiple.

I look down at the little girl who is already looking up at me with a big smile. "You can't be corn and Batman at the same time sweetheart." I say with a sad grin, not wanting to disappoint her.

"But mama, I wanna be BatCorn. Crime fighting superhero at night, world hunger activist by day." She explains with a pout, pointing at the costumes as if it is the most obvious thing in the world.

I nod my head slowly, taking a mental note to figure out how she knows all this. I pay for both costumes.

I mean, costume. It's only one costume.

Batcorn.