She didn't, strictly speaking, lie to her friends about her plans for Halloween night.
Her mermaid costume had its work out already, with a party she forced on the family earlier in the month, and her night was going to be spent doing 'family' stuff.
Which just so happened to mean patrol.
But Steph loved patrol on Halloween.
You'd think the rogues would be worse, but she always found them to lay low, probably because the Bat had gotten a little more… aggressive? with the kiddlywinks out and about.
More protective.
Steph got that. She did it too. Which is partially why she loved patrol so much on spook night.
She may or may not have blown money she didn't exactly have on a bunch of candy, but by God, Batgirl was gonna be a candy fairy tonight.
But first, she had to make sure the Brown house left the offerings for the neighborhood kids while the house was empty.
On the stoop, next to the Jack-o-lantern she found time to carve, a plastic bowl, with a note taped to it: 'Have a good night!'
No 'Take one', no 'please share', Steph knew kids well enough to know that they should.
And if they didn't, well.
Not much she could do about it.
Batgirl couldn't be everywhere.
The energy in Gotham on Halloween was always something that had to be felt for oneself. People were usually tense about something. The next 'big thing', when something crazy would happen, but on this night, they were the 'crazy ones' in masks, the nervous energy turned to excitement, a buzz that filled the air, and Steph lived for it.
Sure, she could just not patrol, and go off, join the parties, enjoy the relatively maintained chaos, but, well, she enjoyed what she did. Being there, just in case, traveling across the city and seeing all the costumes, all the setups, and being the candy fairy.
Group of kids not getting a response at a door or a building she was on? Batgirl would drop them some candy.
Guy crying on a stoop about his stupid boyfriend in the party? Have some candy, and a cape to cry into for a few minutes. It wasn't like patrol was busy, after all
Girl throwing up in an alley from partying a little too hard? Maybe some of this candy was mint? Let me hold your hair, you're gonna be sick again, I can see it, it's gonna be ok. Let it out. Watch your shoes.
The music from the different parties was always great, saved O, Proxy and anyone else that would have been on comms from dealing with Radio Batgirl, she may or may not have been spotted dancing on rooftops throughout the night.
By the time the sun was rising, and Gotham was winding down, settling into November first, Batgirl sat and watched the parade of people returning home, sipping her coffee exchanged for the last of her candy bars in her belt in the Starbucks. Not that Bats needed to pay for coffee, but she wanted to give the poor doll with the cute pumpkin headband missing out on the festivities something for the night.Steph enjoyed taking in the last few moments of peace before the insanity that Thanksgiving and Christmas season brought Gotham.