"No." Talia replied to a white coated man. Damian lay still on a halfway reclined dentist's chair, waiting for a shot of laughing gas. His mother was dressed nicely, in black leather boots and jeans with a white T-shirt on. She pulled a black jacket over the shirt-she was sitting right underneath an air conditioning vent. In the six months since she and Bruce had finally gotten married, the world had come to change their view on the woman. She'd been represented as a supervillain by the police, the daughter of a ruthless assassin-but no one even knew her name.
That was nice, especially because her son could have a semi-normal life with her living as Talia Wayne. She could be the powerful buisnesswoman that married Bruce Wayne, the mother of Damian that was assuming responsibility for him now that her abusive father was out of the picture-things were moving in the right direction. It was half an hour before they started work on Damian, but his wisdom teeth needed out and today was the only day they could squeeze him in.
The kid's mind was twisted with the drugs they used to numb all of the pain. He murmured about his sisters "Barbie Doll" and "Care-Bear" and his brothers, who were all birds-but no one knew that was he was saying was simply fond nicknames for the people he was beginning to grow close to in the year since he'd come to Gotham. Talia worried he might let their secrets' slip, so she tried to hurry him out. Then, her phone started ringing. But it wasn't the cell Bruce had given her, it was the one that the Batman had given her.
Stephanie pressed her cheek to the warm beach towel. It was nice to get out, especially since Red Robin and Spoiler had quit their act so long ago-but was six months really that long? The girl's sand-colored hair tumbled into her vision as she turned her gaze to her side, and Tim Drake there beside her. No, it wasn't that long.
"Hey, have you heard anything from Talia today?" His question was sudden, a loud noise to her calm ears. She had all but tuned out the sound of bystanders, the sound of rushing waves and splashing against the rocks, and now it came spraying in. Steph shook her head, once to clear it, and the other to answer. "Nope. Poor Dami's gotta get his wisdom teeth pulled today-he'll be on Cloud 9 with the drugs when we get back."
The young boy leaned in, whispering, "And I bet Bruce still makes him patrol after this, too."
The pair laughed, a little sickly, but they had been on vacation for a day and a half. It was nice to be relieved of duty, at least temporarily. But then they got the call.
"Come on, Briar-Rose," his wife prompted. She was kneeling on the carpeting beside the couch-after the bombing, they needed to rebuild the place, and that was one of the first things to change. A fluffy tan carpet that their tiny daughter was, at the moment, taking her very first steps on. He held her hands, high above her head, and she smiled. One step, then one more, he slowly let her go.
She stumbled a little when her hands dropped, no one holding on. The little girl took one step, however, and another, until she reached her mother's warm embrace. The man, in his late teens, smiled. He kissed his baby girl's little cheek and she laughed, safe in her mother's arms. The young woman, only seventeen, smiled. "Glad they let you off of patrol today, Jason."
"So am I," he said, helping his daughter stand again. She took a single step and faltered, dropping onto her bottom. It spooked the tiny child, but she got on her hands and knees and crawled to the base of the couch, where a teddy bear lay, discarded. It was larger than the toddler, yet she sat up and pulled the fluffy brown animal close. It had a ribbon around it's neck, tied in a bow on one side.
Trinity, the baby's mother, walked past the little girl to a coffee table. She picked up a box of Girl Scout cookies and pulled a few out, offering one to Jason. He took it and nibbled on it, watching his daughter play. If only every day could be this carefree-it was nice to be around his family, he wasn't his usual angry self here. It never seemed to last-especially when his BatFam phone started to beep on the table.
"We are just boarding the last flight now," Kori's voice was static. "But we shall be there at eight tonight."
"Alright," Dick replied. "I've missed you."
"I have done the 'missing' of you as well," his wife said. She had taken their daughter on a weeklong trip to the East Coast to visit their friends in Steel City. However, at the last minute, he was called for a special case on the police force. He'd stayed behind and was sorely missing his soulmate and his daughter, Mar'i. His sister, Raven, had twin kids that he was babysitting at the moment, but she was due back soon.
His charges, Destiny and Prem, lived with his family in the Titans' Tower. They were his niece and nephew, after all. Their father, Garfield Logan, had been his friend for over a decade. They'd built the place together, from the ground up, when the Teen Titans formed so many years ago. Raven was another of that original team, that perfect team that was ripped apart slowly, torn away piece by piece. But now was an okay time, too-they were all happy where they'd ended up, and they talked often, visited on a regular basis. But sometimes, duty would call and they would have to go. Like now, when Grayson's old BatFamily communicator blinked to life.
Cass stifled a yawn and tied the last of the ribbon over the door. "Grand Opening: 6/23" read a banner over it. She was going to work here as her first job, the place that opened in a week, Rose's place. Rose Wilson knew she could never have kids, and to be honest, she'd never been interested in boys that much anyway. So she was devoting her life to a feline pursuit, a hotel exclusively for cats and the occasional friendly dog. And Cassandra Cain wanted to assist.
She'd been up late the night before, a Black Bat patrol had dragged on. So now she was half-asleep and decorating from a ladder, six feet in the air. Her younger sister Carrie, who had been sharing an apartment with her since six months ago, worked tirelessly beside her. The girl had been Robin before Tim Drake had, for only a short time-the Mutants gang that was controlling Gotham killed her.
Damian had revived her-Damian had gone out with Cass and Dick one night. It rained, it rained hard, but they did end up reviving her. And now, with her sister beside her, Cassandra was happy. She'd finally get that job she wanted, working with her favorite animals-and Carrie would be happy, too.
But that was before their special phones rang.
She rolled over, blankets suffocating her, and then she felt a warmth against her. She lifted her head quietly, seeing a sleeping silhouette beside her, and Barbara smiled. It had been a long time since she'd smiled last.
The redhead pulled one arm free of her half-limp body, and used it to brush the blonde locks from her companion's cheek. She proceeded to kiss the spot, watching as twin blue eyes blinked open. Barbara murmured, "Morning, Kara."
The Kryptonian girl smiled, kissed her lover back, and slowly got up. Barbara slid off the bed into her wheelchair, rolling through a door to a bathroom. She washed her face in the sink, watching her sleepy hair in the mirror. She could get used to this life, not waking at five each morning for duty when she'd already been up late. It was nearing midday now, the sun was shining and she was awakening.
That's when her phone went off-and not her brand new cell.
Bruce Wayne settled his chin against his hand, elbow propped against the table. Yet another buisness meeting to attend-and he knew all of these figures already, he monitored where departments stood. Damian would be at the dentist by now, he knew. Another casual check of the time-his son would probably be on his way home by now. Another ten minutes before the final department presented, plus their speech would drag on.
His closing speech was shortened, compared to a usual one anyway. The meeting packed up, and Bruce stayed. It was a personal policy-one that, at the moment, he was not terribly grateful for. But he got to wrap up a few frayed ends with one group, which he appreciated-and he decided to head home. No one would miss him, anyway-he had finished all of his work early just to do this.
He drove down a quiet backstreet, an alley on either side of him. His vehicle wouldn't draw attention to anyone, he hoped, but he would be home soon anyway and that was the only thing that mattered at present. His son would be angry if the laughing gas wore off and he was not there-Bruce had promised him that he would be. So on he drove, to the private path leading to Wayne Manor-leading home.
He parked the car, noticing quite a few things at once. Dick and Jay weren't home, or their bikes would be parked close to the door. Autumn leaves would litter the floor because they would have left the huge panel open, and they would get lectured by Alfred once again. A fondness for his oldest sons and guardian warmed his tired heart as he walked to the door.
Barbara's grey electric car and Cass's new economy car were both gone, but he knew they would be. The girls lived on their own now-Barbara was miles away and Cass had her own apartment. She'd even taken Carrie with her, taken the little sister that was just a month older than Damian. Damian who wasn't home yet after all-he knew because Talia's preferred car was gone. A black Camaro convertible, with matching upholstry on the seats.
He opened the kitchen door, walking in and spotting Alfred instantly. The older man greeted him with a simple nod and he walked through the room, heading to change. He got in jeans and a T-shirt, walking down to the cave to get a start on tonight's research before Damian got home. That would take up most of his afternoon, he knew-Jason, Tim, and Cass had all gone through the process before.
The computers had just been turned on when an alert ran through them. Arkham breakout-villains conspired, shot a hole through a few walls, and now everyone was streaming through the space. He could go out as Batman and slow them, but it would take help-and a lot of it.
It was two forty five when the call came in. By three she was in the car and speeding down the private drive to the Manor. Damian was lost in the backseat, muttering something that made Talia snort. She wondered briefly what was the matter, since the signal had been sent out to the entire BatFamily. Jason would come, she knew. Dick might, but he seemed to always have plans-or so Damian said. Talia hoped briefly that her blood son wouldn't have to fight like this.
Cass's little car was parked in the usual spot in the garage-she'd come running, and that meant little Carrie would be with her. Tim's car was beside it-had he and Stephanie really come back from vacation for this? It must be bad, they been told not to come back for any reason since they'd taken so many patrols lately. Jason's bike was inside the door, too-how long had she taken to get home?
She walked into the kitchen, her son stumbling behind her like a drunken puppy. She gave him a sympathetic glance before heading towards the cave, where she knew her family would be waiting.
"Remember, keep updating each other," Bruce said. "Just lock them up. Dami, be careful."
"I will, Father," he murmured wearily into his comm. Dick gave him a worried look, but the boy took off running beside Carrie. Her new Catgirl outfit was in stealth mode, black like a shadow. Steph turned to her own companion, Tim, and they sped off. They were to monitor the wounded and try to get a makeshift hospital set up, since the infirmary was a long way away and over a dozen guards were unconscious and bleeding at their feet.
Commissioner Gordon was watching the scene with Barbara, who was in the Batmobile. She'd set up six or seven screens to keep tabs on the two-person teams they'd been put into. She and Tim were Red Robin and Batgirl, already at work.
Alfred would need to wash her uniform tonight-so much blood.