"Hey Rob, so how's hunting the Joker going?"
"It's going well, Wally, which is why I kinda need to get back to it."
"Right... Yeah... Cool umm... So have you heard about what's going on in Gotham in your absense?"
"What? Riddler attacks. Yeah. Don't sweat it- Batman's already spoken to the Commissionaire and he thinks that he's got it all in hand soo.."
"The thing is we haven't had a lot of gigs recently- you know- so we- well I suggested and the others agreed that we should help out of this one."
"Oh, okay. So you need some help with the riddles? You've got to see if you can spot the pattern because when you've got that then they're easy."
"Yeah... well we found a pattern."
"Then why are you calling me?"
"The pattern it's... well... it's Bruce Wyane."
Robin's line went dead for a minute- Wally suspected that he was filling Batman in on this latest development so he passed the time by super-speed pacing up and down his room.
"Bruce Wyane? You're sure? So you think the Riddler is going after Wayne enterprises next?"
"...Not exactly no, mate. See the Riddlers been hitting all the major companys in town- all of Wayne Enterprises' competitors as a matter of fact."
"So the team thinks Bruce is working with him?! Clearly the clues are a red herring to distract from the real mastermind."
"Well yeah, that's what I said! But when we went to talk to Bruce, Alfred sent us away saying Bruce wasn't seeing anyone as he is too busy with work and, obviously, that only made them more suspicious so now they are running a full investigation into him and obviously there are some secrets you guys would rather not have revealed so..."
"Well thanks for the heads up but I don't think there's a lot we can do. We're too close to catching the Joker to give up now- it would seem too suspicious to give it all up just to go back and deal with the Riddler. You'll just have to run interference."
"Ok, sure no problem. There's just one thing. They want to talk to you."
"So get them to call me on my communicator."
"No. They don't want to talk to Robin. They want to talk to Dick Grayson. Artemis remembered she goes to school with you and she thinks she could get you to admit you've seen Riddler at the manor. I know you want to help with the Joker but if you're absent from school..."
"They'll be more suspicious then ever and might try to break into the manor for clues. Right. Yeah fine. I'll take the bat plane home. If nothing else this might be fun. Thanks, Wally."
The following day Dick sat in the school cafeteria playing with his food. He had seen Artemis that morning on his way into school but she had been surrounded by a group of girls and didn't even look his way. She hadn't tried to talk to talk to him during break either and Dick was beginning to worry Wally had jumped the gun in calling him home.
"So did you hear-" said Barbra taking the seat next to him, "Batman's been replaced by a bunch of kids!"
"Did Robin finally lead a coup?" He replied dully, not really wanting to hear tails of his friend's exploits as they were costing him his adventure with Batman.
"He wasn't there either- it was a bunch of sidekicks from different cities."
"That must have been disappointing for you- I know how much of a crush you have on the boy wonder." Barbra hit him hard on the arm and Dick grinned- feeling slightly better.
"I think Dad is getting annoyed with them to be honest. He's used to dealing with Batman who at least fills him in on his investigation. Junior Justice league seem to have cut him out of their loop altogether." This was something at least, considered Dick- at least it meant the police might not be aware of the Bruce Wayne theory.
"Junior Justice League?" Questioned Dick, feeling slightly offended.
"Yeah," She laughed, "it was like the Muppet babies for super heros. Aqua Lad, Kid Flash, Super Boy, Speedy..."
"Actually I heard Speedy and Green Arrow parted company." came a new voice from above them. "He has a new protigie now." It was Artemis. "You're Richard Grayson, right- Bruce Wayne's ward?" Dick shrugged and nodded, trying to stay as casual as possible. Being face to face with Artemis made him suddenly nervous- what if she recognised him. "And you're Barbra Gorden. The commissioner's daughter. I bet he tells you all the best stories."
"When he's around." agreed Barbra, slightly suspicious on this new arrival.
"Yeah my dad spends most of his time away as well." Said Artemis- a bit of an understatement in Dick's opinion. "What about you, Richard, how much do you see of Bruce Wayne?" Dick knew what Artemis was doing. She was trying to see if he could give Bruce an alibi- if he said he hadn't seen Bruce all weekend then she would take this as conformation that Bruce had something to hide.
"Unfortunately I had to spend most of the weekend with him." He replied. "He's planning a party and Alfred insisted I helped out. First time I've been grateful for a weekend ending. No one was even allowed to enter or leave the manor."
"So he was with you all weekend?" She clarified, not hiding her disappointment well. Dick nodded, careful to make eye contact with his unaware friend. "Was anyone else there?"
"Nope, it was just the three of us. All weekend."
Artemis bit her lip, trying to think up a new line of questioning that might count against Wayne but she didn't get the chance as at that moment her communicator began ringing from insider her bag. "One second." She said, and then she hurried away to answer the call.
"Well... that was odd." Chuckled a bemused Barbra. "What was that all about."
"Probably another one of those mentor things the school keeps trying out." Shrugged Dick returning to playing with his food- that was that then- he was missing out on one of the most interesting cases he and Batman had been on in a long time just for one minute of conversation.
And then the fire bell went off.
"Great." Sighed Barbra getting up to leave. "Dick? Aren't you coming?" Dick hadn't moved and was staring after Artemis. No way this was a coincidence. "Dick!" Insisted Barbra, now grabbing her friend's arm and dragging him towards the door. They only walked a few meters when they were intercepted by Artemis- now transformed into her superhero persona.
"We've got to get you out of here." She announced, grabbing Dicks other arm. "The Riddler has indicated that he is heading for the school we think he might be after you." Dick pulled away.
"What makes you think he's after me? Half the school are potential targets."
"Hense the fire alarm. We're evacuating everyone but some of you are more likely targets than others. My friends are taking care of the rest now do you want me to potentially save your skin or not, kid,?" Dick bit back a retort and nodded and he and Barbra followed Artemis around the back of the school.
His mind was racing, his Robin instincts now taking over. This made no sense. This wasn't the Riddler's MO at all. He preferred subtly and mystery not kidnapping in the broad light of day. Someone else had a plan in play here and they were hiding behind the Riddler's notoriety.
Dick was forced to hide as the team dealt with the Rddlers goons. Unfortunately the rouge himself didn't appear and he had told his minions nothing of his wider plans- so they were still no closer to answers.
The team offered all of the kids their protection but in all but Dick's case their parents arrived to take them home. Dick knew he should call Alfred. The more time he spend with his friends them more likely it was that his secret identity would be revealed- especially around Miss Martian- but Dick wasn't ready to give up on this case and he couldn't solve it as Robin until Batman returned.
"What's he still doing here?" Asked Wally once they had all reconvened in their temporary Gotham base. He flashed Dick a warning look but Dick ignored him.
"He said he couldn't get an answer when he called his house." Explained Miss Martian telepathically so Dick couldn't over hear.
"Yeah so now we have to babysit him." Added Artemis not bothering to hide her displeasure. "Hey, what if this is all part of the plan? If Wayne really is working with the Riddler then his kid could make the perfect mole."
"Oh, come on. He looks about twelve. You really think he's some kind of superspy?" argued Wally.
"I could always read his mind so we can know for sure." offered Miss Martian.
"You really want to look inside a teenage boy's head whilst he's surrounded by you two pretty ladies? Theirs a lot on his mind right now and I doubt it has anything to do with the Riddler." Artemis hit Wally hard on the arm in disgust.
"I'm with Meg'gann. It's the best way to know for sure." Stated Superboy- eyeing Dick with great suspicion. Wally raised his arms in frustration, but fortunately he wasn't alone in Dick's defence.
"Negative." Ordered Aqua Lad. "We don't invade anyone's minds without either their permission or proof. Wally's right- it's unlikely to yield many helpful results any way."
"How about I just talk to him." Offered Wally. "He is probably pretty shaken after this afternoon- he might be more prepared to talk now."
Aqua Lad nodded his approval at this plan and Wally walked quickly over to Dick.
"Kid Flash! My second favourite teenage superhero!" Greated Dick with a grin, Wally rolled his eyes and grabbed Dicks arm, pulling him into another room.
"What the hell are you doing?" He demanded. "Are you an actual idiot?"
"I want to help." Insisted Dick. "I need to clear Bruce's name."
"How? You're Dick Grayson here. Not Robin. They're not going to let you any where near the action and you can't even hear our conversations. There's nothing you can do. Just go home!"
"Wally, if they look into Bruce Wayne then who knows what they'll find? What if they find mysterious money trails from all the money Bruce invests in Batman? Worse, what if they misinterpret that and think he is giving money to the Riddler? They might try and arrest Batman!"
"I will make sure that doesn't happen but you are doing more harm than good by staying! I will keep you informed but they are talking about looking into your mind. That is going to give a hell of a lot more away."
The two boys stared at each other for a moment, each convinced they were right until Dick conceded with a sigh.
"Fine. I'll call Alfred. But I am not dropping this. I will see what I can do from the cave."
Dick spend all night in the Bat Cave, looking over police reports fro anything the team might have missed. It wasn't tricky to see why they had reached the conclusion they had. At the first two crime scene, the Riddler had left behind clues whose solutions were 'Wayne' and 'Enterprise' respectively.
"Dick!" came Wally's voice from the computer suddenly, breaking Dick out of his thoughts."We're on our way to the manor!" Dick quickly turned on the intercom and respond to his Best Friend.
"What?"
"They think it is the fastest way to get answers. They want to search his office and confirm your story that he is still in Gotham!"
Dick dived for the lift that would take him straight to Bruce's office, needing to check for anything suspicious that Batman might have left behind or that the person trying to frame Bruce had planted. Once in the mansion, he sealed off the cave and instructed Alfred to make it seem as though Bruce was sleeping.
"How long?" he asked.
"We're incoming now."
"A little more warning might have been nice!"
"I didn't have the chance. I have been with Artemis all afternoon. I can only call you now because I said I wanted to run rather than take the jet."
"Damn it Wally." cursed Dick, surveying the pile of unsorted paper's on Bruce's desk. He didn't have time to go through any of it and there was no place to hid it. "Do you think they would find it suspicious if there were a pile of burning papers on Bruce's desk?" he asked, half joking.
"No, no. I am sure you can come up with a reasonable- kitchen window." he said, suddenly cutting himself off. "the team are in the Manor."
With no time left, Dick grabbed his school bag and dumped his books and notes on to the desk on top of Bruce's papers He then sat in Bruce's chair and put his head down on the table as though he had dozed off in the middle of his homework. It wasn't a perfect plan but it would stop them investigating Bruce's office without giving him an explanation.
He didn't have to wait long, a few minutes later he heard the creek of the study door. The team were stealthy and Dick hadn't heard them approach but Bruce kept the doors in the manor creaky so no crook could enter completely unheard. Dick waited until he heard papers moving to his left then he mumbled a few times and lifted his head off the desk, keeping his eyes half closed to maintain the ruse.
"Bruce?" he said, groggily, scanning the room to find out which of the team had entered. Artemis was stood by the book case maybe two feet from the secret entrance to the cave. Superboy was standing by the door as look out and Miss Martian had phased through the desk to try and investigate the papers without waking Dick. Kid Flash and Aqua Lad must be upstairs investigating Bruce's room. Hopefully Alfred was playing his part well. "Who are… oh it's you lot. The junior Justice League." he said, quoting Barbra's earlier comment. "What are you doing here? Don't tell me people are planning to kidnap me again."
"Actually, we found out they were there to kidnap your friend, Barbra Gordon." said Artemis. "They tried again tonight." Dick's eyes widened. "Did they get her? Is she OK?" he asked, rising from his seat. Wally hadn't mentioned this when they had spoken just now and Dick had a nasty idea he knew why. The three exchanged looks and Dick guessed they were having a psychic conversation- he really didn't enjoy being on the outside of them.
"They took her, Richard." said Miss Martian, placing a hand on Dick's shoulder. "And we need your help."
"Where are Batman and Robin?" asked Dick- it would be the first question of any Gothamite.
"They are away on urgent business." said Artemis. "But they trust us to deal with this and we think you can help us."
"What can I do? I mean I used to do acrobatics. Maybe I could help in a fight but I don't-"
"No, not like that." said Superboy gruffly.
"How much do you know about your gaurdian, Richard?" asked Miss Martian.
"Bruce? What does he have to do with any of this?"
The team were silent for a moment but their frequent exchange of glances told Dick they were sharing a psychic conversation. Wally and Kaldur arrived a minute later and Dick tried to get Wally's attention but Kid flash seemed determined to avoid looking at him- probably trying to avoid thinking about Dick's other identity while the group was psychically linked.
"Someone better tell me what is going on right now or you can all leave my house." said Dick, doing his best to sound authoritative without sounding like Robin.
"Ok, kid. I'm going to level with you-" began Artemis but before she could say anything more, there was a smash of glass from upstairs. Everyone looked up, but Dick was the first to react. He vaulted across the desk, landing cat like on the floor and then took of for the stairs before anyone could stop him. He knew where that noise had come from- Bruces room, where Alfred had been using an old wig and Bruce's pyjamas to pose as Bruce Wayne for the team's inspection.
When Dick arrived in Bruce's room, he found the doors to his balcony had been blown open and had broken, smashing the glass in the pains. Dick raced to the window in time to see a helicopter marked with Wayne Enterprises logo leave the lawn and head in the direction of Gotham.
"He's running!" said Artemis who had arrived just behind him.
"No!" objected Dick. "He must have been kidnapped by the people who are behind all of this! They are trying to frame him for everything that is going on!"
"And how do you know what's going on?" questioned Artemis. "Has your guardian been telling you all about what he has been up to?"
Dick's mind scrambled for what to do next. If he continued to insist Bruce was innocent then he would have to offer evidence and any proof he gave could lead the team to the secrets. He couldn't say it was Alfred in the bed rather than Bruce because that would raise suspicion as to why the butler was pretending to be Bruce Wayne. Obviously he couldn't pretend he believed Bruce was guilty and Dick couldn't think of anything else. He needed to get back to the bat cave and contact Batman but the team weren't going to leave unless he gave him something. Luckily Wally came to his aid.
"Oh, come on Artemis. Look at the kid. He looks like he is about to burst into tears." said Wally. Dick looked at him, slightly offended that Wally thought he would break down so quickly but Wally glared back, telling him to go along with it. "I mean the poor kid has just been abandoned by his guardian. He's confused." Dick got the message and nodded, averting his gaze as he tried to summon up some tears.
"I haven't been abandoned!" he insisted, breaking up his words as though over come by emotion. Miss Martian took pity on him and gave him a hug and Dick felt very embarrassed that the entire team were standing around watching him fall apart like this even if it was pretend.
"Oh, there there, Richard." cooed Miss M. "Is there anyone we can call to look after you?"
Dick was impressed with Wally's plan, the topic had been moved away from Bruce to him. It wouldn't be long before the team wanted to follow other leads.
"No, Alfred- Bruce's butler- he is just down stairs. I think I just want to go to bed. I will call commissioner Gordon in the morning." Dick pulled away from Miss Martian and began to leave the room. In the doorway he paused and turned back to the assembled team. "If you really want to investigate Bruce, he keeps all of his important stuff at Wyane Enterprises. He doesn't really work from home. Says I mess up his stuff when I do my homework at his desk. You won't find anything though."
With that, Dick left the room, trusting Wally would get the rest of them to leave the manor without further investigation.
When he was back down in the Batcave, Dick instantly called Bruce's communicator but Bruce didn't respond. Dick tried again and sent several messages but received nothing back. Nervous, he checked Batman's logs. He had realized the Joker was leading him round and round in circles but that at the centre of the circle was Blackgate prison- the same prison Harley Quinn had recently been moved to along with several of Arkham's higher ranked crazies. Bruce had began to follow this new line of enquiry and soon after had gone totally dark. No communication. The batsuit wasn't even transmitting a location signal. Dick had a very nasty feeling. Alfred had just been kidnapped and now Bruce was also missing. This couldn't be a coincidence.
Xx
Wally arrived in the Batcave several hours later, finally answering Dick's 5000th call. He looked exhausted and explained he had been searching Bruce's office all night and then gone back to base, Used the Zeta-Tube to get back to Gotham and then had run to the batcave, getting lost several times because it was so well hidden and he always forgot which rock face hid the entrance. Dick wasn't listening to his explanation however, he was in the middle of a full blown panic attack.
"Bruce Wayne has been kidnapped!" he exclaimed.
"Wait, so that was Bruce in the bed tonight? I figured it was Alfred in a wig."
"It was Alfred in a wig!" exclaimed Dick, "But in the eyes of the team it was Bruce so now I have to go to commissioner Gordon and tell him Bruce was kidnapped even though it is actually Alfred because if I don't the Team will get suspicious."
"Actually Dick-"
"Except of course, the bad guys must know what Bruce Wayne looks like and unless they keep a hood over his face they are going to very quickly realise they have the wrong guy and who knows what they will do..."
"DICK!" exclaimed Wally, "It's worse than that. They think Bruce Wayne fled."
"I know the team thinks that but-"
"No, everyone does. Aqualad thought you were trying to cover for Bruce when you didn't call the cops right away so he called Jim Gordon and filled him in. The seized the flight records and according to the paper work, Bruce called up the helicopter and had it take him to his private jet. The jet took off ten minutes ago, headed for some small island which doesn't have an extradition treaty."
"Damn it! I didn't call Gordon because he is looking for Barbra and I didn't want to distract him. I figured I could find Alfred myself.
"I know, but you said your guardian was kidnapped and then you didn't call the police. That is suspicious."
"You're right, I wasn't thinking. The paper work is forged though. The helicopter isn't one of Bruce's- they all have tracking devices on them and they are all accounted for. I couldn't focus on Alfred because of Barbra. That trail is cold too."
"Yeah, It doesn't seem to be the riddler. It was his goons but there was no riddle left behind which doesn't add up."
"There is definitely something bigger going on." agreed Robin. "Bruce has been captured."
"Yeah, Rob, I know. We just talked about that."
"No. The real Bruce Wayned. Batman! He is missing. I called Clark and he said he would investigate. The Joker is going after Blackgate so the whole Justice League are on alert which is a whole other nightmare.
"Surely the Justice League is a good thing?"
"They think Robin is with Batman. They will be looking for both of us but Robin isn't there. If they find Batman unconscious they will look for me and that will be a distraction but I can't call anyone and say I am ok because they would ask me questions about what happened to Batman which I can't answer because I haven't been with him for over a day."
"This is a mess!" said Wally, running his hands through his red hair. "So Batman is missing in action and Robin, is here but will have to be declared missing as well to not draw suspicion. Bruce Wayne is missing except Bruce Wayne is really a butler in a wig and everyone thinks he is a fugitive on an island having committed a series of random crimes in the city with the Riddler. The Riddler has captured the commissioner's daughter except he clearly isn't the one holding her."
"And Dick Grayson and Wally West are left to clean up this whole mess and no one can ever know." concluded Dick glumly. "I am just glad you are in it with me, Chum."