It had been eight years- eight years since Batman, since Rachel and Harvey, since the Joker. And as much as Grace Wayne liked to lie to herself, she really wasn't quite the same. Her brother had always had a grim side, one instilled in him from the time he saw his parents killed. But now, Grace had also come to terms with the fact that there was always a breaking point, a point at which good reached evil. She had always believed that deep-down every person was good but what if she was wrong? After watching Harvey Dent- a hero to her from the moment she had seen him on the news and was introduced to him by her longtime friend Rachel- mentally corrupted to the point of no recognition, she wondered if some people were just all bad. Harvey, she liked to believe, was truly a good man that had just been corrupted, but if Harvey Dent, the incorruptible, had been corrupted then who couldn't?
Her brother (as Batman) took the fall for Harvey's actions. And Batman was gone. Witnessing the incident, she was sworn to secrecy by Gordon. It made sense to Grace. Why put all the people in Gotham in the confusion and doubt she was now in? Grace, a senior in the high school who had planned to go to one of the top school in the country to become a lawyer (a district attorney like her own heroes Rachel and Harvey) was turned off and changed her dreams. She decided to become a doctor. In this time she also sold all of her stocks in Wayne Enterprises to Bruce, who although put on a good act as a self-absorbed playboy was actually quite thoughtful and would do the best for the company. Bruce gave Grace money whenever she asked for it which was only when she desperately needed it. She lived in a below-average (shithole as Bruce called it) apartment and was now in her seventh year of an eight year joint program at Gotham University's Medical School.
Right now, she was sitting in a crowded park-turned-auditorium for Harvey Dent's eight-year memorial. Why they chose the number eight to have a memorial was a mystery to Grace. The last one they'd had was a year after and Grace sat quietly never shedding one of the many tears that threatened to escape. This time was no different. Grace sat quietly with her hands in her lap and Bruce came and sat beside her. "Hey kiddo," he said giving her a small kiss on the cheek as he sat into a chair. "How are you doin'? These things always kinda suck."
"Tell me about it. I don't see how sitting in a crowded park crying will do any good." She replied.
"Well it is a nice tribute. I think that Rachel and Harvey would like it." He whispered.
"Agreed." Grace said easily.
The memorial began with Commissioner Gordon speaking on Harvey's behalf and continued with the mayor and many other important, but still nameless to Grace, people speaking.
When it was over Bruce bolted, as usual; but Grace stayed to talk to Commissioner Gordon.
"Commissioner." Grace called out to catch his attention. He waved her over and the two greeted each other with a hug.
"Grace," he said as let go, "how are you?"
"I'm fine. That was a beautiful service."
"Definitely. How about that brother of yours? Are you keeping him under control?"
Grace laughed, "I try my very hardest. Hows your family?"
"Great, the kids are finally stopping asking the next time you're coming to babysit."
"Well, that's good. I just wanted to check in; tell them all I say hi." The two waved and left. Grace turned to leave and stumbled into a table of photos of Harvey Dent. She picked up one of the first ones she saw, and it ended up being one of herself and Harvey. It was the meeting Rachel had set up for her so she could write a paper on him for her college applications about the one quality she valued most: justice. He was standing with Grace and they were both smiling. And they weren't just fake smiles you had to think about when you're taking a picture they were genuine- just like the one she always had when she was with Harvey. With how much time she spent with both Rachel and Harvey, Bruce made accusations that Grace wanted Harvey to be her brother- accusations which were obviously false because Grace (never admitting this to Bruce) admired no one more than the older brother he adored.
Filled with feelings of grief and remorse, Grace bolted she put her head down and walked as fast as she could to her car. In hindsight, she was surprised she only ran into one man- a Gotham city cop named John Blake.