Hhheeeyyy! I am SO sorry for the delay! Life kept getting in my way, and I couldn't update, but on the upside, I'm doing so now! Thanks to all of you who have already followed and reviewed for this story, ya'll have no idea how much it means to me. but enough of this sentimental mush, on with the story!

Disclaimer: I own nothing and no one in regards to The Dark Knight except Kara, Rod, Kyle, and a few other random goon people

Chapter 2: Coffee and Really Big Knives

(Somewhere in the Narrows)

Rod walked into the warehouse with the food he had told Kyle he was getting. It took a bit longer than expected what with the sudden trip to the mall where he saw Kara. Kara, the girl who managed to be the only person – ever – to be the single cause for the startling cease in the Clown Prince of Gotham's violence ridden rampages. Clearly there was something special about the girl. Obviously, since she was the only one who was able to keep the peace around the place by just gracing the people here with her presence. Kyle looked up when he heard the door close, but relaxed a bit, and placed his gun that he held hidden behind a newspaper.

"Good way to get yourself shot kid." He said gruffly.

Rod rolled his eyes good naturedly, placed the groceries on the table, and with a tired sigh flung himself down on the couch across from where his friend was sitting.

"Uh oh." Muttered Kyle as he set the newspaper aside and looked at his younger friend.

"Uh oh's right." Rod said as he rubbed his eyes tiredly.

A few minutes passed before Kyle rested his chin in his hands in an exaggerated manner. Rod just sat there, in the same position.

"Dang it boy, are you gonna tell me what's going on, or are you just gonna sit there like some hormone raged teenaged girl?!" Kyle finally asked.

Rod looked up at the ceiling before looking back at his friend. He sighed one more time before he finally decided that it was safe to tell Kyle.

"I saw someone today."

Kyle gasped. "You're telling me that you saw a," he looked around dramatically "a human being at the grocery store?"

"Kyle this is serious! I – I saw her."

Kyle's eyes widened ever so slightly at the mention of 'her'. They only referred to Kara that way. But he had to be sure. He leaned forward ever so slightly so that he could speak in a barely audible voice. No one really knew if there were treacherous ears listening.

"Kid, are you telling me you saw Kara?"

Rod bit his lip as he nodded. Kyle took a deep breath and ran his hand back through his hair. He, Ryan, and everyone else who worked with them knew the toll Kara's absence had taken on their boss. They couldn't even mention her name in actual fear that he may lash out at them. And with someone as unpredictable as the Joker, it was best to just play it safe. In fact, the only one among them who could even convince the Clown Prince to even so much as look at food was Ryan. This was probably only because he was with him the longest, and that the Joker was just used to having someone around who actually cared for his wellbeing.

"Are you gonna tell the boss about this?" Kyle asked as he clasped his hands behind his head.

Ryan looked at his friend sharply. "Have you lost your mind?" he demanded in a quiet voice.

Kyle chuckled darkly. "Okay, okay, I was just asking. Probably best the two of them just stay apart anyways."

Ryan wasn't so sure that was true.

(Meanwhile, at Wayne Manor)

Kara lay on her bed, looking up at the ceiling. She was thinking about the conversation she had had with Rod – Ryan – she mentally corrected herself. Dare she believe that the Joker was thinking about her? After all she had heard him say the first night she spent at Wayne manor, she had heard all he had to say when she was suddenly very tired. The events of that day were still very unclear as to what actually happened. But she did really see Jack, didn't she? He was right there, she remembered it as if it were yesterday and not a few months ago, right there by the window. And she was on the floor, begging like a beaten dog, for him to stay with her. She hadn't told anyone about her having seen her friend from the Narrows, afraid that it might have meant that they would lock her away and throw away the key.

"You know you're being stupid. Just what did they ever do to you to make you think that they'd just lock you away like some mental patient?" she thought to herself as she rubbed her face tiredly.

Who knows, maybe she was one.

A knock at the door brought her out of her reverie. "Kara? It's me, are you okay?"

Kara lifted her head from her pillow. Barbra was at her door again. Every day, if she wasn't down for supper at about 6:30 on the dot, Barbra would be sent up from the dining room to go check on her. The poor mad girl from the Narrows. That's what they all thought of her. Sure Bruce had said something about Stockholm Syndrome and what not, that she didn't really wanna stay there with the Joker, but had nowhere else to go, so there she stayed, and learned to adapt to the situation. Or so he said. But she had heard Dick a few nights ago. She had heard what they really thought about her.

Kara had been on her way down to dinner, when she heard Bruce, Barbra, and Dick talking quietly at the table, waiting for her.

"She's not crazy Dick, where would you have liked her to go? Or do? You know the Joker, you know how wacked up he is. What else was she supposed to do except learn to adapt?"

"Barbs, you heard her! She wants to go back to him! To him! I'm saying that maybe we should just keep her here for awhile – just to check her out and make sure that everything's okay! Not that we should send her to Arkham or something!"

Barbra had looked incredulous. Bruce, stoic as he listened to the young man and woman who had been forced to grow up too fast, and attain knowledge far beyond their years. And was listening carefully to the counsel from the two who had become both his family and protégés.

"Well of course she wants to go back to him Dick, he's the only man who'd ever treated her right – her version of right anyway - , she doesn't know better! But she can if she learns that there are better people out there for her in the world! People who are willing to help her, not take advantage of her, who, want to be her friend, embrace her for who she is, to lift her up, not beat her down!"

"I get that. I really do." Dick had said as he pushed a hand through his hair. "But Barbra, she's really unstable right now. The slightest mishap can push her off the edge. And I really don't think that we should take that chance, especially because of the mental state she's in right now!"

Bruce looked up and had realized that Kara was at the entrance of the dining room. A simple clearing of his throat was enough to silence the two younger people, as they quickly changed the subject to where the best shopping places were.

Kara rubbed her eyes and looked at the door annoyed that Barbra was still there waiting for her.

"Yea Barbs, I'm fine. I'll be down in a few minutes." She called as she literally pulled herself off her bed and pulled on a hoodie and sweat pants over the cami and boy shorts she usually had on when she was in her room by herself.

She wasn't hungry, everyone could see that as she pushed around her macaroni and cheese with her fork, taking no particular interest in wolfing it down as she usually did. Even Alfred gave her concerned looks as he made sure each member of the house was eating as they should. Richard looked up from his plate and saw Kara pushing around her favorite food.

"You really need to eat Care Bear." He said, using his nick name for her.

"Just not hungry that's all. You know actually, I'm gonna turn in." Kara said as she looked over at Bruce for silent permission to leave the table.

Bruce looked at the young girl and nodded. Barbra was about to say something, but he discreetly held up his hand, silencing her. His hand stayed up until they heard Kara's door close upstairs, before he put it down, and instructed Alfred to pack up her food for her to eat later. He didn't know what was going on with Kara. He knew that he shouldn't crowd and coddle her, that she needed her space. He needed to gain her trust. To let her know that she could trust him enough to tell him whatever she needed to, whenever she needed to. To assure her that she had a friend who would look out for her, he left a cup of coffee on the table for her. He knew that macaroni cheese was only her second love. The one thing she loved most in the world was her coffee. He decided that though he wouldn't smother her with questions as to her health or feelings like some hovering parent, he would be sure to keep an eye on her – just to be on the safe side.

(Somewhere in the Narrows…cuz I gotta switch it up to keep it interesting)

Rod walked up the creaky steel stairs to the only room at the top, with the door that usually none except his boss comes out of alive. The Joker hasn't even so much as looked at a bomb, let alone plant one anywhere in Gotham. Not that he'd have the mental capacity to do so even if he tried. He hadn't eaten much since Kara left – at least he didn't think he did – Rod was almost certain that he would hear it if someone was coming down stairs as squeaky as the ones he was climbing. He was about to knock on the door when all of a sudden, an arm shot out, grabbed him by the front of his shirt, and pulled him inside.

"Gah! Boss, what're you do-" his response was cut short when the door slammed and he found a knife at the base of his throat.

One wrong move on his part, would leave him bleeding, and rolling back down the stairs into the common area. He'd seen enough during his time with the Clown Prince to know that. So he just swallowed as much as the pressure of the blade would allow, and licked his lips.

"Boss –" he began.

He was greeted with laughter so maniac, so cracked, so – incredibly insane – that it scared even him. And he has been with the Joker for a very long time.

"Ah, Rod. Rod Rod RodRodRod. You should'a seen your face! You, you looked so pretty with your eyes all big like that!" he said pinching and twisting his cheek in a most painful manner.

Rod dared a small, unsure smile at the Clown Prince. He was quite uncomfortable being in the room by himself with him. And to make things worse, he thought that he smelled alcohol on his breath.

"How'd he even get his hands on that?!" he thought to himself.

"I didn't pull you in here to look at your pretty face Roddy boy." The Joker said as he licked the inside of his scars (one of his many trademarks you see). " I need something from you."

Rod looked at the Joker, very nervous about what he would be asked to do. After all, the man hadn't come out of the small room that he and Kara shared when she was there, and he hadn't really come out…at all. But still, as the loyal young man he was, he looked at the boss, and said bravely:

"Sure boss, what do you need?"

The Joker smiled excitedly, jumped up and squeaked like a little girl on Christmas. "I need some knives Rod. Some really big ones."

And there ya go! I know that this is a little short, and boring. But I promise that this is just so that it will give room for the next one! I'm going to try to do an update every week, but no promises. I'll be doing little things on Twitter about this, so make sure you follow me at Reecie_John and use the hash tag CoffeeandKnives so that I'll know what it's about! Or if you're bored and just want something/someone to laugh at (cuz I'm really good at being really un smart at times hahaha) that's a good reason to follow me too! and and and review please! It really makes my day. Thanks!

~ EveningGlory