The night was quiet.
At Wayne Manor, everyone went their separate ways, learning new things about each other or spending time with girlfriends and fiancees. It was nice, to know that the Joker had been missing for months, and their work was cut out for them for one night, and Gotham was still.
Or so they thought. How the Joker knew that the Batfamily was playing house for the night they don't know, but they have to act now. While they spent time with each other, the Joker was using well bided time to wreak havoc on nighttime Gotham, spilling as much blood on the snow as he could before the Batman returns to stop him.
Harley opened her eyes slowly, but the curtains kept the room dark. She snuggled into the soft bed sheets, surrounded by the smell of Dick's cologne; she'd never admit it, but his pampering had made her feel better. After a hot bath and a massage, Harley had slept sounder than she had in months. Still restless, but less so. Dick lay behind her, his arm trapped under her head as she used it as a pillow, his head tilted towards the window as he breathed slowly. She could feel his heart beating tucked under his arm. She smiled, snuggling closer to him and using his shoulder as a pillow instead. Her eyes already started dropping again. Dick jumped at her slight movement, and his eyes fluttered open, a gasp escaping his lips. Blinking slowly, he rubbed his face with his free hand.
"Did I wake you?" Harley whispered. She tried to make out the outline of his face in the darkness.
"No, I was only dozing," he said, smiling wanly. His blue eyes were drowsy and clouded, and he pinched them shut, rubbing his face again. Lifting the arm that had been trapped under her head, he flexed his fingers and winced. "How about you? You didn't wake up as much, and you seemed calmer…" he yawned widely. "Do you feel alright? Do you need anything?"
"What time is it?" Harley mumbled, closing her eyes as she curled up closer to him.
There was a flash of light from his cell phone, briefly illuminating the sharp angles of his face, and then it was gone. "Almost nine. Not too early," he whispered.
"Much too early," she yawned.
"Then go back to sleep." Dick kissed her cheek, gently sitting up after pulling his shoulder out from under her.
"But the bed's cold when you're gone," Harley whined. Dick smiled a little in the dark and laid back down, the pillow inviting under his head. He sighed deeply. Maybe I can get some sleep…
"Good night," Harley slurred, already drifting off again. Dick laid still for a minute, before opening his eyes again. He couldn't sleep. He couldn't get up- it wasn't a problem, he'd spent the entire night just lying there- he could barely keep his eyes closed, but he couldn't keep them open. Biting his lip, Dick glanced at Harley. He turned his head back and fell still again. She was breathing softly through her mouth. Slowly working his way out of bed, Dick stretched and shuffled his way over to the door, closing it quietly behind him. Voices came from the parlor below, and he followed them.
"Master Dick, good morning," Alfred said as he walked through the doors. The curtains were all drawn, and Dick looked around in confusion. "Quite a glare off of the new fallen snow," Alfred clarified. Dick dropped down onto the sofa beside Carrie, her orange hair sticking every which way and her black makeup smudged behind her glasses. She smiled.
"Good morning," she said cheerily, sipping the hot coffee that Alfred had prepared for her. He set a mug in front of Dick. Whimpering happily, he took a sip.
"Harley never lets me have coffee because she can't…" he smiled, and Bruce shook his head. He and Selina sat across the coffee table side by side, Selina wrapped in Bruce's robe with her arm around his. The five of them were the only ones in the room, though Dick suspected that they wouldn't be for long. The TV was showing the news quietly in the corner.
"Whipped!" Jason yawned as he walked into the room. He pushed Dick's head to the side as he walked past.
"I'm sorry, where's your girlfriend-? Screw it, I don't feel like arguing with you right now," he yawned after Jason did, rubbing his tired eyes again.
"Have you been sleeping?" Selina asked, picking at the sleeve of her robe.
"Yes and no," Dick smiled a little, drinking his coffee. Tim shuffled into the parlor, stopping in the doorway.
"Good mornin' everyone-"
"-Let it go, let it go! Can't hold it back anymore-" Steph belted out as she shoved him forward into the room, already awake and alert. If the others weren't, her singing changed that. She grinned. "Did you guys see the snow!?"
"What?! Snow!" Jason exclaimed, not looking up from the cup of coffee he was pouring.
"Shut up. How was your night with Tim?" Steph sneered, squeezing onto the sofa between Dick and Carrie.
"What?" Bruce asked. He looked between Tim and Jason.
"Nothing!" Tim cried. "Stop it." He glared Steph.
"Hey, I thought it was cute," she shrugged. Dick looked between them, utterly lost.
"I don't want to know," he finally concluded.
"No you don't," Jason agreed. He leaned against the table. "So where's the grumpy lady?" he asked Dick. "Aren't you like attached at the hip?"
"Don't call her that," Dick warned. "And no. We are not." Steph dropped her head in his lap, draping her legs over Carrie to hang off of the arm of the sofa. "Where's Damian? He's usually the first one up." Tim, Jason, and Steph all glanced at each other and burst into laughter. Dick blinked in surprise, and Bruce looked between the three of them, eyes narrowed.
"I gather we missed something last night," he said, looking straight at Tim. "Out with it."
"Carrie taught Dami how to kiss!" Steph cried, hugging her. Bruce blinked in surprise.
"That's… hardly appropriate," he said slowly. Dick shook his head.
"Babs taught me, too. When I was eleven. Don't go knocking the age difference," he warned. Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Still. He's ten."
"Coming from playboy Bruce Wayne," Jason snorted. Bruce glared at him.
"So what you're saying is, Damian is too humiliated to even show his face down here today," Dick said, smiling. Carrie shrugged.
"He was just embarrassed, I shouldn't have told them, but he seemed okay. I calmed him down."
"Details or it didn't happen," Jason told her, smirking.
"What do you mean, details?" Carrie took her glasses off, rubbing the lenses with her shirt and then replacing them on her nose. Jason looked around the room.
"None of you are up on modern jokes," he complained, walking over to a chair and dropping in.
"You're right, because I have no idea what you mean, Jay," Dick rolled his eyes, but then one word caught his ear. His head snapped toward the TV. "Alfred, turn that up!" Alfred took up the remote and pressed the volume button.
"...That's right," the reporter was saying. "After months of silence, the Joker returned last night to wreak havoc in the streets. The sudden weather change caused the city to practically shut down last night, and that was when he made his move. Seventeen dead and nine still missing, the Joker has chosen seemingly random victims, as is his MO, from every walk of life; a night time waitress, a nurse, a policeman. The one name on everyone's lips, however, is Lucius Fox, noted businessman for Bruce Wayne and Wayne Enterprises."
Bruce suddenly sat up on the couch, his eyes wide. Other victims flashed on the screen. Jason spat out his coffee, pointing.
"The waitress! That's… that's Trish. I used to work with her! She was the one who was there on all my shifts…"
"And the nurse," Steph said quietly. "She's the head nurse of the ward that houses comatose patients."
"The policeman was Will's new partner." Dick's voice was grave.
"It seems that the Joker hasn't been working alone, however," the news report continued. "His victims weren't killed in a way he usually favors, leading investigators to believe that there was more than one man on the streets last night; in fact, the Joker may not have committed any of the murders at all."
"Taking last night off was a bad idea," Bruce growled standing up. "We have work to do." Selina watched him sadly.
"What are the chances of that!?" Dick cried angrily, still watching the TV. "Bruce, this doesn't make any sense."
"It doesn't matter. We have to deal with it."
"Of course," Selina said, standing. Carrie looked between them confusedly, her brow furrowing.
"You should stay here," Bruce told her. "I don't want you-"
"-I know," Selina looked down. "You boys figure this out and be careful."
"Be careful of what?" Harley walked in, rubbing her eyes. Dick froze a little, and Jason nodded.
"I'll go wake Damian up," he said, slipping out of the room. Dick grabbed Harley's hand and went into the hall.
"The Joker went on a killing spree last night, the four of us are going out."
"He what?" Her eyes widened, and she glanced toward the parlor. Dick looked at her, biting his lip anxiously.
"Seventeen people dead," Dick said gravely. "We're going to Gotham."
"He... but he..." She stepped toward him and buried her face in his shoulder. "He can't be back," she breathed. "Please don't let him be back."
"Don't worry Harles, he's not getting away this time. I swear I'll end him," Dick's arms were tight around her shoulders as he hugged her close.
"Don't kill," she murmured. "You'd regret it later. Just stay safe."
"It's the only way to stop him, Harley. You know that. In the end, it will be Bruce and him, and Bruce won't do it. Someone else will have to pick up the gun." She looked up at him.
"But would you be able to live with yourself deliberately, maliciously ending someone's life? I find it hard." Her blue eyes were searching. "It's only because you believe I can be better than that."
Dick bit his lip, looking away. He didn't say anything. I'm only ensuring the safety of my family. Your safety, he thought.
"So I know I can't ask you not to go." Harley took a deep breath, hiding her worry. She still couldn't stand being trapped at home while he was in danger. "But be safe, and... come home."
"You know I will," Dick nodded solemnly. "Have I ever let you down before?" Dick smiled, kissing her lovingly. His brow was furrowed anxiously and when he pulled back, Damian was there.
"We have work to do," he said darkly, his face already hidden by his mask. He disappeared down the hallway as Carrie stepped out of the parlor.
"What's going on?" she asked, looking increasingly worried. Dick kissed Harley's head one more time and then followed Damian toward the library.
Bruce met them in the Batcave; his boys already suited up and ready for action. Red Robin looked nervous, a slight frown on his lips, visible under his cowl.
"We never go out in the daylight. Rarely, anyway," he said.
"We'll have to, today," Bruce said shortly, straightening the vambrace on his arm and buckling it in place. Red Hood tugged at his jacket, his head cocking. The white lenses of his mask narrowed behind the sharp red of his helmet.
"We don't even know where he is," Red Hood urged. Bruce's jaw tightened as he swept his cape around his shoulders. He glanced at Robin, who swung his sword before sheathing it on his back.
"No swords," Bruce snapped harshly, and Robin turned to him, the eyes of his emerald mask narrowing.
"Bruce, we need a plan," Nightwing said, his face grim and serious. Bruce pulled his cowl on and examined his eldest son. The red stripe across his chest mirrored the red rimming the lenses of his mask, giving him a harsher, darker look. Not at all like the boy he once trained. Nightwing looked furious and deadly.
"We need to gather information," Batman immediately got down to business. "We need a list of all killed and missing, methods, locations, and times, police reports, and variations in the Joker's usual MO. Two or three of us should do a sweep of the streets. See what we can find."
"Dibs," Red Hood raised his hand, looking between Batman and Nightwing. Nightwing nodded slowly.
"I'll go with him," he said. "We'll take Red Robin, too." Batman nodded.
"Robin and I will go see what the Commissioner knows." He was already walking to the Batmobile, Robin on his heels.
Nightwing glanced at Red Robin and Red Hood. "...Batwing?"
"Bruce banned me from it," Jason muttered. "So let's."
Nightwing grinned and walked toward the Batwing, jumping up and climbing into the cockpit. Red Hood and Red Robin followed, Red Robin sliding into the copilot seat. Red Hood jumped into the back. "All right, let's see if I remember how to drive this thing," Nightwing muttered, the engines whirring to life and the control panel lighting.
"I could always try," Red Hood offered with a smirk, leaning forward between the seats.
"You would crash it. And then we'd all end up dead before we even left the Batcave," Nightwing commented, concentrating on maneuvering the vehicle into the open sky over the bay between Wayne Manor and Gotham.
"I'm not the one who's wrecked like six motorcycles," Red Hood countered.
"Over the span of thirteen years!" Nightwing defended.
"And a car," Red Robin pointed out. Nightwing sighed exasperatedly.
"That was once. And severe emotional trauma as a cause shouldn't even count."
"Pretty sure we're all walking traumas, and the rest of us haven't crashed our cars." Red Hood leaned back in his seat.
"You can't afford one to crash," Nightwing rolled his eyes, scanning the Gotham streets. Red Robin ignored the both of them.
"The victims seemed to have been localized to one area. Whether the Joker brought them there or not is unclear, but we've already established that we knew them; Barb's nurse, Jason-er- Red Hood's waitress, Batman's associate and Nightwing's replacement-"
"-hey-"
"-as well as my criminology professor, and several others. The ones we didn't know, however, were just… homeless. A few bums and a prostitute."
"So nothing new, for Gotham. How do they even know that they were on the Joker's list of hits last night?" Red Hood yawned.
Red Robin scrolled through the police database. "Get this. They were all killed the same way. Not by the Joker, it just says that… they were dead. With no explanation, save for the CSF and… well yuck," Red Robin shook his head.
"Wait what? The what?" Red Hood hit him on the side of his head. "Stop speaking nerd."
"Their brains were leaking out their noses, is that dumbed down enough for you?" Red Robin turned in his seat, glaring at Red Hood.
"Well that doesn't sound like Joker Gas to me," Nightwing muttered as he stealthily landed the Batwing on a roof. Red Robin had given him the coordinates, and they all climbed out.
"No, whoever Joker is working with, he's got a brain-melting ray so lets tread lightly, shall we?" Red Hood pulled his jacket around his shoulders in the cold, his boots crunching in the snow. "I have always wanted to say that." Red Robin looked down at his computer on his arm.
"Most of the murders occurred in these two neighborhoods, to the north and south of us. We should be close, so let's be careful-"
He was cut off as a laugh arose behind them.
"Let's see if I can kill three birds with one stone, shall we?" the Joker cried, his stance wide as he fired the RPG on his shoulder.