A/N: Let's throw in some Nightwing.
Nightwing's POV
It was Halloween; there was a fire downtown that required attention and patrolling the streets was necessary.
When Gordon called us to mention his missing daughter, Bats couldn't take time to find her. He told me what he had seen, believing she could handle herself and that she was probably at a party.
I would have thought the same thing.
However, Babs was my friend, and being a target for criminals, I had given her an alarm so she could send a message in Morse code, in case she was ever in trouble. Two words: "Help Jest."
It had rung thirty minutes ago.
I didn't bother Bats or Jason about it; they had enough on their minds.
It didn't take too many brains to figure out the code. Jason had informed us what J. called himself last night. Luckily, I had a tracker on Babs' alarm, and I arrived at the place, searching an old paper mill.
I didn't know what to expect; I didn't really know Jester that well, but he seemed sane enough. He could have just been another offspring of misfortune, but he had never kidnapped anyone before. Unless…
I peered in the window, frowning at the sight.
Babs was in a cage. Honestly, I was bewildered. That was the best he could use to contain her? A cage? It wasn't very original.
Jester was sitting in a chair, whittling away at a piece of wood with a dangerous looking knife. There was no sign of Joker or henchman.
I concluded that my best strategy would be diplomacies; maybe all he wanted was a brawl. However, that didn't explain why he kidnapped Babs.
I swung around the side of the building and was surprised to find the door unlocked. As I entered, Jester glanced up, grinning. "If it isn't the bluebird. Welcome."
I approached him cautiously while wearing a smile. "I hear you go by Jester now."
"I found out no one takes you seriously with a one letter name." He sat up, watching me with icy eyes. "What can I do for you?"
"I'm afraid you kidnapped the police commissioner's daughter."
"Did I?" He frowned at the cage, where Babs, wearing a torn Batman costume, was watching with interested hope. "I suppose that does look a little sketchy."
"Look, Jester, we can do this the easy way or-"
Suddenly, there was a sharp pain in my shoulder. Wincing, I pulled out the knife and dropped it. Jester was grinning madly. "It's amusing how you think there is an easy way."
"What do you want?"
"It was a mistake; I was trying to kidnap Batman."
I sighed, irritated. He was just fooling around, and my shoulder was on fire. "Look, it's been a busy night, so let's get this over with and-"
His foot crashed into my chest and I leaped back. "Would you let me finish the story? I saw Miss Gordon running around impersonating Gotham's idol. I thought it was impolite and embarrassing that you're hiring girls now, so I brought her back here." He sat back down, leaning back with his hands behind his head. "Besides, she looked so cute-"
I lunged at him. Within moments, we had settled into the routine; I was agile, but he was fast. In ways, he reminded me of Wally, except for the insanity.
I somersaulted backwards and swung my leg around, kicking his out from beneath him. We were standing as soon as we had fallen. It was almost comforting that in the six years of knowing him, we had become completely in tune in battle. I wondered if this was how Bats and Joker felt during a fight.
A gunshot rang out. We turned to the door, where stood the clown himself.
