"Batman is missing", Nightwing slammed his hands into the console, curling his fingers towards his palms, "How…how did he let this happen!"
Barbara pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes against the glare of the monitor, "I don't think he let anything happen. Or maybe he did, he's been…worried"
"…does she know?" He tilted his head up towards the ceiling, where the rest of the household slept.
"It's been five hours Dick, no one wants her to get upset. We haven't even told Damian yet", Barbara had to admit to herself that she had knots in her stomach. For Bruce to be quiet for so long it meant nothing good.
Nightwing scrubbed at this face with his hands, as if he could pull all of the anxiety and nerves away from himself, "I'm going back out"
"It's almost morning, what are you going to be able to find? A bunch of nervous people who don't know why Nightwing is out in the daytime", Barbara grasped his hand as he turned away, trying to pull him back to her, "Please. Go to bed, we'll deal with it I promise"
"Are you going to sleep?" He squeezed her hand, watching as her eyes slide away from him, "That's what I thought. He wouldn't sleep if I was missing, he didn't when you were missing"
Babs flinched but then nodded, not trusting herself to be able to speak, "We'll find him"
*
It took a moment for Batman to remember just what had happened, forcing his way through swimming thoughts Harley, her apartment, the bomb. Harley. His eyes popped the sudden thought that she wasn't safe. Assured that he couldn't see her, at least as far as his head could turn, he began to take in the rest of his surroundings.
His neck was strapped against a hard surface, with enough room that he could still breath but not much else. There was a metal strap across chest, then his waist. His arms and legs followed the same pattern, making him unable to move. Right in front of his face was a glossy surface, something like a mirror.
Batman struggled against the bonds, knowing that he most likely wouldn't be able to move but having to test something. He could tell just by the feeling that his belt was missing, but if he could move enough that wouldn't matter.
Just as he was making the attempt, the surface in front of him brightened all of a sudden. All it showed was an empty room, looking a bit too much like an integration room.
"Joker", Batman growled, he wasn't in the mood for playing any sort of games, especially not with a man like the Joker, "What is this", It wasn't as if he didn't believe in the Joker's ability to plot and construct a complicated plan, it was more that this wasn't his type of plan. There was no fanfare involved. Just a gas bomb in an apartment that he might not have ever been in.
Unless…
"You know I don't appreciate people taking what belongs to me", the Joker's disembodied voice floated through the room, the man nowhere to be seen until he popped out of nowhere slamming his hands against the glass, "And you took something from me"
Deciding to play dumb, an attempt to irritate and throw the Joker off of his own game, he answered, "I don't know what you're talking about. No one has seen hide or hair of you in a few weeks"
"Shut. UP. BRUCIE", the red smile twisted up into a snarl, baring yellow teeth, "YOU TOOK HER FROM ME"
"Harley isn't a possession", his theory had been proven right, there had always been the hint that the Joker always had known who he was. It just had never been part of his plans, the Batman had been what was important, not the man under the mask.
"What does it matter what she is! I made her what she was and you just took her out from under me! Just like that green bitch, you can't trust anyone", Joker dragged his hands down the glass, his nails scrapping as they went, "I just have to make her understand, she's forgotten"
"You leave her alone! She wants nothing more to do with you!" he had attempted to keep his temper, but at the suggestion that Joker would do anything to Harley, it just struck a nerve. Batman knew what abusive partners did to women, he knew what the Joker had already done to Harley, he couldn't let her go through that again.
Joker smiled again, his cheeks almost splitting in half, "Oh but she will. She'll come for her precious new man, like the whore she is. She won't let you just die will she? She cares too much, so emotional"
Bruce's voice when low, a deep growl, "When I get out of here I'm going to kill you"
The clown laughed, the sound filling the whole room, bouncing around until it was just a loop of laughing, "That's what I like to hear! Keep that up and we'll have us a good old fight!"
*
"Is Bruce at work?" Harley leaned on the door frame of the Kitchen, yawning as she did so. She had forgotten just how much panic attacks took out of her, she assumed that she had just slept through Bruce going to work. It would have been nice if he had woken her up first to say goodbye at least.
Alfred looked up from the sink full of dishes, taking in her appearance. Despite a good night's sleep there was still dark circles under her eyes and her skin was pale, disturbingly making her look like she was wearing her clown make up still.
"Yes Miss Harley, he apologizes that he couldn't be here when you woke up but I believe there was an early morning call. Overseas business and all of that", as bad as he felt about lying about where Bruce was, he knew in the long run it was better for her. She was already nervous enough, with the threat of the Joker hanging over her head she didn't need to believe that her partner was in trouble.
"Work always comes first, I don't blame him. Ah speaking of which, is there a phone that I can use? I don't think it's really safe for me to be going back to work right now", she wrapped her arms around her body, taking a deep breath. It was embarrassing, even though she told her kids not to be embarrassed about their mental illness. Having to call into work to say I can't come in because I'm too scared to go outside. She had done so much work and she could still relapse.
"In the living room, you should have some privacy though I believe the TV is going", he pointed towards the other room, "Just listening to the news"
Harley grasped the door frame, just to hold herself up for a moment, "...Thank you, Al. For everything"
He paused his motions, holding a plate in midair before he smiled slightly, "Of course Miss Harley, after you're done I can make you some breakfast and a bit of tea"
*
Harley's fingers tapped against the table, waiting to be connected to her boss. She could hear the vague drone of the news in the background, just barely registering against the tone of the phone. Until…
"GREETINGS GOTHAM", the shrill voice cut straight through her as if it was actually a knife. It wasn't if that he hadn't actually stabbed her before so why should his voice by any different, "I have a special announcement for one special lady!"
The phone fell from her hand clattering to the floor, just barely she could hear her boss speaking, calling out her name. But all of her attention was focused on the television, and the Joker's face. He stood right in front of the camera, the ghostly white of his skin and the bright red of his lips were all that she could see.
"That's right Harley! This is all for you! Don't you feel good?" He laughed, shaking the camera rather violently before he pulled away so that the rest of the room could be seen, "I mean isn't that all you want? To feel good? Didn't I do that for you?"
Her heart dropped into her stomach, a cold feeling creeping over her. It wasn't just Joker in the room, it was Batman. He had Batman, "No No no no no no"
Joker grasped Batman's chin in his hands, forcing the man to look into the camera, "Smile! See Harley, look at how happy he is! Don't you just want to come join us? See that's what I want!" He released Batman's chin, before bringing his hand done on Batman's cheek in an open hand slap.
"No. Please no Mister J don't...please", Harley whispered, pressing her hands against her chest. It was a position that she had adopted one too many times, begging for him to hurt her. It never worked but she just had to try, because maybe one time he would change his mind.
"Here's the deal, Honey. You come to me, or…", the camera panned out until the rest of the room could be seen. A large almost cartoonish cannon was pointed at Batman's head, "Boom. You know where to find me. At our little love nest. Midnight. Or I kill him"
"BRUCE", as the screen went dark she screamed and all of the strength went out of her legs as she fell to the ground. For the second time in so many days, Harley blacked out before she did the sounds of rushing footsteps reaching her ears.
*
Cassandra slid her arms underneath Harley's knees and shoulders, the woman's head lolling against her as she did so, "Is she okay?" Cassandra asked Alfred who was watching, his brow knitted with concern.
"I would hope so, as there is nothing we can do. If she doesn't wake up within the next thirty minutes or so we may have to call the hospital"
Cassandra laid Harley on the couch as gently as she could, brushing a strand of hair off of Harley's head. A moment of tenderness that she had learned from Stephanie, nothing from her childhood, "I don't think she would like that. She's been in hospitals so much"
"She'll be okay Cass", Stephanie said as she came into the room, holding a bowl of cool water for Alfred, "Does she have any medication or anything? Like this can't be healthy for her to black out this much"
"Poisons don't work, would that affect medications?" Cassandra asked, sitting on the edge of the couch. She was scared for Harley, in a sense that she didn't totally understand. Perhaps a bit of kinship for both being so called lost causes that Bruce had taken in. The others had been a bit untrusting but Cass despite not always being around had faith in Harley because Bruce had faith in her.
Alfred sigh, "I'm afraid that Miss Cassandra is right, such things just do not have the same effect on her as they would on us. The downfalls of such abilities I suppose"
"She knows", Stephanie said, as Dick walked into the room. He was a few minutes late to the family meeting as he had just barely gotten in from patrol.
"She's always known", Dick replied, "She's not stupid, she's probably one of the smartest people in Gotham. Harley is more than enough of a match for Bruce, in more ways than one"
Stephanie chewed on her lip, "But why wouldn't she do something with that information? Hell why wouldn't the Joker? He kidnapped Batman because he knows the connection to Harley, but he's never done anything with it before"
"Never wanted to I guess, I mean it never fit into his plans. He likes things to go his way, you know. Everything is a joke. But his desire for Batman to fight him for the rest of their lives, that overrides the biggest joke for Gotham being that Bruce Wayne is the Batman"
"And Harley is more important than all of that?" Stephanie jerked her head towards the pass out woman, "He can't love her, why is she suddenly more important than Batman?"
"Because he can control me", Stephanie and Dick turned around as Harley raised off of the couch just slightly, Alfred holding her shoulder as she did, "He says that he wants chaos and anarchy but in the end he terrorises and abuses until he makes you just the way he wants. That's why he likes me and that's why he hates Bruce so much. He can't control him"
Alfred kept his arm around her shoulder, supporting her physically and emotionally, "Are you sure that you should be up right now Miss Harley? You did take quite a fall there"
She patted his arm, "I'm fine All, don't worry about me. What I need to worry about is getting to Bruce before midnight. I don't suppose someone knows where I can find some grease paint and a Harlequin costume?"
"You cannot be serious", Dick stepped into the room, crossing his arms into an X, "There is no way that we can go let you. He'll kill you!"
"If she goes alone she will, there's no reason she can't distract him while we go in, get Batman, serve as backup", Stephanie punched her hand, grinning at Harley, "Right?"
"I can't let you guys do that, this is my fight. He called me out, not the whole goddamn Bat Family"
Alfred coughed to draw everyone's attention to him, "I believe that I can as Master Bruce's oldest companion, that you are part of the ah, Batfamily now"
Harley looked at Alfred, feeling the tears beginning to start in her eyes, "You...I mean"
Dick crossed the room, putting his hand on Harley's shoulder just over Alfred's, "Al's always been a good judge of character, I say Welcome to the Family Harley"
Cassandra nodded and smiled, she had been under the impression that Harley was already part of their family but she supposed that there was verbal confirmation needed, "We kept Jason, we keep Harley"
"I...I'm not sure I agree that we kept Jason", Dick was only partly disagreeing with Cassandra's wording. On the one hand Bruce still believe in Jason and sometimes he was helpful, on the other…
Jason was Jason. Violent and sometimes unpredictable, but maybe that was what Cass meant. She was drawing a comparison between the two, if they could on some level still accept Jason as a family member then they could accept Harley.
"Oh wait! I have to go get Tim and Damian and we can have a group hug!" Stephanie darted out of the room, yelling as she went, "DAMIAN, TIM IT'S FAMILY TIME"
Even as she was crying Harley had to laugh at that, sometimes it was hard to remember that despite the fact these people put on costumes every night to fight crime that they were just people. And sometimes people were silly and ridiculous. Because they were a family and they could act like that with each other.
"WOMAN WE WILL NOT BE HAVING ANY SORT OF GROUP HUG GET AWAY FROM ME"
"Stephanie you are choking me!"
Harley looked at Dick and then at Alfred, for a moment they were silent then they all burst into laughter. Despite everything going on Harley actually felt pretty good, they had a plan and she had someone on her side. She felt happy, and safe, with people who cared about her. When they had Bruce back, and they would get him back, everything would be good again.
It had to be.
