Penguin. Two-Face. Dr. Freeze. The Joker. Anarky. Deathstroke.

Six villains stand before us today. With each there is a grudge held, and we have to fight hard to overcome them. Penguin, for my father, as he caused much trouble to Gotham and resulted in the death of the mayor, who was close to him. Two-Face, for murdering Grayson's parents. Dr. Freeze is Barbara's, as Alfred, who she cares for more than anything, nearly died at his hands. The Joker is Jason's, he was killed in an accident similar to Grayson's and had to be ressurrected. Anarky, a miniature Joker, who has caused Tim more pain than anyone should ever have to feel. Deathstroke, for murdering my grandfather and shaking my world to the ground and back again.

I put on a brave face through my mask. Jason, beside me, is shaking violently and trying to hold himself still. I gingerly touch my brother's wrist, reminding him that he isn't alone. Then, we fight. Again and again a song plays in my head, and I am grateful. It is a distraction, and I feel less rage to unleash upon Deathstroke.

/Yeah, you could be the greatest/You can be the best/You can be the King Kong banging on your chest/You could beat the world/You could beat the war/You could talk to God, go banging on his door/You can throw your hands up, you can beat the clock/You can move a mountain, you can break rocks/You can be a master, don't wait for luck/Dedicate yourself and you can find yourself/Standing in the hall of fame, and the world's gonna know your name/'Cause you burn with the brightest flame, and the world's gonna know your name/And you'll be on the walls of the hall of fame/

As the villains retreat into the darkness, I see Deathstroke flip around and face us from the shadows. "You know, Batman, your little troop is going to suffer someday. Just like your precious Talia is suffering back in our headquarters."

I shoot my father a look as my grandfather's killer slips away. He returns it, both of us recalling the night before. "This is great."

We get into the Batmobile and drive away, Tim and Jason in the backseat. They are both texting, my oldest brother and my sister having taken their bikes. I look up to my father as he drives, his cowl still up. His white mask eyes are narrowed, watching the road but not concentrating. Grayson calls and I push the talk button on the car screen, knowing he's using his microphone and headset built into his helmet. "Hey."

I look into the rearview mirror, seeing both my sister and brother behind us on the road. He continues, "You two okay?"

"Yeah." I murmur. My father agrees in a deep, husky voice, and I sigh. "At least now we know she's still okay, right? We can rescue her or something."

"Sounds right to me." Grayson says. "But I have no idea where Slade's group moved their headquarters to, since we burned down their old building."

"We can find it." Bruce says. His voice is still deep, and I reach over to touch his shoulders. He blinks over at me gratefully, then focuses on the road again. Tim looks up from the backseat. "Find what?"

"Deathstroke's base, and once we find that, my mother." I reply, biting back more. Because I miss her, I haven't seen her in so long. And if she's not okay, Deathstroke will personally pay.

I look over to my father, and I know he's thinking the same things.

"What if we can't find her?" I ask quietly. "What if. . . ."

"We will, Dami." My father reassures me. We're both looking up at a display in the Batcave. The time on the clock is well past midnight, though I barely notice. I want to find Mother, so I can have the life I once had, only now with my new family as well. My father looks up at the clock, reading the time. "You should go to bed. I'm thinking about it myself."

"But-" I break off in a yawn. "Damian, I'll follow you up in a minute. Let me shut everything down."

"Mmm-kay." I murmur, walking sleepily up the stairs. I get into my pajamas and go to lie down, but at the last second, I reach into my dresser and pull out a newspaper clipping in a photo frame. It's a photo, of me, mother, and father, just after we had reached the shore from the collapsing oil rig. My mother was looking me into the eye and talking, and my father was just behind us, watching.

We were all bruised and bleeding, but we were all together. That's why I like it, why I look at it and remind myself this will happen again someday, us being together. My father comes up behind me and I look up. He sits beside me on the bed, looking at the photograph. "Someday we'll get you a picture that's better than that. Where we're all together and no one's bruised or scratched up like that."

"Someday soon, I hope." I murmur. He nods and tucks me in. I am too tired to fight his coddling me tonight, and I sleep. I dream about Talia, my mother, her brown hair and warrior-like personality, her harsh way of talking. When morning wakes me, with the birds singing and the sun warming my face, I look up. Father is in the doorway, saying, "Damian, get up."

"What's going on?" I ask, stretching out. He walks over, a recorder in his hand. "Listen."

A broken, static voice comes through. I recognize it instantly-my Mother. "Damian, Bruce. . . .I'm in an abandoned apart-I need help. . . .please get me out."

"Where is she?" I ask, quiet and almost frightened. "The abandoned apartment building on the city line. I need you and Grayson to go with me and get her out of there."

"She's going to stay here, right?" I wonder, getting up to get dressed."Yes, Damian, she'll stay here."

Once I'm dressed, I head down to get something for breakfast. I watch Tim and Jason sparring in the backyard while I nibble on toast and sipping my tea, a mixture Alfred makes for me every morning. When I finish, I inquire about my sister's wherabouts. Alfred answers from the sink, where he is washing up from my brothers' meal. "She is over at Mistress Kara's house, having yet another sleepover."

"She goes over there a lot. Are they really close friends?" He nods, his back to me. "They fought a villain known as Livewire together when Superman and your father were out of town. Since then they have been nearly inseperable."

I sigh. "Girls will be girls."

He stifles a laugh. I rinse my plate off and put it in the dishwasher, then I tug my uniform on over my clothes and head down to the cave. By nightfall, we are in the Batmobile and heading to the building. The drive is silent, me in the back and Grayson in the passenger seat. When we arrive, I see someone guarding the front steps I never wanted to see-Talons. The undead warriors don't see us approaching.

We park the car on the pavement in the back, then we spot another entrance. We head toward it and I ready some special Batarangs just in case. We slip inside unnoticed, then Grayson and I look to our father. He motions for us to follow him out of the lobby-area, toward the rooms upstairs.

We bound up the stairs, me taking two at a time to keep up. All three of us are silent. We see an open door, and the silhouette of an Owl floats through it. I shiver as we slip by, but the dark figure spots us as it turns to leave and it screams for the Talons. We are able to ward them off easily enough, and then I see it. The bloody trail leading under one door. I show it to my father, silently, and he nods.

He and Grayson create a diversion, leading the Talons down the hall. The new Grandmaster is here, too-I can hear the voice. "Your boy won't survive to see his next birthday, Batman. You destroyed our Talon and Grandmaster, now we destroy you."

I push on the door. It doesn't budge, so I pick the lock with the corner of a Batarang. My mother lays on the floor inside, the room empty except for her blood and marks on the floor, meaning someone had a fight in here. I hope it was my mother, because if she's bad, I don't think I can control myself. I race to her limp form and gently touch her shoulder. She blinks awake, looking up. "Dami. . .Damian?"

"Shh. . ." I tell her. "We're going to get you out of here."

"We?" She asks numbly. I help her to her feet, but she walks fine on her own. "Father, Grayson, and I. We came to rescue you."

She seems awake enough now, and I get her outside without any trouble. I grab a towel from the car and clean most of the blood off of her, wrapping her shoulders in another. Grayson and my father come running, and my brother leaps into the backseat, me at his heels. Father kisses my mother, and she murmurs, "I missed you, beloved."

I cringe at their lip-locking, but Grayson shrugs it off. I recall him kissing his now-wife, Koriand'r, on several occasions, and am not suprised. My father says he missed Talia as well, and they both get in and we drive away, dust flying behind us. Grayson laughs that he left behind a present, and then I hear it-the whole building collapses when an explosive goes off on the lowest floor. I laugh, too.