Chapter 24
"How are we getting out of this?" Tim asked Harley as she piloted her stolen Bludhaven PD chopper through Gotham's cloudy skies.
Only he and Steph had headphones on so they could talk to Harley as she orchestrated their escape from Gotham Prep, where the Suicide Squad had just shot up Tim and Steph's classroom and scared their classmates half to death for their bullying and harassment.
Harley was dressed in her harlequin kevlar and was wearing the headphones around her neck since the strap wouldn't fit over her jester's cap. Her blonde wig was blowing in the breeze and twisting itself around the cords and Steph was sure that it was going to be a bitch to get Harley untangled when they landed.
The four former villains had stripped off their black clothes and masks in the back of the chopper to reveal their normal costumes underneath as soon as they got underway. They were now screaming at each other at the top of their lungs to be heard over the rotating blades as they traded insults back and forth, which, truth be told, wasn't too different from their normal style of communicating.
Harley glanced over at Tim from the controls and gave him and Steph a reassuring smile.
"I got a plan," she said calmly. "All you kids gotta do is tell the cops it was Mr. Freeze and three henchmen who kidnapped ya. Leave the rest to me," she said.
"What if someone got a few seconds streamed before Killer Frost took their phones away?" Tim asked her with a wrinkled brow.
"We knocked out the cell phone tower before coming in," Harley grinned. "Like I told Steph here, we're professionals."
"I'm pretty sure what you said is you're villains," Steph pointed out. "Professionals is debatable."
"Hey!" Harley giggled. "We get shit done. That's all that counts. And we get paid for it now. Ergo, we are professionals," she bragged.
"Professional nutcases," Tim said, shaking his head.
"We were all in Arkham," Harley said. "What do you expect?"
Tim and Steph laughed and Tim reached over and squeezed Steph's hand in his. Harley tried to catch Steph's eye behind his head for a wink but Steph was too busy smiling up at Tim and hanging onto his hand.
Nothin' like a good shot of adrenaline to fuel a romance, Harley thought to herself with satisfaction as she flew the helicopter towards the warehouse district on the outskirts of Gotham. She landed it in a parking lot next to an abandoned ice cream manufacturing plant.
"Make us proud, kiddos," Deadshot said to Tim and Steph when the two teens exited the chopper after carefully helping Harley remove her headphones without losing her pigtailed wig in the process. She couldn't have anyone knowing that she had turned brunette after escaping Arkham with Jason and honestly, the kids didn't know if she had even filled the Suicide Squad in on her new look and figured it wasn't a good time to ask.
"What do you mean, make you proud?" Steph said to Deadshot in surprise.
"Talk us up good to the press and the cops," he said.
"But I thought -" Tim started to say before stopping in his tracks as Mr. Freeze, his cold suit covered by a ridiculously large black hoodie and sweatpants, ambled up to them with three henchmen trailing behind him.
"Ah! Good, you have arrived," he said cheerfully, tossing his freeze gun to Killer Croc before trying to wrangle an equally enormous black ski mask over his domed helmet.
"Give that here, Vik," Captain Cold said, reaching out to help him get the disguise on. Killer Frost had a handful of zip ties and was binding the henchmen's hands behind them as they willingly knelt on the pavement while Deadshot made a big pretense of menacing them threateningly with his weapons.
"Make sure to give the photographers a good shot of you leering over these assholes, Croc," Floyd reminded him as Waylon took his position. "And you douchebags better look good and scared."
"We're not little punks," one of the henchmen groused.
"You are whatever I say you are for five thousand dollars apiece," Mr. Freeze corrected him. "Appear frightened. You are actors, now," he said with zest. "Put on a good performance for the press."
"Or else Croc'll stomp on you to make it more realistic," Killer Frost warned.
"Why am I always the one chosen for physical violence?" Croc complained. "That's specist."
"That's what the what?" Deadshot asked him, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh, God, no," Tim muttered as Steph started to giggle.
"Specist," Croc said. "You're a species racist. And I take offense to that."
"Aren't you the one who's always bitching about being human?" Leonard asked him as he strung several zip ties together in order to fit them around Mr. Freeze's wrists. His thick cold suit was making it difficult to bind him properly.
"Shut up, the cops are coming," Harley said. "Come here, kids," she said, pulling them off to the side to stand with her as the sound of approaching sirens grew rapidly louder until a caravan of police cars sped into the parking lot, screeching to a halt not far from the villains' vignette.
Harley waved a cheerful hand over to the cops as none other than Barbara Gordon stepped out of the first cruiser.
"The situation's under control, Commish!" Harley called out. "Gotham City's own Suicide Squad has apprehended the villains and rescued the schoolchildren!" Croc posed ferociously, teeth bared, as Deadshot and Captain Cold scowled with weapons trained on the foursome on the ground while Killer Frost smiled seductively and popped a hip while angling her best side to the light.
A flash of a camera went off, then another, as the reporters who had been trailing the police raced forward upon seeing that the danger had passed before their arrival.
"Thank God!" Barbara cried out with heartfelt relief. "Kids, are you ok?" she said with worry as she rushed towards them. As she flung her arms around them in a giant bear hug, she giggled in their ears, "I always wanted to be an actress. Was it too much?"
Tim and Steph hid their laughs in her shoulders and managed to look appropriately shaken by the time she released them and started carefully examining their faces for injuries.
"Were you hurt?" she asked them nervously.
"No," they said to her, quickly launching into their best imitation of "Bruce Wayne, hapless billionaire" as some other officers approached.
Steph widened her eyes and said "We were so scared," and she sniffed pathetically. "They took my crutches," she wailed, getting louder, "and made me climb up a rope ladder! Oh, God, I thought I was going to fall and die!" she moaned. "I could have become a splat on the school sidewalk!"
Tim choked and covered his face with his hands as his shoulders began shaking.
"I'm sorry," he gasped out, quickly masking his laughter with sobbing tears. "I shouldn't be such a coward," he whimpered.
"You've been through a very traumatic experience," Harley said comfortingly as she patted his shoulder. "It's perfectly normal to get a little emotional. We'll call your parents and have them pick you up down at the station," she said gently.
"These are both Bruce Wayne's wards," Babs said. "I'm their aunt. Technically sort of," she amended. "I'll call him right now," she said, pulling out her cell phone. "And then we'll figure out why these villains dared to kidnap you!" she said, glaring over at Mr. Freeze, who had just been dramatically un-skimasked by a triumphant Captain Cold.
"You are a disgrace to frozen beings everywhere!" Leonard was loudly berating him. "Kidnapping innocent children? Shooting up a classroom?"
"To be fair, I only froze the classroom," Mr. Freeze said. "My henchmen shot it up."
"Appalling!" Killer Frost snapped, smacking him on the back of his glass helmet. "Scaring sweet little schoolchildren like that!"
"How dare you, sir!" Killer Croc thundered. "How dare you?"
"Wayne Enterprises denied my request for a slimmer cold suit!" Mr. Freeze complained. "I know Bruce Wayne has the technology to make me one, but does he care? Nein! He denies Viktor Fries the ability to cut a dashing figure for the ladies! I ask you," he implored Killer Frost as a circle of Gotham PD officers cautiously approached the group. "Would you date someone who was confined to such unflattering attire?"
"Viktor," Killer Frost said in shock. "Was all this because you wanted to ask me out?"
"I - I…." Mr. Freeze stammered, bashfully meeting her eyes before hanging his head in shame. The officers eyed each other, then the Suicide Squad, before finally looking to a bemused Barbara Gordon.
"Viktor, committing a crime to woo a lady who has just gone straight is not the right way to go about it," she said dryly. "And you'll have to continue this conversation with her from back inside Arkham. Take them in," Babs nodded at her officers, who started helping the criminals to their feet and into the squad cars as the Suicide Squad supervised.
"Auf wiedersehen, mein liebchen," Viktor said sadly to Louise as he walked off. She waggled her blue fingers at him coyly.
"I'll call Bruce and take the kids straight to the manor," Barbara said to the police sergeant who was awaiting her further orders. "I think we can make an exception for minors. I'll get their statements from them once we get them settled. They've been through quite the ordeal."
Tim let out another whimper and sniff for the sergeant's benefit as Steph shivered in fear and took advantage of the opportunity to wrap herself around Tim in a tight hug, staying glued to him instead of pulling away. Harley and Babs noticed with gleaming eyes that Tim was more than happy to keep his arms snugged around her, and was one arm dropping a little lower down her back than normal?
"Very good, ma'am," the officer was saying to Babs. "And… how will we handle getting statements from the Suicide Squad?" he asked hesitantly.
"We can give them to ya here," Harley offered, sensing his apprehension at allowing her team into police headquarters, no matter how reformed and heroic they supposedly now were. "If that's all right with the Commish, of course."
"Whatever you prefer, Sergeant," Babs said to him. "Here or at the station, either is fine. And call Bludhaven PD, will you, to let them know we've recovered their stolen chopper."
"Yes, ma'am," the sergeant said again as he motioned the remaining officers over to begin taking down the squad's statements.
"Thank you, Harley Hood! And Suicide Squad," Steph called out to them. "You saved our lives!"
"Who knows what would have happened without you?" Tim added with puppy dog eyes.
"You are most welcome," Harley beamed. Floyd took a grand bow while Captain Cold sharply saluted, Croc regally nodded, and Killer Frost blew them a kiss.
"I hope the officer separates them before he starts asking them questions," Tim murmured to Babs as she walked him and Steph to her cruiser. "Otherwise they'll be here all day arguing with each other."
Steph giggled and Babs looked over at her with amusement only to burst out, "Steph! I should have pulled the car up. You shouldn't be walking on that ankle. It's not a walking cast," she scolded her. Steph shrugged.
"Well, I already put weight on it to beat the shit out of Brad and Winston this morning," she said as Babs raised an eyebrow, but she motioned them all into her car before speaking.
"Was that before Harley showed up?" Babs asked her once the doors were shut.
"Yeah," Steph said. "I didn't know she was coming this morning. And Brad got in our faces. I was sick of it," she said. Babs grinned.
"As your aunt, I am extremely proud of you. And as the police commissioner, I heard nothing," she said as she pulled out of the parking lot and started heading towards Wayne Manor. "We're probably going to need to get that ankle x-rayed again, though, to make sure you didn't shift any bones around."
"Ok," Steph sighed.
"Did Bruce know about this morning?" Tim asked Babs curiously. She snorted.
"As if, Tim. He hasn't loosened up that much."
"You didn't call him yet," Steph reminded her.
"Do you see that clock?" Babs said, indicating the time on the dashboard. "Do you see how it says nine forty-five a.m.? I don't have a death wish," she said. "Besides, this was Harley's circus. She gets the joy of explaining this craziness to him all by herself once he wakes up. I did my part," Babs said with a laugh.
"What are we supposed to say in our statements?" Tim asked her, frowning.
"I already got them written up in my purse," Babs said breezily. "All you need to do is sign them. Well, and read them so you know what you said," she snickered. "Go ahead and pull them out, Steph," she told the teen who was riding shotgun. "My purse is down at your feet."
Steph found them and passed Tim's back to him, digging a pen out of Barbara's purse, too, so they could sign them.
They made it across town to Wayne Manor in about forty minutes, since morning traffic was still pretty bad and Babs refused to put the siren on to avoid it, despite Steph's encouragement to do so. She parked the car and got out with the teens once they finally arrived.
"I got at least an hour to kill before I can go back to the station," she explained cheerfully. "I'll have coffee with Alfred."
Tim supported Steph's arm as she limped up the steps to the front door, but once they were inside the foyer he paused.
"Do you want to hang out upstairs?" he asked her. "Since we have the day off now?"
"Sure," Steph said with a smile. "Is that ok with you, Babs?"
"Of course," she said. "You probably don't want to be around while I explain to Alfred what happened this morning, anyway," she laughed.
"Thank you for helping us," Steph told her warmly and hopped over to hug her.
"You're a terrific aunt," Tim added, also giving Babs a hug.
"You're welcome," Babs said with a gentle smile. "Next time, don't wait so long to ask us for help, ok?" she said. "We may be dysfunctional as fuck most of the time, but we're still a family," she said. "We'll have your backs."
"We're not as dysfunctional as we used to be," Steph said happily and Babs had to agree, although she had a knot in her stomach from worrying about how that might change once Jason returned to Gotham in a few days. The things Dick had confessed to her… she sighed to herself as she started down the hallway to find Alfred.
Steph was about to walk towards the stairs, but Tim startled her by scooping her up so her legs were hanging over his arm.
"Tim!" she said in surprise.
"You're not supposed to be walking on your ankle," he said with a cute smile as he looked down into her slightly red face.
"Well… ok," Steph said, feeling a flutter in her tummy that had nothing to do with the oddly weightless sensation of being carried. Tim had a lean frame, but he was packed with muscles from their rigorous training regimen and he didn't appear to be exerting any effort at all as he carried her up the grand staircase to her bedroom where he gently deposited her on her bed.
"Thanks," Steph said to him as he moved to quietly shut the door so they wouldn't wake up Damian or, God forbid, Bruce. Steph picked up the remote control for her tv as Tim climbed up next to her on the bed and settled himself against some pillows.
"The Price is Right might be on," Steph said, starting to flip through the channel listings. "I used to watch that when I was little and stayed home sick."
"Oh, I love that game with the pegboard," Tim said.
"Me, too!" Steph laughed. "I always sucked at guessing the prices, though."
"Well, little kids don't shop," Tim pointed out pragmatically as Steph found the listing and switched the show on with the volume turned low.
"You were really badass today," Tim said to her after a minute. "Beating up Brad like that."
"I was afraid you might be angry at me for it," Steph said, turning her head to look at him. "Violence wasn't part of our plan."
"It was a better plan," Tim said quietly. "I mean, I couldn't have fought without breaking my cover. And I didn't want to, honestly," he said slowly. "That's not me, when I'm not in the suit. But… I was really impressed, Steph." She smiled at him and scootched a little closer until she was pressed up against his side.
"Well, I was impressed by you yelling at Snart so Deadshot wouldn't shoot somebody for real," she said as she looked up at him admiringly. "They didn't know you were Robin. Or even Tim, at that point. That was brave."
"Not that brave," Tim said, his cheeks turning pink.
"Very brave," Steph said, and before she lost her nerve she grabbed for the back of his neck and pulled herself up and over to meet his lips with hers. It was a quick, tentative kiss, not much more than pressing her mouth against his before she drew back and looked up at him uncertainly.
Not that she had to worry. Tim's face broke out into a gigantic smile.
"You like me?" he asked her in surprise with hope flickering in his eyes.
"A lot," Steph said, smiling back at him in relief. "I was worried you didn't like me like that, though."
"I do!" Tim sputtered out. "So much, Steph," he said, and their eyes locked for a minute as Tim's left hand slowly trailed over to her waist. He held her gently as he bent his head back down and softly brushed his lips over hers before opening them just slightly to catch her lower lip in his.
Steph's hand went back around his neck and got softer as her fingers tangled up in his hair, and then she was figuring out how to kiss him back, not content to spend too much time nibbling at each other's lips before sliding her tongue hesitantly into his mouth.
Tim's happy, surprised noise made her more confident as she slowly started exploring ways to deepen their kiss, and the happy, giddy feeling in her chest and the pleasant warmth in her belly made the strangeness of kissing someone for the very first time less awkward.
Besides, it was Tim. Her best friend. The boy she'd been crushing on for two years and the Robin to her Batgirl.
His arm slid tighter around her as he drew back from their kiss for a second, his eyes sparkling, before he leaned into her mouth using his own tongue this time, which Steph found felt equally great, if not better, than what she had been doing.
"That's amazing," Steph giggled when they broke apart after a minute.
"Right?" Tim said, his eyes happy and warm.
"Come sit on my other side so I can reach you easier," Steph said, her cast making it difficult to maneuver herself up to Tim's mouth. Tim laughed and climbed over her, being careful of her ankle, though, and lay on his side facing her as she rolled over to meet him.
They stared into each other's eyes for a long minute with goofy smiles on their faces before Tim reached out to snuggle Steph tight against his chest. She snaked her lower arm under his head and lifted her other hand up to gently stroke his cheek.
"Just so you know," Steph said, "I'm not going to be ready to have a sex for a long time, I don't think."
"Me, neither," Tim said honestly. "I'd rather get used to dating you first."
"Yeah," Steph agreed. "But at least we don't have to worry anymore about getting teased for being virgins," she said, and Tim laughed before she went back to kissing him.
As they started making out, Tim thought that he had never been so happy. Who would have thought that nerdy Timothy Drake would ever get lucky enough to have a vivacious, funny, kickass, gorgeous girl like Stephanie as his girlfriend? And the fact that she was his Batgirl, too? That was the best part of all.
"Oh, my God!" Steph said suddenly, jerking her lips away from his for a second.
"What?" Tim asked her immediately. "What's wrong?" He scanned her face nervously.
"Nothing's wrong," Steph said with a huge grin. "I just realized that one day I might be married to Batman." Tim's jaw dropped a little bit as her meaning sunk in. "But no pressure," Steph said teasingly.
"None taken," Tim breathed out in awe as his heart started doing backflips into double and triple somersaults. His cheeks started to hurt from the huge smile that was now lighting up his face.
"I guess that didn't scare you off, huh," Steph asked him playfully.
"Steph, I've been crazy about you ever since we first met," Tim said, moving his hand up to cup her face. "You're not getting rid of me," he said, leaning in for a long kiss.
"Unless you want to," he said in a sudden panic, pulling back. "I didn't mean to sound like a stalker. Of course you can dump me if you want to, I wouldn't -"
"Shut up, Timmy," Steph laughed, pulling him right back into their kiss. "You're not getting rid of me, either," she said when they came up for air. "It's a Robin and Batgirl tradition to stay together."
"Well, we can't break tradition," Tim smiled at her. "But God knows who we'll find to be the Demon's Batgirl when it's his turn."
Steph groaned before dissolving into giggles and Tim joined her. But only for a minute. Because the future Mr. and Mrs. Batman were long overdue for their first make-out session. Which, they both had to agree, turned out to be more than worth the wait.
