Summary: Batfamily POV. Everyone is worried. Everyone wants to kill the people responsible. Including Damian.

I know, I hate myself for only writing 1.9k words, lol.

She doesn't kiss me on the mouth anymore

'Cause it's more intimate, than she thinks we should get

She doesn't look me in the eyes anymore

Too scared of what she'll see, somebody holding me

-Strangers by Halsey (& Lauren Jauregui)-

~Two days later~

Barbara POV

"Okay, what the hell is going on? You keep calling me since 2 in the morning, thinking I usually enjoy the sound of incessant ringing. Now, please tell me this is an emergency," Barbara said, storming into the Batcave, and was surprised to see every Wayne member surrounding the area. She was staring into the faces of Alfred, Bruce, Damian, Tim and Dick.

She averted her gaze and looked at Bruce, who was wearing the Bat suit, and a very dark glare on his face.

"Debatable," came Damian's expected reply.

Bruce shut him up without a word, and just a stormy gaze. "Ellie has been gone since Saturday evening. We were supposed to meet, and she didn't show."

This was the third time his call went to voicemail. This wasn't like Ellie.

"Everything alright, Sir?" Alfred asked behind him in the Batcave.

"No, it's just … Ellie doesn't pick up her phone. And she wanted to meet me here." Bruce's gaze didn't wander from the time on his phone, instantly worrying him.

"Are you sure she just didn't forget the time?"

"I am sure." He pressed his hand print against the wall to reveal his Bat suit. Bruce turned his head towards Alfred. "Call Dick."

Unease gathered in her body, as her fingers instantly flew over the keyboard of her phone. "Did you try her phone, Bruce?"

Shaking his head, he tersely replied with the clenching of his jaw, "Straight to voice-mail."

She didn't have any luck either.

"Hey, this is Ellie. I don't know who you are. I don't know what you want," her normally cheery voice said darkly. Barbara could not stop her lips from twitching, but she was instantly worried. Her voice turned normal again, "but you can change that by leaving a message."

The redhead gazed at Bruce with worry. "That morning we talked. Everything seemed normal. She hung up on me when there was someone else on the line." Her feet led her to the Bat computer, Bruce at once got out of the way from experience. "What do you guys have?"

She felt Dick at her back, who spoke up, "She got a call just like you said. The cameras caught her as she left her company around 12 o'clock, since then there had been no trace of her."

Tim's small voice called out, "What if she had a job to do?"

Barbara turned around to the little boy, pursing her lips. Her hands hit the keys, accessing the received calls from Ellie's company. Only the last two numbers stood out to her. "The call from me came from 11:49. And the last one was originated from a cell phone, coming from the north. It lasted about two minutes." Barbara gazed meaningfully at Bruce and said tensely, "Hit the streets."

Bruce nodded, sending looks at Dick and Damian. In the end, the youngest Wayne decided to change into the Robin suit with only a small sigh to show his annoyance. Bruce put a gloved hand on her shoulder, making her look up at him uneasily. "Give me details along the way."

She nodded. "You got it." For the first time in so long, she felt truly fearful for her friend. She would never stay away without letting anyone know. "Just get her back."

Only his clenched jaw could be seen under the cowl, as he nodded tensely before he left to the Batmobile.

Barbara felt comfortable behind the computer, as both Tim and Alfred kept her company. "You're awfully quiet, Alfred. What do you think?"

The older man exhaled a long breath. "I believe Miss Rhodes is a very capable woman, yet this occurrence has me worried."

"Me too," Barbara replied nervously and took in a few deep breaths to steady her heartbeat. Her head went over to little Tim who was nervously biting his lower lip, his gaze firmly set on the computer display.

"Hey, Tim, you okay?"

His wide brown eyes went to her as he shrugged uncertainly. "I don't know. I like her. I don't want Ellie in danger."

Barbara bit her lip to suppress her tears from surfacing. This was by far the most Tim ever said to any of them. Sometimes it was hard to at least get one word out of him. "We'll find her, Tim," she said, shortly touching his hand in comfort, knowing he did not like people hugging, or touching him.

She gazed at Alfred in wonder, whose shining eyes were looking back at her with a smile.

Barbara cleared her throat and went back to the computer screen, trying to specify the location of where the last call came from.

"What do you have so far, Oracle?" The deep, growly voice could be heard through the comm.

A strained smile was displayed on Barbara's face. "I'm already on it."

It felt like riding a bike, getting back into the game. A thrill went through her veins as she tried to save her friend. She never would have thought that something like this would happen to Ellie. How naïve all of them had been.

It did not take longer than a few seconds when the added information swept over the screen, instantly making her heart stop in fright. She could feel her palms sweat and her throat convulse with anxiety. "Oh my God." She was sure where Ellie now was, both the location of the call and her own cellphone, being the same.

"What is it?" Alfred asked, his body leaning forward. Tim gulped nervously.

Barbara called out to Bruce, "Where are you?"

"Currently crossing the bridge. Do you have a location?"

Her voice quivered as she relayed the information, "Batman? She's in Arkham." Her certain statement made Bruce gaze right at her through the camera of the Batmobile. She could only hear him accelerating as he moved faster to the asylum.

That is what she hated the most about being on desk duty, not being able to help in the field and having to overcome her worries, while she had to worry like a mother hen when she did not know what was happening. This was one of those times. Barbara could only listen to the comms with Alfred and Tim, the anxiety and suspense almost killing her.

"Status update?" Barbara asked, knowing that Dick was probably the only one who would fill the silence, unlike the other taciturn Wayne family members.

"We're coming from the South entrance. Tell us where she is, Oracle," Bruce's authoritative voice said from the speakers.

Barbara called up from the asylum every camera angle and blueprints and saw that her phone was emitting a signal from below the building. "She has to be in the basement, right next to the boiler room. I'll send you the data." The tech whiz transmitted all the details to the display on his wrist and hoped that they would get there in time.

"Got it," came his terse reply.

For a while there was silence filling the air, making her go back to old habits, by biting her nails. Barbara jumped in her seat when she heard the loud creaking of a metal door. At first, she heard nothing, but then...

Bruce inhaled deeply and growled.

"What is it?" Barbara called out.

Her heartbeat didn't quiet down even when she heard Dick's voice say, "Son of a bitch."

The redhead didn't expect much from Damian, but his disapproving sound took her by surprise.

Dick chose to fill the rest in by muttering, "Fear toxin. Ellie had been under the influence of it, Oracle. She's strapped on a table."

Her throat tightened when she heard all her worst fears coming true. Her eyes only welled up further when she felt Alfred's hand settling on her shoulder in comfort. "Just get her out of there," she stated with a raspy voice.

Barbara could hear Bruce's automated voice speak to Ellie in hushed tones, "It's okay. We're trying to help."

Ellie's scratchy voice anxiously called out, "No, don't touch me. Get away from me! Leave me alone. No more, please." That last part she almost said in a whimper, wearily.

Barbara imagined Bruce was trying to set her free, even enduring her hits against his chest without complaints. "We need to sedate her," he admitted with a pained groan.

Damian replied darkly, "Hasn't she been under the influence of enough drugs already?"

Who would have thought that the annoying little shit could say something nice and reasonable?

Bruce elaborated further, "We need to get her to the Batcave. Only there we have all the means to treat her. So, Robin, would you please do what I say for once?"

Barbara thought it sounded weird, but … she was glad that Ellie was not conscious when Bruce, who was still in his gear but had dropped his cowl, laid her out on the operating table. She couldn't imagine what it felt like to experience these manipulations of utter terror and fear.

"Alfred, I need your help," Bruce said to him quietly, his face contorted with despair and hopelessness. Barbara couldn't remember the last time she saw this expression on his face.

"Right away, Sir," he said, turning away from her and carefully opening Ellie's eyelids to shine a light there. Barbara slowly gave Tim her hand, who was staring at her seemingly lifeless body with shock and quivering lips. The dark-haired boy slightly put pressure on her palm, taking comfort from it.

She whispered into his ear, "She's going to be fine, alright? Alfred will take care of it. And he always did take care of Bruce, didn't he?"

Tim only nodded, his gaze never wavering.

"Her pupils are dilated. I need to take a sample of her blood and send it to Fox, just to be on the safe side," Alfred said, handling what he did best. He put his ear against her chest and frowned. "Her breathing is very fast. Hand me a syringe with Atropine, would you?"

Bruce and Alfred were working like a well-oiled machine, as he handed his butler the active agent. Ellie's breathing seemed to stabilize, her chest moving slowly and normal. Alfred cleaned his hands in a rubbing motion against a cleaning rag, closing his eyes wearily.

"Alfred, could you prepare the spare bedroom?"

Barbara looked up in surprise at Bruce, she expected him to want her in his own bedroom, rather than a guest chamber. Alfred mirrored her expression, as he frowned in confusion.

"I want her comfortable here." Bruce gazed sadly at Ellie, his gloved hand hovering over her unmarred cheek. "She needs to rest," he said and with these words he turned away, taking off his suit.

"Of course, Master Bruce." Alfred nodded and made his way upstairs.

Barbara inhaled deeply, going with Tim over to Ellie, who was sleeping soundly. She seemed uninjured, yet she was sure that her friend was hurt psychologically. And here everything had been going right in their lives so far. "God, I'm so sorry this had happened to you."

Please be Hufflepuffs. Please tell me you guys are still alive.