As soon as Edward had hit the floor of the witness well, he heard the telltale hissing sound of Batman's smoke pellets, followed by the shouts and coughs of the gang members that had crowded the gallery. He lay dazed for only a moment before he turned his attention to his bound wrists. The impact of the chair hitting the floor had loosened the knot, but he wasn't free yet. Edward flexed his wrists against the rope, ignoring the sounds of mayhem that filled the courtroom. At last, he felt one knot give way. Almost there-

"No, you don't." Edward looked up to see Harvey glaring down at him, his gun pointed directly at his head. "You're not leaving this courthouse alive," the Rogue growled, his faces twisted in rage and a sick triumph. "Bat or no Bat."

Edward swallowed thickly. This wasn't how it would end. It couldn't be. "Aren't you supposed to flip for it?"

"We flipped for it a long time ago," Harvey replied. "Tell Crane we send our regards." As he was just about to pull the trigger, the gun was yanked out of his hands by a long, thin, familiar object with a loud snap. Harvey grabbed his hand and howled in pain before the end of a whip wrapped around his neck and he was pulled to the ground.

"Do yourself a favor and stay down, Harv," Edward heard Selina's voice say. A moment later the woman herself appeared in his line of sight, looking down at him with a smirk. He was too happy to see her be annoyed by it. "Eddie, Eddie, Eddie," she tutted. "We're going to need to get you a bodyguard for Christmas."

"Very funny," Edward groused. He wiggled his bound wrists. "A little help?"

Selina hopped the partition and crouched down in the well, slicing Edward's bonds with a swipe of her claws. Edward pushed himself up to his knees and began rubbing his wrists. "You alright?" Selina asked.

Edward ran his tongue across his split lip and winced. "Never mind me," he said, looking at Selina. "Where are Ellen and Penny?"

"They're safe," his friend reassured him. "I dropped Doc off at GCPD before I met up with Batman, and Batgirl's keeping an eye on Ellie at her Grandma's." Edward let out a long sigh of relief before the sounds of mayhem reached him. He looked over the well to see that most of the gang members had sensibly fled when Batman announced his presence. The dozen or so who remained and were conscious were in the process of being chased around by Black Bat. Batman himself had already taken down Killer Moth and was in the process of disabling Firefly's flame thrower. Fugate sat calmly at the prosecutor's table with his hands up, not even bothering to put up a fight. Something about that nagged at Edward, but before he could think more on it, he caught Arthur hiding under the table. Their eyes met, and Arthur visibly paled. Not so smug now are you? He scrambled to his feet, running towards a side exit.

"Oh no, you don't," Edward growled, getting to his feet. He picked up the chair he had been tied to.

"Eddie," Selina asked. "You sure you want to join in?"

"Of course I'm sure," Edward answered. "I can't let you and Batman fight my battles for me. I do have a reputation to preserve."

"Just making sure," Selina said. "Let's get that son of a bitch." The two hopped over the witness well and began pursuing Arthur, Edward holding the chair out like a club.

As soon as Batman and his cohorts had appeared, Mr. Li was out the courthouse door, along with the vast majority of the lower class criminals that the Rogues employed. He ran to the side alley to the left of the courthouse where the car was parked and the driver was waiting. Li dove into the car, pulled out his cell phone, and dialed Sionis. "What's going on?" Sionis asked, picking up on the first ring. "Is Nigma dead?"

"No," Li panted. "Dent drew it out too long. Batman's at the courthouse."

"God Dammit! Trust the freaks to fuck things up! I should have put a hit out on Riddle Boy back when that shit with Bane went down. Okay, get back here. I'm going to call a meeting of the senior lieutenants."

"Understood sir," Li said. He looked up towards the driver, about to tell him to start the car when he heard a tapping on his window. He looked up, and he felt the blood drain from his face. Red Hood was standing outside, holding his gun against the passenger window. With his free hand, he gestured for Li to roll down the window. Li hesitated, looking to the driver only to see him sitting frozen in the driver's seat, paralyzed with fear. Li gulped, then rolled down the passenger window.

"And here I thought I'd missed all the fun," Red Hood drawled. He gestured toward Li's cellphone with the barrel of his gun. "Is that Roman on the phone? Put him on speaker."

Li did as Red Hood ordered, and soon, Roman's voice could be heard shouting through the phone's speakers. "Li! Where the Hell did you go!?"

"Roman!" Red Hood shouted. "Been a long time! How's your office?"

There was a long pause before Li's employer spoke again. "What the Hell are you doing here, Hood? This ain't any of your business!"

"I'm making it my business," Red Hood said. His grip tightened around the handle of his pistol and Li felt beads of sweat on his brow. "This is your first and only warning: Ed Nigma's off-limits."

"Or else what?" Roman asked defiantly. Li resisted the urge to slap his forehead. Not three years ago, the vigilante standing beside him had all but crippled their business. Had Roman forgotten that or was he trying to save face? He couldn't see the man's facial expression through that red helmet, but he let out a dry chuckle.

"Bad choice of words, Roman," Red Hood said. Without warning, he aimed his gun towards the front seat and fired, blowing the driver's brains out all over the dashboard. Li jumped and clapped a hand over his mouth, fighting to keep the bile at bay. "That was the sound of a Desert Eagle killing your driver. The next bullet's got the name of your right-hand man on it. Let me repeat myself in a way even you can understand, Roman: if you or anyone in your organization comes near Ed Nigma again, I'm going to finish what I started three years ago. Do I make myself clear?"

Li screwed his eyes shut and took a deep breath. He realized that the hand that was holding the cell phone was trembling. Finally, he heard his employer speak. "Fine. You got it. Nigma's off-limits."

Li opened his eyes and watched Red Hood holster his pistol. "Good answer."

"I just gotta know one thing," Roman said. "Why do you care about Nigma?"

Red Hood shrugged. "Maybe I'm the sentimental type and I can't resist a redemption story. Maybe I want to take the smug son of a bitch out myself someday. Or maybe it's none of your goddamn business." He gave Li a short wave. "Later, Roman." Li watched as Red Hood pulled a grappling hook out of his jacket and fire it up at the rooftop, disappearing as soon as he appeared.

Li sat against the leather seat of the car, his entire body trembling. "Jesus fucking Christ," he heard Roman say. "First Batman, now Red Hood? What the fuck's going on? Since when did Nigma become the center of the goddamn universe?"

"I have no idea," Li said. He took a breath to compose himself. "I'm on my way back now." He didn't wait for Roman to say anything before he hung up the phone and opened the passenger door. He needed to dump the driver's body and then get as far away from here as he could. Whatever Nigma was involved in with Batman and Red Hood, it didn't bode well.

Edward pushed a bruised and bound Arthur towards the front of the courtroom. The fight had ended at this point, and Edward couldn't deny that he enjoyed stepping over the limp bodies of the same gangbangers who had been hooting and hollering at him less than two hours earlier. Batman and Black Bat had gathered the other Rogues on the floor in front of the judge's bench, and Edward shoved Arthur down to join them. Batman turned to him and looked almost taken aback by his no doubt bruised appearance. "Are you alright, Edward?" he asked.

Edward frowned at the concern in the vigilante's voice. The last thing he needed now was for him to say 'I told you so', or worse, his pity. "Oh, just wonderful," he said curtly. "I'm always in fine spirits when I'm abducted and put on trial by the same bunch of maniacs I used to share living space with!"

"Eddie," Selina warned. "Be nice."

Edward ignored her, choosing instead to turn his attention to the Rogues on the ground in front of him. Harvey was glaring at him, while Arthur averted his eyes. While Walker and Lynns were still masked, he did not doubt that they were angry with him too. Only Fugate seemed utterly indifferent. Finally, Edward began to slowly clap. "Well done," he mocked the fallen Rogues. "Did you enjoy getting that out of your systems? I hope you did. Before today, I was perfectly content to leave you alone and let you do as you pleased, as long as you stayed away from me and mine. Now?" Edward stopped clapping and lowered his voice by a few degrees. "Now, you mental midgets just guaranteed that as soon as my business with Strange is concluded, I'll be turning my full attention to you. There's a little concept called the self-fulfilling prophecy. You would have done well to read up on it before you launched your attack on me."

Harvey said nothing, though his face became red. To his left, Lynns just laughed. "Batman's not always gonna be there to pull your ass out of the fire, Eddie," he taunted. "Go ahead, send us to Blackgate and Arkham. It'll just make it easier for us to find your little bitch."

In an instant, Edward went from simmering anger to a full-blooded rage. He considered attacking Lynns, but then looked at Harvey and stopped himself. Harvey was the major power player here. Cut him down, and the rest would follow, and he knew just what to do. He directly addressed Harvey, "2720 Woodvale Way, Rochester New York."

Out of the corner of his eye, Edward thought he saw Batman stiffen. Harvey however, just looked confused. "What the fuck are you on about?"

Edward chuckled. "That address doesn't mean anything to you? I'm surprised. It's the current residence of one Grace Lamont. You may know her better as Gilda Dent." Edward watched in satisfaction as the unscarred half of Harvey's face turned white. "When I said earlier that I hadn't spared the lot of you a single thought since I reformed, that was true, but also somewhat misleading. As I was piecing the broken shards of my life together, I realized that I'd burned a lot of bridges and that my choice to reform may bring consequences. I also realized that to mitigate or prevent the lot of you from getting any ideas, I needed leverage. Yours was the easiest to find." Edward leaned down slightly, making sure Harvey and everyone else in that room knew how serious he was. "This is the Nuclear Deterrent, Harv. If you, if any of your men, if anyone in this room so much as breathes within 500 feet of me and mine, all I need to do is make one phone call, and the tabloids will be at her front door in an hour."

A look of anguish came over both of Harvey's faces, and Edward felt a supreme satisfaction. "Enough Edward," Batman growled in warning. Edward ignored him, instead turning to the pale face of Arthur.

"And how about you, Arthur?" he asked. "Are there any secrets of yours you'd like to share with the rest of us?" Arthur's blue eyes went wide in fear and then in anger, and in a flash, Edward remembered something. Another pair of angry blue eyes, a young blonde girl with Arthur's eyes, constantly underfoot, spoiling his crimes...a girl in purple...a girl in a cape and cowl lying bleeding on the pavement, having taken a bullet for his daughter. A girl who even now was looking after his daughter. A heavy hand on his shoulder brought Edward back to the present. He turned to see Batman glaring at him.

"Enough," the vigilante said. "You've more than proven your point. Get out of here, Edward."

Edward pulled away from Batman's grip and faced the Rogues one last time. Arthur was looking at his feet, while Harvey ground his teeth. "You wouldn't," Harvey growled. "You wouldn't dare go near my wife."

"As I said during my 'trial', you have no idea who I am or what I'm capable of anymore," Edward warned. "Whatever I have to do to keep me and mine safe, I will do it, even if it means I have to burn you to the ground. Remember that, Harv." Before Batman could move towards him again, Edward sharply turned on his heel, walking towards the front entrance, Selina at his heels. As he walked past, he noticed that some of the goons had come to and were looking up at him with wide, fearful eyes. Edward smirked down at them as he passed. Let them fear him. Let them remember what happened when they crossed the man who was the Riddler.

Gordon and GCPD were outside the courthouse when Bruce and Cassandra emerged with the Rogues. Gordon and Edward were in an intense conversation, while Selina had made herself scarce. Fugate, Brown, Walker, and Lynns were swiftly taken into police cruisers. Due to their personal history, Bruce was allowed to take Harvey into the Batmobile and deliver him to GCPD personally, Mayor Sharp and his commission be damned. Harvey was silent as Bruce loaded him into the back of the Batmobile. As soon as they left the Courthouse though, Harvey spoke. "Nigma told us what's been going on with him and Strange. Is that true?"

Bruce almost slammed the brakes on the Batmobile. "He told you?"

Harvey let out a resigned chuckle. "So it's true then. Are you and Nigma working together? Even after all the shit he's pulled?"

Bruce relaxed his grip on the steering wheel and stopped at a red light. "It's what needs to be done, Harvey. Strange is a danger to the entire city."

"And yet, you're sending us right into his clutches."

"You didn't leave me any other choice. You were about to murder Nigma."

"He's a threat to us," Harvey argued. "You heard what he said about Gilda! One phone call, and he'll ruin her life!"

Bruce sighed. Even though he knew Edward had said so to protect Dr. Young, the fact that he even tracked Gilda down was disturbing. "He was bluffing. I'd never let that happen and you know it."

Harvey chuckled again. "We all know he wasn't." Bruce heard his friend let out a long sigh, then his old voice, the voice he'd used as Gotham's White Night spoke. "If you think Strange is the greater threat, then you do what you have to do, but the man we just saw in the courtroom? The man that threatened my Gilda? That's the real Edward Nigma. No matter how many of us he takes down, no matter how much this city calls him a hero, don't ever forget that. Don't ever trust Edward Nigma."

Bruce said nothing, pressing the gas when the light turned green. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Cassandra staring at him with a thoughtful look on her face. She raised her hands and signed, do you trust him?

Bruce had no answer for her.

Commissioner Gordon had been courteous enough to not only give Edward a ride to GCPD, but he'd also lent the man his cell phone so that he could call Ellen to ensure her of his safety. "I'm alright, sweetheart," Edward spoke. He and Gordon were standing beneath the tree in GCPD's front parking lot, Gordon standing a respectful distance away. Far enough to give Edward privacy, but close enough to keep an eye out. "I'm at GCPD now. I need to give the Commissioner my statement, and then I'll be on my way home."

"Ok," Ellen said on the other end. She sounded dangerously close to crying. "They didn't hurt you too bad, did they?"

"Just a few cuts and bruises," Edward assured her. That was what the paramedics at the courthouse had said, though they had warned of the possibility of a concussion thanks to Harvey's pistol. He'd refused to go to a hospital though. "I managed to leave a few bruises of my own if that makes you feel any better."

"I guess," Ellen said glumly. "I wish I could have tried to help you, but Batgirl was watching me."

"And a good thing she was," Edward said, pushing his conflicting feelings about her aside. "Ellen, the last thing I'd ever want is for you to follow me into danger like that."

"I know Dad, I know. I just...I'm sick of you being in danger, and not being able to do anything about it."

"I know, Ellen," Edward sighed. "Occupational hazard, I'm afraid. Listen, I'll probably be busy dealing with the fallout of this tomorrow, but I'll try to come to see you later this week. Is that alright?"

"Yeah. Just be careful, ok Dad? If Batgirl comes back and tells me you got in trouble again, I'm gonna beat your ass."

"What a sweet, affectionate child it is," Edward teased. "Alright, I'll talk to you soon. Goodbye Ellen, I love you."

"Love you too, Dad. Bye." Edward hung up, then walked over to Gordon to give the Commissioner his phone back. The two men walked together into GCPD, passing Aaron Cash on their way past the bullpen.

"Damn Nigma," Cash said, shaking his head. "Never a dull moment with you, is there?"

"But of course not," Edward quipped. He scanned the bullpen and the surrounding rooms for any sign of Penny. Selina had said that she'd dropped her off here, where was she? He continued to follow Gordon to the elevator, and then out into the hallway that led to his office. Gordon opened the door, and Edward entered the office, only to stop in his tracks. Penny was there, sitting in a chair in front of Gordon's desk. When she made eye contact with him, she got to her feet, her ice-blue eyes wide as they took him in.

"I'll just let the two of you have a few minutes," Edward heard Gordon say. "I need to see to the Rogues." Edward barely heard the door close, but when it did, he rushed to Penny, who met him halfway, her hands going to his face.

"Jesus, Eddie!" she breathed out, her fingers gently tracing his jaw, her eyes taking in every small cut and bruise. "Are you alright?"

"I'm alright, darling," Edward soothed, wrapping his arms around her. He shut his eyes and breathed in the scent of her hair. "This wasn't exactly how I wanted to see you again."

"What happened?" Penny asked. "All I heard was that some of the Rogues had kidnapped you. What did they want?"

"To put me on trial," Edward answered. He pulled away from her enough to be able to look at her confused face. "Apparently, they believed that I somehow betrayed them by reforming and bringing down a few of them, never mind my actual reasons for doing so!" He rolled his eyes. "Morons. All of them."

Penny nodded, then turned her attention back to his face. "God," she murmured. "Did you get checked out for this?"

"Yes," Edward sighed. "It's nothing I haven't dealt with before, just a few cuts and bruises." He chuckled. "You should see what I did to Cluemaster!" This apparently was the wrong thing to say as Penny jerked out of his embrace.

"Don't you dare make light of this, Edward Nigma!" she hissed, her face flushed with anger. "I've been here for over two hours, not knowing if you were alive or dead! Your daughter was at home, not knowing if you were alive or dead!" She shook her head. "It hasn't even been three days since I told you that I love you and I almost lost you, we almost-" her voice broke, and she angrily wiped her eyes. "Don't you understand what that would do to us, what that would do to me?"

Any irritation Edward felt at being yelled at was beaten by the guilt as he saw tears form in his lover's eyes. He sighed, then stepped forward. "Come here, Penny." He gently drew her back in an embrace. She hesitated for only a moment before she buried her face into his chest and clung on tightly. He rested his chin on top of her head and rocked her. "You really were worried about me, weren't you?"

"Of course I was," Penny said. "I told you Friday and Saturday that I knew that there was an inherent danger in what you do, in who you are, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Of course not," Edward soothed, rubbing her back. She wasn't like him, or Jonathan, or Selina. Having a bad encounter with the Rogues could just be chalked up to just another, if exciting, day in Edward's world. That was not her world, and he had no intention of her becoming used to Rogues and their shenanigans, not as long as he drew breath-

"Next time, you might not be so lucky. Think about Dr. Young. Think about your daughter. If you're gone, who will look after them?"

Batman's words from two nights ago came crashing down on him. He had almost died. Perhaps it wasn't by Strange's hand, but he could have died that day and left Penny and Ellen alone. If he died, Strange and his minions would waste no time dispatching Penny. If he died, what would stop Ellen from putting on that damn costume and getting herself killed? He'd survived today, but now Harvey Dent was on his way back to Arkham Asylum, back to Hugo Strange. What would stop Strange from using Dent, or any of the other Rogues he had in his power against him? He clung to Penny tight and kissed the top of her head. How could he protect her, protect Ellen, from Strange and the Rogues? Could he?

"After you give your statement to Gordon, you're staying with me tonight," Penny ordered. "I'm not letting you out of my sight for the rest of the week."

Edward smiled, despite the thoughts whirling in his head. "You really do love me, don't you?"

Penny smiled, even though it didn't reach her eyes. "You know that I do." She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, careful to avoid any bruises. When she was finished, Edward leaned down to rest his forehead against hers. The pair stayed together until Gordon returned to his office, taking solace in each other.

Brown, Lynns, and Walker had been taken off to Blackgate minutes after they were processed at GCPD. Fugate however, had been kept longer, pending transport to return him to federal custody. Bruce and Cassandra watched from the adjacent building as Fugate was led out of GCPD, his hands and feet shackled, and loaded into the back of a dark transport vehicle. The doors were shut as soon as Fugate was inside, and the two federal officers were called back into GCPD to deal with some 'last-minute paperwork', as Gordon put it. Which gave Bruce a limited window to interrogate the man. It was risky, but he'd known the second he'd seen Fugate at the Courthouse that something was going on. And he would find out what. "Should I come too?" Cassandra asked.

"No," Bruce answered. "Stay here and keep a lookout. I won't be long." Once the federal agents were out of sight, Bruce dropped down from the rooftop, taking advantage of the darkness to creep up to the back of the van. When he was confident that no one was in sight, he opened the doors.

Fugate didn't appear surprised to see him. "I suspected that you were somehow behind the delay in my transport," he said. "Usually when you conduct interrogations, you're able to enter GCPD. Has that changed?"

"What are you doing here, Fugate?" Bruce asked. "You've been in federal prison for the last five years."

"Five years, three months, two weeks, and five days to be precise," Fugate said. "And if you're here, you must have deduced something by now."

Bruce narrowed his eyes and leaned in closer. "There's been no word of your escape. I found a note in Two Face's hideout that had the words 'S Wayne' written on them, in very clean, precise handwriting. Your handwriting, Fugate. You're not that sloppy or careless, which means that you wanted me to find you. And when I arrived at the courthouse, you didn't put up any resistance. You weren't involved in this to get back at Nigma. You needed information from him."

Fugate showed no reaction, except perhaps boredom. "Brilliantly worked out, as usual. Yes, it's true. I have no personal animosity towards Mr. Nigma, despite his eccentricities. The incident with Bane this past summer didn't just cause a stir in Gotham you know. Certain other parties also showed some concern."

Now the moment of truth. "Would these 'certain other parties' include Amanda Waller and Task Force X?"

Fugate's expression didn't change. "I was sent to Gotham City three months ago to find out the truth of the matter. Nigma informed us during his 'trial' of his encounters with Hugo Strange. Can I assume that what he said was accurate?"

Bruce folded his arms. "That depends on what Waller intends to do with this information."

At this, Fugate shrugged. "You're aware of the current political situation in Washington, regarding the removal of President Luthor. What goes on in Gotham City is not considered a high priority. The night of the attack on City Hall, however, Waller did convey a message to me that she instructed I pass onto you: at this point, she is in no position to assist you. However, if you can keep Nigma in line, she will also not impede you."

Bruce gripped Fugate by the lapel of his brown jacket and pulled him forward. "You tell Waller," he growled, "That if she sends another member of Task Force X into my city behind my back again, then I'll be coming for her next."

"Noted," Fugate said peevishly. "Now if you don't mind, I believe my guards will be arriving in a matter of seconds. You'd best retreat." Bruce let go of Fugate and quickly made his way out of the van and back onto the rooftop, where Cassandra was waiting for him.

"What did Fugate say?" she asked.

"He confirmed what I suspected: Amanda Waller sent him to find out what Edward's been up to the last two years."

Cassandra cocked her head. "What now?"

Bruce gestured for her to follow him. "We need to debrief with the others back at the manor. Tomorrow night, I'm going to speak to Edward again." If what had happened today wasn't enough to convince him that they needed to work together, Bruce wasn't sure what could.

Penny had been as good as her word. As soon as Edward had given his statement, she'd driven him back to his office and to his apartment to pack up his phone, laptop, toiletries, and a few changes of clothes, then followed him in her car as he drove back to her apartment. Once the pair were inside, she'd spent the rest of the evening hovering over him, making sure that he was exhibiting any signs of a concussion. Edward had to gently nag her into finally going to bed at around two in the morning. Once in bed, it hadn't taken long for her to rest her head against his chest and hold on tightly to him as if he was her life preserver. Edward himself did not sleep. He kept watching over her, watching her as she slept, and rubbed his hand up and down her back. He looked to the clock on her nightstand. It was now 3:30 am. Twelve hours ago, gunmen had stormed into his office and had taken him to the Rogues, who almost murdered him. He looked down at Penny again. The phone call that he'd had with her might have been the last time he'd ever spoken to her. As if she could read his thoughts, Penny clung on tighter to him, murmuring something in her sleep that might have been his name. What was she dreaming? Watching him die?

Edward sighed and looked up to the ceiling. "Think about Dr. Young. Think about your daughter. If you're gone, who will look after them?" He was the cleverest man in Gotham City, one of the cleverest men in the entire world, and some jumped up maniacs had taken him by surprise and nearly killed him. He'd been so focused on Hugo Strange for so long, he'd forgotten just how dangerous the other Rogues could be, and now he had a target on his head. His threat against Gilda Dent might be enough to keep Harvey and the lower level Rogues at bay for the time being, but Sionis? Harley? God forbid, Joker? Hell, he wasn't even sure where he and Oswald stood now. If Oswald did decide to cut him off completely, what then? Could he investigate Strange and fend off the other Rogues at the same time? Could he continue his work and look after Ellen and Penny at the same time?

"Whatever I need to be to keep them safe and happy, that's what I'll be," was what he'd told Oswald, and he'd meant every word. If he needed to be Gotham's new hero or Harvey Dent's worst nightmare, so be it, but what if it wasn't enough? What if he alone wasn't enough to keep Ellen and Penny safe? He wasn't the only one who had protected them, he realized. There was someone else who had, someone who had done so even that same day. Someone who despite everything that had happened between them, could always be counted on to keep them safe.

Edward shut his eyes and swallowed an irritated sigh. "Whatever I need to do," he whispered. "Whatever I need to do."

The next afternoon, just as the sun was beginning to set, Edward was finishing packing up the manila file that he and Penny had spent the day putting together. Penny herself watched him, her arms folded across her chest. "Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" she asked.

Edward put the file in his briefcase and shut it. "I'm sure," he said. "I'd rather you not witness any fireworks that might happen tonight." He picked the briefcase off of the dining room table and walked up to where she was standing by the front door. "Well," he said. "Here I go."

Penny nodded, then reached up top cup his face. "You're doing the right thing, Eddie."

"I know," he said crossly. "That doesn't mean I have to like it."

Penny rolled her eyes, then a serious look came over her face. "You come back to me tonight."

"Always," he assured her. He leaned down and the pair shared a gentle kiss. He rested his forehead against hers for a moment, before he pulled away and walked to the front door.

It was dark by the time Edward made it back to his apartment. Gordon had kept a police car on the street to watch for any signs of trouble that day, but it was gone when Edward pulled up. He entered his apartment with his briefcase in one hand and his trick cane in the other, turned on his living room light, sat at his dining room table, and waited. He didn't have to wait long. Ten minutes after he'd arrived, Edward heard the sound of his kitchen window opening and watched as a dark black figure entered his apartment. "I wasn't sure you'd be here," Batman said.

"I'm just full of surprises," Edward sassed. Batman opened his mouth when Edward raised his hand to cut him off. "Before you ask, yes, yesterday's events did force me to reconsider your offer." Edward took a breath. What he was about to say could not be taken back. "I agree to work with you in the matter of Hugo Strange. However, I have a few conditions." He raised a finger. "One: I am not your subordinate. I will not simply sit here and take orders from you. If this is a partnership, then this is a partnership."

Batman set his jaw. "That goes both ways, Edward," he said. "You need to listen to me. No unilateral decisions. There's too much at stake for us to fight over your ego."

"I don't have an ego," Edward bit out. At Batman's less than impressed expression, he deflated. "Fine. Second, my daughter is not to be involved in the investigation in any way. Unless there is an imminent threat to her safety, I don't want you or any of your minions around her."

The vigilante nodded. "I understand. And Dr. Young?"

Edward sucked in a quick breath. "You can speak to her if it's a matter that directly concerns her or if you require her particular expertise, but never without me being present. Is that clear?"

Batman's eyes narrowed, but he nodded. "I have a few conditions for you as well," Batman stepped forward. "No secrets. Whatever you find out during the investigation you share it with me. Also, you do not directly confront Strange or Sharp, no matter what might happen. Finally, you have to be on your absolute best behavior. Strange and Sharp are going to look for any excuse to discredit you or put you away. Don't give them any ammunition to work with."

Edward rolled his eyes. "I wasn't going to. Was there anything else?"

Batman's posture softened somewhat. "A lot has happened between us over the years. Despite that though, I want to be able to trust you, Edward. Can you try to trust me?"

Edward looked down at his hands. Could he? "I'll try," he said. He picked his briefcase off the floor, put it on his dining room table, and opened it. He pulled out the manilla file and placed it in the center of the table. "This is all the information that myself and Dr. Young have uncovered during the course of our investigation, summarized." He gestured for Batman to take the seat across from him. "Well, partner? Shall we begin?"