"It was the cutest thing," Adriana said to Lucius as she showed him a picture she had taken of the Joker holding Arsenio while he slept.
"And if Bruce finds this picture?" Lucius asked.
"He doesn't go through my phone," Adriana laughed.
"And Dr. Kapoor-" Lucius said.
"Loosen up," Adriana said to Lucius. "Dr. Kapoor is totally okay with it. He thinks this is a good thing and so do I."
Lucius nodded and smiled at the picture, which was admittedly sweet.
"It's just sad that he has to leave the day after tomorrow...I just wish there was more time," Adriana sighed.
"Well," Lucius said, still looking at the photo and feeling his heart warm. "I was considering postponing the flight."
"Really?" Adriana asked. "Why?"
"Hurricane Boyd," Lucius said. "It's a category 3 and we have the aircraft to make the trip safe-"
"You should totally postpone it," Adriana said.
"I can reschedule the flight for next week," Lucius said.
Adriana smiled and threw her arms around him. "Thank you!"
.
.
.
"So Lucius said your flight will actually leave in 9 days," Adriana told the Joker.
"Did you ask him to?" the Joker asked her.
"Nope." she smiled.
"I must remember to thank him," the Joker said as he and Adriana smiled at each other.
"So, I'll be able to bring Arsenio here to see you a few more times," she said.
"I'd appreciate that," he told her.
"Well I have to get going," she said. "My husband will be back from work soon, I have to touch up this black hair dye, and I have a roast in the oven and I've gotten wind there's something going down in Chinatown tonight that will require-"
"Shade," the Joker said. "You've very busy."
"I definitely am," Adriana said. "Oh..and I wanted to get to this party store that's having a 50% off sale before they close tonight. Arsenio's first birthday is coming up and I want to get decorations."
"Wife of Bruce Wayne shops sales," the Joker looked like he was holding in a laugh. "Who knew?"
.
.
.
"You're in a good mood," Bruce noticed as Adriana sat his dinner in front of him.
"I had a very productive day," Adriana told him. "it was a good day."
"I'm glad to hear it," Bruce said. "This smells great."
"Thanks," Adriana said and sat in front of her plate. "I was thinking, I could cook dinner every night."
"Hm?" Bruce said as he began to eat.
"And I wouldn't even really have to cook every night," she said. "We could have leftovers sometimes."
"Leftovers?" Bruce asked.
"Yes," Adriana told him and roller her eyes while smiling. "You should try them sometime."
"Adriana-" Bruce began to say.
"Unless you don't like my cooking," she interrupted, teasingly.
"I love it," he said. "Actually...tastes better than when the chef cooks-"
"Exactly," Adriana said.
"Sweetheart," Bruce said and wiped his mouth with his deep burgundy dinner napkin. "I know I told you that our financial predicament has changed but that doesn't mean we need to...eat leftovers or have you cooking all the time-"
"I don't mind," Adriana assured him
"Are you sure?" Bruce asked. "You have a lot on your plate-"
"I don't mind at all," Adriana told him. "I like cooking for you. Plus Alfred usually makes breakfast, and you eat lunch at work. It's really not that much to just make dinner"
Bruce paused and saw that she was serious.
"Okay," he finally agreed.
Adriana smiled and leaned forward to kiss him.
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.
.
"She may be trying to poison you," Sidi said as she looked at the tiny bottle Madame Twyla had given to Bruce.
"I don't think she would do that at this point," Bruce said. "I've paid her in full and more."
"Stay away from her and her concoctions," Sidi ordered. "I am warning you. There is no need to involve yourself with any of it-"
"But what if there's something I need to see," Bruce said. "And she's the only one that can help? Unless you can help me."
"What is this potion called?" Sidi asked.
"Fly on the wall," Bruce said. "But she mixed with something else. A blend of some sort. She made it milder, I believe."
"Fly on the wall is a direct window in the past, short lived," Sidi said.
"She told me," Bruce said.
"And you are trying to see your wife's past," Sidi said with a sigh.
"Again, unless you can help me," Bruce repeated.
"The past is not my area," Sidi said. "The future however.."
"You saw my future," Bruce said. "How about this. You tell me what happens if I decide to drink this."
"I've read your future multiple times just in the past week," Sidi said. "It's unhealthy to overdo this."
"Sidi-" Bruce said but she cut him off.
"I told you what I saw," she said. "I could see that you are the Batman. I could see that because the Batman will return. You will have to. I felt the balance of the death that will replace Adriana's very soon."
"You told me a terrible man would die," Bruce said. "And that's been consistent every time you've read my future."
"Unless nothing's changed, that will be the case," Sidi said. "I couldn't see him clearly but I saw some connection to your wife."
"He's the reason I need to see my wife's past," Bruce said. "Their...involvement is unclear to me and I need to understand it."
"Why?" Sidi asked, somewhat impatiently. "Invading loved one's privacy unnecessarily never has a good ending."
Bruce took a deep breath. "I need to know. I need to understand or it will bother me for the rest of my life."
"Desperation never has a good ending either," Sidi said.
"I'm not Arsenio's biological father," Bruce said.
Sidi didn't flinch.
"Well, he doesn't look much like you," Sidi said.
"This terrible man that will die is his father," Bruce confessed.
Sidi looked at the tiny bottle. "And you want to see what? Your son being conceived?"
"Don't," Bruce said, hating her tone. "You don't know who he is. You don't understand."
"Then tell me," Sidi demanded. "Who is this person you cannot fathom with your wife."
Bruce looked down and away. He wasn't sure if he was ashamed. He pulled out his phone and pulled up a picture after a quick internet search. Then he turned his phone screen to face Sidi. For the first time, he saw a look of moderate surprise on Sidi's face.
"Do you understand now?" Bruce asked.
Sidi looked away from the screen and back down at the bottle again.
"Adriana insists that he never hurt her or forced her," Bruce said. "Which, perhaps...maybe somehow I can wrap my head around that. But I don't understand how she could do this. There must have been some time of coercion or trickery. I know...even though she went through with it, it was something that she did not want to happen. No one one would want this to happen to them. But she denies-"
"Bruce," Sidi interrupted.
"Yes?" Bruce asked.
"I need to be honest with you," Sidi said cautiously.
"Go on," Bruce said. "I can handle whatever you have to say."
Sidi paused and began to speak.
"When Adriana was pregnant, before she knew it, she came here," Sidi said. "She was very upset-"
"Of course she was-" Bruce said but Sidi snapped back immediately, almost shouting at him.
"Don't interrupt me!" she said firmly.
Bruce was so surprised by her reprimand, he immediately became quiet.
"She was upset because her gift was gone. Completely and entirely. She was angry and inconsolable. Twyla had given her a potion, which she had blamed, but it wasn't the potion," Sidi said. "Her gift was gone because she was pregnant. This is very uncommon but can happen with an altered gift."
Bruce wanted to speak but stayed quiet to avoid being shouted at again.
"Anyway," Sidi said, satisfied with Bruce's silence. "I used a very powerful crystal pendulum to assess her energy points. The reproductive energy was strong. I didn't tell her then because of how much stress she was under, but it was clear that she was expecting. There were two babies at that time, and I could see that one would be lost. The stone showed the gender of the child that would survive."
"A boy," Bruce said but then apologized for speaking. "Sorry."
"Yes, a boy," Sidi said, not sounding angry this time. You son, Arsenio."
Bruce nodded.
"But, not only did the stone show me those things," Sidi said, and Bruce could tell she was being careful with her words. "The movement of the stone can also indicate...how the child was conceived."
"How?" Bruce asked.
"Irregular and tumultuous movements can indicate...a child conceived in a stressful situation. Possibly a violent one. Depending on how the stone moves."
Bruce swallowed.
"For Adriana, the movement was not irregular," Sidi said. "In fact...quite the opposite."
"What are you saying?" Bruce asked.
"Simply that, Arsenio was not conceived in a traumatic way," Sidi said. "This is a good thing, Bruce."
"Of course it would not be as traumatic if she...cooperated with the monster and got used to it over time-" Bruce rationalized.
"No," Sidi said. "You are not understanding."
"Then make me understand," Bruce said. "Tell me straight."
Sidi reached for Bruce's hand and held it.
"The movement of the stone told me..." Sidi paused and looked at the image on the screen of Bruce's phone that was sitting on his knee. "Although now I can see how it's hard to accept...The stone told me...the child was conceived in love."
Bruce snatched his hand back from Sidi.
"That's absurd," Bruce said. "You must have interpreted it wrong."
"No," Sidi said, with sureness. "One of the clearest love children I have seen with the stone's movement."
Bruce had nothing more to say and he was suddenly angry. He put his phone away, took the small bottle from Sidi and left without saying goodbye.