Ch.70: Court

"You want him to do what now?" Bruce questioned his lawyer, Nathaniel Abbott. The billionaire's look said he was not pleased with how their little meeting was going. He was on the verge of being ticked off but not quite there yet.

Nathaniel crossed his arms over his chest. "Look Bruce, I don't want to do it to the kid either. But if he testifies, his father's going to jail for life with no chance of bail or parole."

"Don't we have enough evidence as it is without having to put Danny on the stand?" Bruce asked.

Nathaniel sighed. "That's what I thought but Fenton's buddies got him a pretty powerful lawyer. I really don't want to take any chances."

"That's not fair to my kid though!" Bruce said, leaning forward. Protective anger was flaring in his eyes. Nathaniel, on edge because of the look, shifted nervously. "I never said it was fair. I just don't want to see Fenton walking free with a chance to get his kid back. I'd rather the kid on the stand."

"The kid has a name." Bruce growled irritably. Nathaniel frowned. "Right… So are you going to put him on the stand?"

The billionaire leaned back in his chair with some thought. He had to weigh his options.

Did he want Danny on the stand? No.

But did he want to see Jack free? Not a chance in-.

The lawyer sighed again. "Come on, Bruce. It's only one time. The k-"

Bruce sent a warning glare.

"Danny," Nathaniel corrected quickly. "will be fine. Everything will be fine. I can even get permission for some arrangements so it'll be less stressful for Danny."

Bruce tapped his fingers against his desk. "I want to let Danny decide."

"You can't be serious Bruce." Nathaniel said dryly.

The billionaire glared again. "It's his decision. If Danny thinks he can do it, he'll be put on stand. If he doesn't, he's not doing it. Got it?"

Nathaniel frowned, irritation clear. "Got it."

"He wants him to do what now?!"

"Nathaniel wants to put Danny on stand." Bruce repeated, leaning on the dining table with Dick beside him. The oldest of the Bat-Kids was not happy about what had transpired during the meeting Bruce had with his lawyer.

"You're not gonna make Raven do it, are you? They have enough evidence to put the guy away! Why traumatize the kid further?" Dick questioned.

Bruce huffed. "Nathaniel's worried about Jack's lawyers. I haven't made the decision because I want to see what Danny thinks."

"He doesn't know what he's getting into!" Dick protested.

"Trust me, Dick. I'm letting Danny know exactly what he's getting into before he even has a chance to answer." Bruce stated.

Danny, the two dogs behind him and a backpack over his shoulder, entered the kitchen and gasped in surprise when he saw his brother sitting at the table with his father.

"Crossing my fingers he says no." Dick said quietly through his clenched teeth. His smile looked similar to the Joker's.

"You and me both…" Bruce mumbled, copying his adopted son's expression.

"Dickie!" Danny yelled excitedly. He ran around the table and hugged his brother's leg. The older hero laughed and pulled the nine-year-old into his lap. "Hey Rave-y! How's my baby brother doing?"

"Good." Danny answered plainly, arms wrapped around the older's torso. He hummed happily. Dick smiled in pleasure.

Lips twitching upward, Bruce called his Baby Bird's name. Danny perked up at him and batted his eyes in question.

"Dick and I want to talk to you about something important." Bruce stated, making sure he didn't accidently start using his Batman voice (he had a tendency to switch them when something serious came up).

"What?" Danny asked curiously.

"Remember how your… Other father was arrested?" Bruce asked. Danny tensed dramatically but, overall, remained rather calm. The child nodded in understanding.

"Well, he's going to court to try and get out of jail." Dick explained, keeping it short and sweet.

"Why would they let him out?" Danny asked.

"That's… Complicated. We can explain it later. But right now, we want to ask you a question." Bruce said. Danny waited in silence for whatever he was about to be asked.

"Do you want to testify against him?"

Danny, wide-eyed, mumbled a confused "Uhhhh…"

"It basically means you're going to be asked questions so we can put your father in jail for good." Dick explained. Bruce nodded in agreement with his oldest and went on to explain a few more things; that Jack would be there, a lot of people he didn't know would be there, he'd answer questions in front of a crowd, etc. They made sure Danny understood what was expected of him if he said yes.

The two adults mentally cursed when Danny still said he'd do it, though a bit hesitant.

The next few weeks, they prepared Danny for trial. They took him to visit the courthouse (which they assured would look less intimidating the day of the trial), let the child meet the judge, and practiced the questions with Nathaniel (whom Danny made very clear he did not like). They showed videos about court made specifically for kids Danny's age and had a few interviews with Nathaniel (which the nine-year-old absolutely despised).

The Bat-Family continually told Danny he did not have to go up on stand but Danny didn't back down.

Danny squirmed under all the gazes he received while on the witness stand. Bruce, though not showing it outwardly, was just as anxious as his kid. Jack was just on the other side of the room, glowering. The possessive side of the abuser didn't like the sight of his son holding hands with a billionaire when they had arrived.

The nine-year-old had yet to glance at his biological father. He had, mostly, just sat in Bruce's lap the entire time, staring at the wall opposite of Jack. His ears had been acute to everything being said though.

The courthouse lacked its usual intimidation, just for the child witness. There were a few colored pictures and photos scattered on the walls. They had switched out the regular sized witness chair for a child-sized one. The desks and chairs were out of line and disorganized. The judge even wore civvies that day, just to ease any tension Danny might have.

Jason, Cassie, and Stephanie were all sitting among the crowd. Dick, Damian, and Tim were going to be witnesses, as was Bruce. The billionaire, though, was given special permission to be in the room when Danny went on stand for support. Familiar people made children relax.

Nathaniel questioned Danny first. The lawyer asked the questions as simply as possible. Danny answered just as bluntly. The child's eyes stayed locked on Nathaniel, with the occasional glance at Bruce, if only to make sure his adopted father was still there.

After Nathaniel sat back down, Jack's lawyer, Daniel Payne (irony…), followed up after. He asked questions, just not as simple to trick the kid. Danny, though extremely nervous with the intimidating figure, answered to the best of his abilities and asked that the question to be repeated or rephrased when it didn't make sense.

Daniel made it hard for Danny to concentrate though. The older man liked to pace and Danny recognized his gait almost as a predator stalking his prey. The child took more peeks at Bruce the more nervous he got. Daniel took advantage of this and continued to pace.

Bruce could feel his three wards behind him stiffen and shift. He forced himself to stay relaxed though. If Danny saw him nervous, his anxiety would spike farther.

As Daniel paced closer to where Jack was sitting, Danny caught sight of his biological father. He froze when he saw the look Jack was giving him. It was the impatient warning look. Instantly, the child clammed up.

"Shit…" Jason cursed, leaning forward on his knee. Cassie barely restrained herself from smacking him.

"Was there anything that happened that hurt you or scared you and made you feel you would get in trouble?" Daniel asked.

Danny, starting to shake, glanced at Jack. The expression was the same.

"No." He squeaked.

People perked. The child had been answering 'yes' to such questions a minute ago. What changed?

"Oh Good Lord. Bruce, he's terrified." Stephanie whispered. Bruce shot her a look before turning back to the front and making small gestures to get his kid's attention. They were hardly noticed. Bruce was gone from Danny's mind. Jack was in.

"Is that the real truth or a made up story?" Daniel asked.

"It's real. It's real. It's real." Danny repeated.

"He's panicking." Tim stated, on the verge of panicking himself. Bruce tried more vain efforts to gain the attention of the nine-year-old.

The questioning continued to go downhill. Danny's sole focus was to lie his way out. Finally, Nathaniel intervened and said he wanted the child to have a break. The judge allowed it, a little mortified by the death spiral the questioning had taken.

Even though he was allowed, Danny didn't move.

"Danny." Bruce called. The child looked at him pleadingly. The billionaire saw the child's muscles were locked up. Danny was literally paralyzed in fear.

Bruce muttered a low swear before he got up and pulled Danny from the witness chair. The smirk he saw Jack wearing made the Dark Knight's anger flare dramatically.

The leader of the Bat-Clan fell into his seat and made sure the chair was close to the bars cutting off the front of the courtroom from the rest. The three Bat-Kids were sitting in the front row and were immediately upon the child with words and gestures of comfort.

Danny just clung to Bruce, shaking. His eyes were distant, pupils dilated in fear.

They brought in the next witness while Bruce took Danny out. The next witness happened to be Dick and the worry he displayed said quite a bit.

Bruce carried Danny to the waiting room for witnesses. Tim and Damian straightened when the two entered, eyes wide in the state of the youngest.

"What happened?" Tim asked.

"Jack gave Danny a look. Danny panicked. I don't think he can get back up there again." Bruce said curtly, snapping his fingers in front of his son's face. There was no registration to the act.

"This is bad…" Damian noted. Tim nodded in agreement.

Danny didn't take part as a witness again, even though he eventually did come to his senses. Bruce, fortunately, had been asked a question by Daniel that allowed him to explain Danny's behavior near the end of his own questioning. With the explanation, quite a few things Danny said were taken back and Jack was convicted.

The Bat-Family went home quietly. All of them were tired. Danny fell asleep before they even left the courthouse.

Once they were back at the mansion, Bruce tucked Danny into his bed. Then promptly fell asleep beside him, too lazy to go to his own room. The other Bat-Kids climbed in after and sprawled out in any free spot they could get. Ace and Cujo joined them sometime during the night while they slept.

Alfred found them in the morning and, smiling sadly, took a picture and left the family alone.

I have no idea what goes on in court so if anything's wrong... Oops.

Kadzait: She did look up info but it's easier for her to write better descriptions when she's seen the things she's written about first-hand or has a really clear mental picture and idea of what the freak she's doing.

Yeah, pretty much. On a side note, Lexosaurus (my goodio friend) and Guest of Honor said something about Jack in their reviews (and possibly a few others)! So I did THIS! YEAH~!

Kadzait: Not really.

SHUT UP, KADDY! I will have the social worker chapter up tomorrow, as I have a friend over today and don't have time to continue and blah blah blah. Reviews for yesterdays updates will be replied on the social worker chapter and reviews for this chapter will be replied on the chapter after the social worker chapter.

Thank you~! XD