Summary: Sooooo...I'm back. Sorry about the lack of posts as of late, but I'm trying to get a handle on my workload, so hopefully things'll be better moving forward. Takes place on Thanksgiving of 2016. The next few chapters will be more depressing, but it's just a step on the journey, so don't feel too bad about it
Disclaimer: I don't own DC
Today was Thanksgiving, not exactly one of Dick's favorite holidays, but he had grown to love it nonetheless. Over the past few years, he really had gotten more and more to be thankful for. His team was tight as ever, he got a new brother who may have been...difficult but wasn't a total pain in the ass, and he had a kickass girlfriend who he was convinced was the most precious thing in the multiverse. What more was there to be thankful for? The day had opened how it normally did, with Dick and Zee cuddling in bed, and from there it went pretty well. The team had a Thanksgiving party, there was no mission to interrupt them, hell, even the Justice League stopped by for some fun. Of course, there was one small issue.
12 hours ago, the Joker had escaped Arkham Asylum with the help of Harley Quinn and his gang. Batman had tried looking for him, but with very minimal success. He was quite understaffed as it was, with Jason off patrol since the Deathstroke fiasco last week and Barbara still on shaky terms with her father. Jason had tried to get him to let him suit up again, but Bruce didn't permit it. But that was it! Nothing else! It was just the clown escaping for the umpteenth time, nothing more, right?! Surely it wouldn't ruin the holidays...
Dick had no idea how wrong he was. 5 hours ago, the clown paid a visit to the Gordon family apartment. Jim was out looking for him and his associates, and Barbara had just gotten home after the team's party for some work. Because of this, she was the only one there to open the door as someone knocked on it. Babs expected to see her father, only to find the psychotic lunatic standing there with his evil smile and a gun in hand. A single bullet through the spine was all it took, and less than ten minutes later, Jim had returned home upon receiving a call from the neighbors. Presumably, Joker had only attacked Barb to get to him. Now, Gordon and Batman were hot on the lunatic's trail while the team stayed with Barbara as she went into her third round of surgery.
Dick held Zatanna close to him as she sobbed into his chest. He did his best to maintain his own composure for Zee and the team's sake, but anger was radiating off him in waves, leading to Megan glancing over at him worriedly in between her own bursts of tears from Conner's arms.
Everyone was scared for Barb, the girls especially. They had gotten to know and love her as a sister, so seeing her on the brink of death was horrifying. It reminded Zatanna of when Dick went into a mystical coma. Zee shuddered at the very memory of watching her boyfriend in that state. She wanted so badly to use her magic to heal Barbara, but alas, it was just too risky. Were she to fail or not have enough energy for the spell, it could end up doing more harm than good. So for now, all she could do was cry into Dick's arms.
Around 30 minutes later, Leslie walked out of the operating room, sighing. Everyone looked to her for good news, and she nodded. "Barbara's...she'll live. But...the damage to her spine...it's too much. I'm afraid she...she may never walk again." Dick felt like his whole world had stopped as the others started to murmur things to one another. His surrogate sister was going to lose the use of her legs. It wasn't fair, she didn't deserve that! She would never be able to perform with her gymnastics team after this, let alone don the Batgirl suit. Such a big part of her life just...ripped away. He gave Zatanna a gentle squeeze as she started tearing up more.
"Dr. Thompkins, is it possible for us to-"
"I'm afraid not, Kaldur. She is comatose right now. I will alert you all the moment she wakes up, but for now...she needs rest." Kaldur nodded, turning to face the team as Leslie left, a determined yet also angry look on his face. Conner, equally angry, spoke up.
"We're not seriously sitting this one out, are we?"
"No. Suit up, all of you. We're finding Joker, and we're sending him back to Arkham."
The team had split up into pairs, each searching a different part of Gotham for the villain. Bruce didn't even bother to stop them, nor did he prevent Jason from suiting up to join them. This was an all hands on deck scenario. They needed to find Joker before he hurt anyone else.
"Sector's clear. No sign of him." Dick radioed to Kaldur for his whereabouts, and Kaldur told him his sector was also clear. Zee could feel the anger emanating off of her boyfriend and knew she had to do something.
"Move on to the next sector, Nightwing. We'll find him eventually." Dick groaned and turned to move off, but before he could get far, Zatanna grabbed him by the arm and yanked him back to her, smashing their lips together in a move very reminiscent of that New Year's kiss almost 5 years ago. They broke off and Dick raised an eyebrow, though he couldn't shake the grin on his face. Zee was smiling too, but her face had turned a light pink under his gaze as she bit her bottom lip, an expression Dick had really grown to adore.
"What was that for?" Zatanna rolled her eyes and laughed.
"Happy birthday, you big doofus!" Dick's eyes widened under the lenses of his mask as he checked his holo-computer. Sure enough, it had passed midnight a few minutes ago, signaling his 19th birthday. He sheepishly turned to Zatanna, smiling.
"Th-thanks. I, uh, I guess I'm really out of it." Zatanna laughed, and the sound of her giggles brought shivers all over Dick's body and made his heart soar.
"Don't worry, Dick. We'll find Joker, and Babs will be fine. I mean, we have faced worse odds." Dick smiled, nodding and calming himself within his girlfriend's grasp. Only Zatanna could get him to calm down during such a tense time.
"What would I do without you?" Zee giggled as she got on her toes to reach Dick's lips.
"Pray you never have to find out." They embraced for a while longer, tongues clashing for dominance as they deepened the kiss. Dick slid his hands directly under her waist to lift her up a bit more, and they enjoyed feeling each other's bodies and mouths until Dick's comm beeped again, forcing them to break off with a slight blush.
"Nightwing, have you had any luck?"
"Not yet, I'll alert you the moment I get something." Dick hung up before turning to face Zatanna again. "Guess we'd better move." Zatanna nodded, her eyes twinkling in the moonlight. She pecked his cheek before getting off her toes to walk away sultrily, leaving a dazed and lovestruck Dick behind.
"Happy birthday, Boy Wonder." How is it possible for her to turn off my serious side in like 2 seconds? God, she's amazing.
Batman and Robin were stationed in southern Gotham searching for the clown. Jason was getting peeved off, and Bruce noticed. He tried to ignore it. But he couldn't. Not after Robin had smashed a Joker thug's head into a wall during interrogation gone wrong. They had gotten into the car and Bruce had driven him back to the cave. Jason was under the assumption that they were regrouping, but Bruce had other plans.
"Stay here."
"What?! Bruce, no! I can-"
"You can stay with Barbara. She will need a friend when she wakes up. Please, Jason, I need you to watch over her."
"Bruce, I can still-"
"This is not up for debate. You're still off patrol, I need you to cool off. What you did to that goon...you almost crossed a line."
"I wasn't gonna-"
"You hospitalized him. I'm sorry, Jason, but you're not suiting up until I say you're ready." Without any further debate, Bruce left the cave in the Batmobile. Jason yelled out before smashing the nearest piece of equipment.
"Master Jason, may we please refrain from damaging the equipment?"
"It's not fair, Al! I risk my life same as him, as Dick, as everyone! Why am I getting taken off duty cuz I went a bit too hard on a thug?! He deserved it!" Alfred sighed worriedly.
"Master Jason, perhaps we can calm down over a nice cup of tea? I am sure Master Bruce had good reason to take you off duty, and he has your best intentions in mind. That much I can guarantee. Perhaps you can give him a chance to explain when he gets back?" Jason calmed down ever so slightly as Alfred spoke, and he slowly nodded. "Very well. I shall go up to fetch us some snacks. Perhaps you could go to the living room and watch the game now? I will join you in a moment." Jason nodded, waiting for Alfred to go upstairs before rushing to the computer. He spent a few minutes searching for Joker before a broadcast played.
The rest of the team had grouped up with Batman to determine their next move when Dick, Arty, Wally, and Bruce's police radios all started playing the same thing. Joker was on a rampage with some thugs of his, and the police were getting demolished at the old steel mill. "Team, go! Now!" The team rushed off to the mill, Batman in tow. Gordon called him on the secure line, but Bruce quickly responded. "I'm already on it, Jim. I won't let him get away this time, I promise."
Jason had already left the cave when Alfred got back down with the snacks, and the old butler quickly hurried to the Batcomputer as he noticed the Robin suit was not in its case and the Redbird cycle had been taken out of the cave. "Master Bruce, are you-"
"I know, Alfred. I'm on my way to the mill with the team."
"The-the mill? Master Bruce, no! I am afraid Master Jason has snuck out after the Joker alone!" Bruce's eyes widened behind his mask as he quickly responded.
"I'll keep him safe, Alfred. Promise."
Jason had arrived on the scene rather quickly on his motorbike, and he was busy demolishing the thugs without a second thought. "Bring me Joker! NOW!" Before he could get far, the chilling laugh of the Clown Prince of Crime echoed through the room. Robin tensed up, preparing a load of birdarangs for the criminal, but before he could do anything, something hit him in the back of the head. He fell to the floor, out cold as a shadowy figure ordered his goons to scoop him up, laughing maniacally before cutting the Robin 'R' off his suit with a switchblade and leaving it at the scene. This oughta stir the bats in his belfry! Ooh, finally, some one-on-one time with the replacement!
Batman and the team arrived a few seconds after only to find the place cleared, apart from the several dead cops and a few clowns who the cops had managed to kill. Dick scanned the area, noticing the ripped piece of fabric, and he nearly fell over from shock. Zee ran up to support him, and Bruce looked to him quizzically.
"D-Dick, what's wrong?" Grayson ignored his girlfriend's plea before looking to Bruce and gesturing to the fabric on the floor next to him. Batman's eyes widened to the size of quarters as he picked up and inspected the cloth before roaring out into the night sky. Jason...no...
Meanwhile, the Boy Wonder had been tied up in an old, dimly lit warehouse with nobody else present. He slowly drifted awake, looking around his area as his head pounded like crazy and the back of his head where he had been hit stung like hell. "Wh-where a-am I?" The laughs of the Joker filled his voice, and before he could react, he felt a metal rod smash him in the chest, sending him sprawling on the floor as he groaned and struggled to breathe. He looked up to see the maniac holding a crowbar, and in that moment, Jason felt something he hadn't felt since the day he became Robin.
He felt fear.
"Well, well, well. Look who's up! Tonight, bird brain, you and I are gonna have LOADS of fun! Ooh, just you wait!" Joker started laughing maniacally before slamming the crowbar on Jason's head, knocking him out.
Sorry if it was a bit rushed, I really wanted to post this today instead of making you guys wait even more. Feel free to leave comments or suggestions for chapters you wanna see. And I know a few upcoming chapters will be less than turbing, but we're just following the timeline one step at a time. Next chapter up soon.