"What do we do now?" Robin stood outside on the roof of some anonymous warehouse. Unconsciously he had let his cape settle in around him, shielding his body from view. The gesture was a nervous one he hadn't ever been quite able to shake, though it could be useful when hiding in the shadows; the black fabric of the cape blended in a lot better than the bright red, green, and yellow of his costume. His question had been directed to the larger figure standing nearby. Nightwing had arrived a short time ago, and Robin had filled him in on their discoveries.

"We keep looking." He stated it as if the answer was obvious, and indeed it was, but there was an ominous undercurrent to his tone. Both young men glanced over to another part of the roof, one darker than the place they stood, where another figure crouched in the shadows. Batgirl seemed to have tuned them out, though Robin wouldn't be surprised if she could do so and still understand their conversation.

Her arms were folded tightly against her stomach, her cape fluttering in the wind. She stared unseeingly out across the city. She was taking this hard…too hard. Robin bit his lip. Nearly all the members of the Bat-clan had a tendency to fall into self-blame, especially when dealing with the loss of someone close to them. Batgirl was no exception…in fact, second to Bruce, Cass seemed to have the second strongest sense of self-recrimination of anyone…anywhere. But she needed to snap out of it…put it aside for now. Like Nightwing had said, they needed to keep looking. Both for Joker and Batman.

When Nightwing had appeared on the scene Tim hadn't been able to keep the worry from his face. Dick had known something was wrong before Robin even started to speak. Together, with Batgirl managing to lift a rather large about of debris herself, the three of them had shifted and sifted through the rubble. None of them had spoken the dreaded words aloud, not one of them willing to even admit their fears to themselves. But their persistence had paid off. There had been no crumpled body, no death to greet them as they reached the bottom of the wrecked heap. Only the torn fabric, ripped into three pieces, was left as evidence that Batman had been here.

The fabric had not only once been his cape, but also part of the cowl…with a commlink still attached. So they knew there was a possibility that he was out there, alive, and simply unable to communicate. But if that were true, it meant he was unable in more ways than simply missing a comm. He had been silent too long. By now he should have been able to get to a phone or come by the watchtower. But the night was dying and still there was no word.

"Hey, guys?" Oracle's voice broke through the silence. "Hate to break up this little cheer fest, but if you are going to keep looking, you might want to start over at the set of 'Dark Passages'. An…um…anonymous tip came in that that's where Joker filmed his little pharmaceutical ad." She wasn't sure why she kept her dad's name out of it. In fact, she actually wasn't sure why he had come by a while earlier either. He had claimed to be checking up on her, being a loving, concerned parent, but he had let slip a number of items related to the consultation he had participated in at the GCPD headquarters. She had often felt he suspected her involvement with the "cape" crowd, but this was the first time he had been so…well…obvious about it. He had mentioned, in an off-hand manner, that Akin's hadn't heard from Batman. She supposed that, like the members of the Bat-clan, he too was feeling anxious on the subject of the Dark Knight's status.

"I can handle that, O. Any other leads R and B can pick up?" Nightwing kept his tone light, though he could feel a sort of desperation in him to find Batman. Despite their many differences, Bruce really was like a father to him…legally, he supposed, he was a father to him, since he had adopted him a few years earlier. And like any true son, no matter what disputes might separate them, the thought of losing Bruce for good terrified him.

"Um…" there was the sound of typing, then, "Nightwing, we're on a secure line now. I'm not sure we want to send those two out again tonight. This has to have been…traumatic…to say the least." Nightwing glanced at Robin who was eyeing him askance. Babs should have known better than to try to talk behind his back; now the kid was suspicious... and making someone who can figure out one of the world's most guarded secret identities when he was only nine suspicious is never a good thing.

"That's true…" he moderated his tone, trying to stay focused. "But staying active could maybe…uh...help in that…um… area." Though the mask hid his true features, Nightwing could swear Robin just rolled his eyes at him. Then he shrugged and walked over to talk to Batgirl. Nightwing turned, lowering his voice.

"Listen, I know what you're saying, I'm just not sure I agree. I mean, I remember what it was like at that age, and if they feel like they're being cut out of the loop or sent home, they're gonna rebel." The silence on the other end of the line let him know she was considering his words carefully.

"Ok…do you have any suuggestions, then?" He thought for a moment. Batman would never forgive him if he got those two in too much trouble, so he couldn't send them after Joker-related stuff. But he couldn't be obvious about it, either.

"Well, we could…uh oh."

"What?!"

"I think they just made our decision for us." He frowned at the spot that the teenage crime fighters had been on just moments ago and sighed. Had he ever been that headstrong? He scanned the city, but saw no sign of them. Nah, he decided with a wry grin, he never would have been as rash as they were… he'd have been worse.


"They're talking about us." Robin had moved over to where Batgirl stood, hoping to draw her out of the self-imposed shell of recrimination she had drawn around herself. He knew she was going back over her actions to figure out what she could have done differently to change the outcomes. There wasn't anything…but he knew from experience how hard it was to let oneself believe that. Batgirl shrugged in response to his statement.

"So?"

"So they're going to try to get rid of us…you know, send us to cover something small or something." She looked over at him as if confused for a moment, studying his posture and body language.

"You think Oracle and Nightwing are overprotective? So? You want to…what?" He could hear the frustration in her tone and chose his words carefully.

"Listen, I think…" he knew that if they struck off on their own they could get into big trouble, and not just from the criminals. Babs would totally chew them out, Nightwing wouldn't be so bad, but he'd be pissed, and Batman…well if Batman was still alive and he found out that Robin and Batgirl were disobeying, grounding them was the least he would do. Still…the operative word here was "disobeying". If no one told them not to go out, they couldn't really be disobeying, could they? He knew his logic was faulty at best, but he could tell Cass needed to get out there and knock around some bad-guys. Heck, it would make him feel better too.

"Come on." He grabbed her arm and pulled her down, the two of them sliding easily down the roof to the alley below. They couldn't travel by decel line, not right away, anyway, since Nightwing was sure to look for them. He led Batgirl through the alleys, a twisting path that should shake any pursuit. "Turn off your comm." She gave him a funny look, but complied.

"What are we…?"

"Oracle gave Nightwing the location of that movie set to check out for Joker, right?"

"Yeah?"

"If we leave the comms on they can tell us to come back. Right now I think we should do our own investigation, without interference. The funhouse is an obvious target, since Joker wants the money dropped there. Perhaps too obvious… it's going to be a trap. If we know that going in, we have a better chance of surviving." He thought for a moment.

"But…"

"At the very least we may be able to pick up some clues to his current location."

"But…"

"And we will get there well before the scheduled drop off, so we could catch him by surprise."

"But…"

"So we'd better – urk!" He stared at Batgirl in surprise as he rubbed his throat. She had caught him across the windpipe with a quick strike that didn't really damage him, but left him unable to speak.

"Like I was trying to say… what about the police? Won't they be covering that area too? And we need…we have to find Batman…" she cleared her throat, unwilling to get upset, "he's the only one who can figure out an antidote, even if we defeat Joker." Tim coughed, trying to get his voice to work again.

"Gah. Jeez, Cass, warn a guy next time, won't ya?" She didn't answer, though he correctly interpreted her silence as a declaration that she had warned him…sort of. He just wouldn't let her speak. "Ok. First, I know what you're saying about Batman, but our first priority has to be finding and taking out the Joker. It's possible an antidote can be found from his compound, so we'll need to find where he's been creating this stuff as well. Second, it's very likely that if we find Joker we find Batman. Even though he hasn't contacted us, we're going to assume he's still alive, since there wasn't any evidence to the contrary at the factory. He could be unconscious somewhere, but it may be more likely that Joker got hold of him after the explosion and is waiting to kill him."

"Why wait?"

"It has to be elaborate. Don't ask why, I'm sure I don't know why Joker does things the way he does. But we can hope that he's waiting to perform some big production to prove to everyone that he killed the Bat. We don't have a lot of time, though, if that is the case. We will have to sneak in past the police, but I think we can handle that." She nodded, starting to feel excitement building. Finally…they were going to get some action.


The carnival was dark; decaying from years of abandoned neglect. Only one spot in the whole fairway was lit, and that was the funhouse. Outside the dilapidated building a mob of police vehicles and spotlights brightened the scene. Two shadowy figures paused on the outskirts of the light, communicating silently on how best to penetrate the well-guarded area. The fact that Joker had specified this spot as the drop-off for his money, not to mention that he wanted the police there, pointed to an obvious trap of some kind. Most likely the building was rigged with some kind of explosives in an attempt to kill as many members of the GCPD as possible.

That was their mission, now. To find the trap, disarm any explosives, and discover any clues to the Joker's present whereabouts. When the opportunity arose, they took it; swinging from their dark perch on the nearby roller coaster to the roof of the funhouse, unseen by those below. Robin worked open a roof-access hatch and both of them dropped down into the blackness within. Two beams of light flared in the darkness, sweeping over the walls and floor, looking for information. They moved silently through the building, keeping their senses sharp for any sign of danger.

"Over there." Batgirl pointed her light at an opening in the wall that wasn't put there by design. Robin nodded. The hole looked like it had been hacked into the wall by a dull axe, or possibly a very large rat. They hesitated, not wanting to rush blindly into anything. Finally, after a few breathless minutes, Batgirl took the initiative and moved forward. They passed under a tangle of wires, many of them frayed and bare. The opening turned into a tunnel and they followed the path slowly. After what seemed like hours, but was, in truth, only minutes, Robin grabbed Batgirl's arm, halting her forward progress.

"Do you see that?"

"What?"

"Turn off your light." She did so. As her eyes adjusted to the sudden darkness she was able to make out a faint glow coming from somewhere ahead of them. She glanced over at Robin and was surprised at how intent he seemed on the light.

"What…?"
"Shh." She quieted, reading from his stance that he was focusing on something. She wasn't sure what had caught his attention. He motioned for them to retrace their steps and they moved back the way they had come a ways.

"We had better go in as silently as possible. That light may indicate a police team, or it could be the Joker's lair. Either option is potentially dangerous for us." She nodded impatiently, what, did he think she couldn't handle…?

"I know…" He held up his hand to ward off her argument.

"I know you know that. I just have to talk out loud some times, ok?" She nodded, albeit reluctantly. She had never gotten to the stage were she was comfortable just talking to talk…she needed to have something to say. "Good. Let's go." They crept forward again, edging their way down the corridor towards the source of the light. As they neared their destination, they heard a faint murmur of voices.

Robin held his hand up, signaling another halt. They had come to a sharp turn, and the light seemed much brighter around the corner, indicating that they may have reached the end of the line. Robin pulled out a small device, reached slowly around the corner, and pressed it to the wall, withdrawing his hand as fast as possible. Batgirl watched with interest as he lifted another object to his eye. She waited, but he remained motionless, so she tapped him on the shoulder. When she had his attention she indicated the gadget, wanting to know what it was. Robin seemed surprised, but then shrugged and handed it to her.

The image she saw when she raised it to her own eye as she had seen Robin do was…odd, to say the least. A large tank of some sort took up most of the space in the room. Around this were arranged about two or three dozen objects, most of which were clown-themed in some way. Wrapped packages, giant jack-in-the-boxes, and life-sized clown dolls made up the majority of the mess. Two shadows could be seen moving on the far wall, though their place of origin wasn't within the range of the remote camera.

"Batgirl…" Robin's whisper brought her back to the present and she lowered the lens. He held out his hand, obviously wanting another look. While he studied the layout of the chamber, Batgirl tried to make heads or tails of what she had seen. She assumed that they had found some sort of Joker-related area…though judging by the funhouse's exterior it could just be a "normal" room…but wasn't sure if it was a trap, a hideout, or even just another decoy.

"HEE-heeheeheehee!" the cackle floated to them from around the corner, sending a shiver up her spine. Even Robin was unnerved as he lowered the remote viewer and tensed.

"I think we found him." An understatement, to say the least, but Robin simply nodded and leaned back against the wall of the tunnel. He took a deep breath, and Batgirl read his movements as preparation for a very unpleasant task.

"I think it's time to turn our comms back on. Call for backup, that sort of thing." She nodded, and mirrored his movements to reconnect the commlinks. A short burst of static made her wince, but it died quickly, followed by an even more ominous sound.

"…don't know where they are. I told you, they turned off…wait a minute. Batgirl, Robin?" Batgirl heaved a deep sigh. She may as well enjoy this night as Batgirl…it could well be her last.

"We're here, Oracle." Robin shot her a funny look. Well, what did he know, anyway? By running off like that they had probably gotten themselves fired. That may not bother him so much, but she had no other identity to fall back on.

"Robin! What did you think you were…"

"Hold it! Hold it!" Robin cut through Oracle's tirade as quickly yet quietly as possible. He didn't want the people, namely the Joker, in the other room to hear. "Yell at us later. Right now, we need some backup. I think we found Joker, at the funhouse. He's setting up…well I'm not exactly sure what he's putting together, but more than likely some kind of trap."

"He's actually at the funhouse?" That was Nightwing. Disbelief penetrated his comment, reinforcing what they all knew…that if Joker was being that obvious, then the risk had just increased at least tenfold.

"Yeah…I think it's him. I haven't gotten a visual, but I saw his shadow and heard his voice. I…"

"Well, well, well. What have we here? A couple of Bat-brats!" Robin barely had time to duck as Joker swung an oversized axe at his head. "Christmas in July!" he crowed gleefully.

"But Puddin'! It's Octob-oops" Harley had rounded the corner behind him, distracting him long enough for Batgirl to land a solid punch on his jaw. Unfortunately, and quite surprising to the young crime fighter, the punch seemed to have no effect other than to off-balance him for a moment. She was vaguely aware of Oracle's voice in her ear, but she had no time to pay attention. Robin kicked out and tripped Joker, pulling out his bo-staff as he moved fluidly into a better fighting stance.

"No fair! Didn't your mommy ever teach you to play nice? No? Well here's a lesson!" Batgirl barely had time to react…Batman had been right, she couldn't predict his movements fast enough…but she leapt into the fray, knocking Robin to the ground as Joker sprayed some kind of fluid from a hidden container at them. The liquid missed them, but came into contact with the rock wall behind them. There was a hissing sound as the wall started to melt.

"Acid!" Robin pushed Batgirl off of him, preparing to fight again, only to find the Joker gone. Batgirl moved to dash after him, but Robin pulled her back. "Wait! What if he wants us to follow? It could be a trap." She considered. It could be. She really wasn't able to interpret Joker's body language. Harley Quinn, on the other hand…

"It may be a trap, but they were really running away. At least Harley was. She…she doesn't know about a trap if there is one."

"You're sure?" she nodded. "Then come on!"

"Don't even think about it!" Oracle's voice was finally breaking through. "Let Nightwing handle…"

"Nightwing isn't here yet! And Joker's getting away. We can stop him, Oracle. We can." Robin's insistence seemed to stop her for a moment. Robin took her silence as the "go ahead" and motioned for Batgirl to continue after the clowns. Halfway through the entrance, though, he slammed into her back as she ground to a complete halt. "Oomph. Batgirl, what…?" there was no need to finish his question. The answer was right in front of them.

"Sorry, kiddos! Uncle Joker doesn't have time to play right now, but maybe this will entertain you!" He kicked a switch on one of the Jack-in-the-Boxes and ran out the door. A garish display popped out of the box with a countdown clock running backwards from 1 minute.

"Not a trap, huh?" Robin threw over his shoulder as he prepared to retreat. But Batgirl just stood there, concentrating on something.

"Not a trap. Harley did not think to trap…us." With that mysterious pronouncement Batgirl launched herself into the air, flipping over to bounce off some of the cluttered objects and landing agilely on the edge of the large tank in the middle of the room.

"Batgirl, we don't have time for…" he threw himself towards the counter, preparing to disable a bomb. But there were no explosives. Only a thin wire that led up, up, up…he followed it with his gaze and finally saw what Batgirl had figured out. Up near the ceiling was a dark object, suspended over the tank, which Robin assumed was filled with some sort of acid or something. The wire from the clock was attached to a large iron pike, around which was wound the chain holding up the…whatever it was. When the clock reached zero, the pike would be pulled out, dropping whatever was attached into the tank. And, judging by his knowledge of Joker's past behavior, there was only one thing that object could be.


To be continued…