Batgirl was not happy. She was…was…well, she didn't know what she was, since words seemed to be failing her at the moment. She was, quite simply, not happy. She and Robin had been relaxing. Having fun again. She had been in so much pain earlier…and not thinking straight. She still feared that Joker might get control of her brain, but at that moment they had been relaxed. Batman was on his way…so even if she went crazy he could stop her…and Robin was laughing. She liked it when he laughed.

But now… well, now things were different, weren't they? Tim…not Robin, not anymore…was unconscious. So unconscious that Joker hadn't even bothered tying him up. No. He had shoved Robin's cape into a vent as a note to Batman. He had taken his mask, too. That was different. As far as she knew, Joker had never really cared about unmasking anyone. Well, maybe Batman, but even then he didn't care about identities…just killing. But he had taken the mask and his utility belt. And his shoes. Joker thought it was incredibly funny for some reason to take his shoes. Batgirl didn't understand.

And Batgirl? Well, that was where it got really funny. No, not funny. That was the wrong word. But here she was, put in an impossible position.

"Ohhhh…..give me a home, where the criminals roam, and Uncle Joker makes all the kiddies plaaaaay! Where seldom is heard, a discouraging word….and ol' Batsy is gone to staaaaay! Everybody!" Batgirl tried to clap her hands over her ears, but the chains around her wrists wouldn't let her. "Home, home in Gotham City! Where I come up with all these great ditties! Where Batman will die! And the kiddies will fry! And I'll rule until my dying daaaaaaaay!"

Joker had appeared at the top of a metal staircase leading to the second story of the large production room and had sung his horrid song all the way down the stairs. Now he burst into his insanse laugh again, making Batgirl wince. Her head, after all, was still throbbing.

"Wooo hooo! You sing it Mistah J!" Harley stopped whatever it was she was doing to the big machine over in the corner and clapped. Joker took an exaggerated bow and then strode purposefully to where Tim lay in a crumpled heap on the floor. He considered him for a minute then, with a malicious grin, pulled back and kicked him as hard as he could.

"No!" Batgirl strained against her restraints as hard as she could. Joker turned to her and laughed.

"No? No? Did you hear that, Harley, the baby bat doesn't want me to play with my new toy! But it's so much fun!" He cackled again. Batgirl closed her eyes, thinking hard. She could do this…she had seen Batman and Robin and Nightwing escape, right? She could…but another searing pain stabbed through her head, obliterating the thought.

"But what's this? Awww. Baby bat isn't feeling well, is she? Well, don't worry! Doctor Joker's here to make it allll better!" She opened her eyes just in time to see his fist aimed at her stomach. She didn't have time to react…let alone the ability to do so.

That was the problem. Tim had been right. Joker couldn't get inside her head. A fact which had sent him into an incoherent rage earlier…causing him to take a huge wrench to a machine and beat it into a pulp. She wasn't sure why he hadn't turned it on her or Tim….after all, she, as well as every member of the Bat-clan, knew he was capable of it. He had screamed at her that she should be under his control…after all he had hit her with his card! He had waxed eloquently on the subject, including the fact that he had been looking forward to Batman's reaction to a traitor in his own crew. But, his ire spent, he had suddenly laughed and left the room. She really did not understand.

She hadn't stood by when Robin was hit. She wouldn't do such a thing…she wouldn't…she couldn't. They had been laughing. And then suddenly Joker was there behind Tim and throwing the card…and it was obvious. She knew he would attack…and how, too. Just like any other opponent. And she had acted. She had…she had…she had reached out to push Robin out of the way…and a blinding flash of light had come from inside her head and a bout of pain so intense she was sure she was dying.

But she hadn't died. No. It was worse. She had fainted. Passed out. And both of them had been captured. All because of a headache…a headache. She had failed. Failed Robin. Batman…Barbara… She had failed everyone. And the worst part was, Tim may end up dying, because of her. Just as she'd feared.

She kind of spasmed at the impact of Joker's fist in her stomach. It hurt. More than it should, she was sure. She was immune to pain, right? When she had awoken earlier she had found herself chained hand and foot to some structure. She had no idea what it was she was tied to, but she could catch glimpses of garish colors and supposed it was another of Joker's crazy themed objects. The room seemed to spin and she feared she would pass out again as the pain in her stomach caused a corresponding, yet much more intense, pain in her head.

"What? Nothing to say? You're such a party pooper!" Joker complained. Batgirl forced her eyes to open, wishing she could come up with a really good comeback, like the kind Nightwing and Robin were so good at. But Joker was moving with…was it deadly or simply malicious…she couldn't tell!…intent towards Tim. Batgirl tried to protest, struggling against her chains but she could feel the darkness closing in on her again, throbbing ever closer to total oblivion in time with the pounding in her head. The last thing she was aware of as she lost her hold on consciousness was Joker's maniacal laughter.


"What do you mean 'trouble'!" Babs's voice was definitely on the shrill edge be the time she finished her question. Nightwing winced. How was it that he had been selected to contact Oracle, again? "…was he! I mean, he got the call, like, hours ago! And…" oh, yeah. He could be off the hook since Babs knew where he had been and she was the one to contact him. Batman, though, was fair game. At the moment he was investigating the surrounding area much more thoroughly than either of them had to begin with.

"Um, well I think…"
"You think? You think! If you were thinking you would have…." Nightwing tuned her out again. Apparently he wasn't immune either. He knew he shouldn't blame her…she was just worried. And probably feeling helpless. She had a bad overprotective streak. He knew she had gotten into it with Dinah once when she had been captured and beat up…Babs had wanted her to quit being a field agent. It hadn't gone over well.

"Enough." That was Batman. "We don't have time for this." He held out some evidence bags…a few hairs here, a bit of mud there...and a… note?

"Hmmm, I'll take, 'note' for 200, Alex" Batman's glare told him quite plainly that now was not the time for jokes. Nightwing shrugged. Everyone dealt with stress their own way…Bab's screeched and Dick joked. Tim clammed to think of it, so did Bruce and Cass. A grin caught his mouth, but he suppressed it, lest Batman decide to take offense.

"A note? What's it say?" Babs was done being crazy and back in full Oracle mode.

"Nothing."

"Nothing? So explain to me why it's a note and not a blank piece of paper?" At her question, Nightwing did grin. Though it wasn't a pleasant one.

"Because it's not blank. It just doesn't have anything written on it."

"…Explain." She sounded reluctant, as if she knew what the note contained.

"It's a playing card…a paper one," he clarified. "it has a picture of the Gotham harbor on the back, one of the decks for tourists. The other side…it's the Joker card, but it's got a smiley face painted over it. In blood." There was silence on the other end. Whoops. All they had told Babs was that Batgirl and Robin were missing and might be in trouble. They hadn't mentioned the cape and razor-card.

"What else?" Apparently she realized that.

"Um…."

"Dick!" Ok, if she was going first-name rather than remembering to keep to secret ID's, even though she didn't have to, it being on a secure line, then he'd better let her know everything.

"Ok, ok." He sighed. "We found Robin's cape. And one of Joker's razor-cards…with Ti…um Robin's blood on it." Silence. He waited for her to digest that.

"And Batgirl?"

"Missing, like I said, but we haven't found anything on her." A longer silence. Nightwing kind of hung his head, knowing the feelings that had to be coursing through her at the moment.

"I…I have a trace on Robin."

"What!" This was a surprise. Why had she called in so worried earlier if…

"Well, I haven't had it activated in a long time…I sort of forgot about it. I snuck a tracer into one of his shoes after…well, after Steph died…I was worried about him," she was defensive, though Nightwing wasn't about to argue with her! "So I kept tabs of his movements to make sure he didn't put himself into any extreme situations…you know, on purpose. But he got better and I turned it off. I just remembered it." Well, better late than never, he supposed.

"Well?" Batman had stayed out of the conversation up to this point.

"He's apparently down near pier 245. Guess the card really was a kind of note." Nightwing nodded decisively, preparing to head towards the pier posthaste.

"Wait." Something didn't feel right. It wasn't unheard of for Joker to leave an obvious trail…especially if he hoped to lure Batman into a death trap. Yet…why the trouble to put up signs here? He turned and examined the factory. Joker could be trying to throw them off the scent. Then again, maybe he was just being even more thorough in his quest to call all the shots. He would think it a great joke to lead Batman all over the city in a wild goose chase. But would it be a wild goose chase? That was the question. Would he lead them all over only to disappear once again? Or would he finally lead them to the ambush that he was sure would kill Batman once and for all?

"Let's go." Having made up his mind, Batman didn't hesitate. He swung into the night, heading towards the docks. Nightwing shook his head and followed. He wished Batman had seen fit to share his musings with the rest of the team. Then again, it wasn't as if Batman really considered them a team these days.


She awoke to silence. There wasn't even an echo of Joker's laugh, though she seemed to hear it inside her head. She kept her eyes closed, fearing the pain…and fearing what she'd see once she no longer had the refuge of the dark. The again…as she pried one eye open, she realized that, open or closed, she was still in the dark. Someone had turned out the lights. At least her head seemed to be feeling better.

And she wasn't tied up. She flexed her arm as if to reassure herself that it wasn't just a dream or hallucination induced by one of Joker's noxious gasses. It sure seemed real. She blinked into the darkness, wondering what he was up to this time. She tested her legs next, rather surprised to find that she could stand unhindered.

"Robin?" She hated that her voice came out so…so…quiet. Soft and uncertain…yet it echoed in the darkness. She swallowed, suddenly afraid…a feeling that left her doubly unsettled, as it was one she was unaccustomed to. There was no answer. She shivered, unsure as to why…it wasn't cold.

"Ahh. You're awake. Goody!" She moved instantly into a defensive position, though in the darkness she couldn't even tell where the voice was coming from. "I had so hoped you'd be conscious for the next part of the evening's entertainment!" As he spoke a bright light pierced the darkness…and, she was sure, her eyes. No, really. She could swear the light actually stabbed her in the eyes.

"You… you…what did…" she hated her tongue. Hated that she still experienced difficulty when she was in an emotional state.

"Cat got your tongue? HEEheehee! Or maybe I should say bat? Or perhaps a bird? HAhahahaha heeheeheeheehee!" Batgirl gritted her teeth against the screechy laugh. Her eyes were finally beginning to adjust to the light…she could see now that it was a single spotlight, aimed at her in the still-darkened room.

"Come…come out here where I can see you!" The only reply she received was more of his patented laughter. She had a random thought that if he just figured out how to bottle that laugh he wouldn't need gas or bombs or anything. It was a potent enough weapon by itself.

Batgirl shook her head a bit, trying to clear it. She had to get out of here. Find Tim. If he was…no. She wasn't going down that road. Joker suddenly stopped laughing. She tensed, readying herself for…well, whatever he was planning. Another light flickered on, making her wince. But though the first light was aimed at her, this light was pointed straight at….a door?

She could see a little more of her surroundings now. She was in a large room, with no obvious ways out…well, except for that door. And the walkway on which Joker was standing, nearly thirty feet above her. There were a few…pipes?...sprouting out of the walls. She narrowed her eyes. Pipes? Maybe this wasn't a room. Maybe it was something in the factory for holding or making…well, something.

"HEEheehee! Well, kiddo, I'd just love to stay and chat, but I have an appointment to keep!" He danced a little jig, and for once Batgirl could tell by his movements what he was thinking. He had a trap. Somewhere. For Batman. Of course, Batgirl would never be so disloyal as to think that Joker could defeat Batman…but she allowed herself just the teensiest bit of worry for Batman's well-being. She didn't have long to worry about it, though, as she was too busy worrying about her own predicament.

"All set, Mistah J!" Harley came running up to Joker on the catwalk up above.

"Brilliant! Oh, before I forget," he turned his attention back to Batgirl, "I want to introduce you to my newest minion!" The door with the light aimed at it began to creak open. Batgirl braced herself, wondering if Joker had somehow gotten hold of a monster or metahuman. But as the light revealed the figure within she felt her heart sink. Because it wasn't a monster. It was Tim. Awake, but obviously under Joker's control. And she knew just what it was Joker was planning on having Tim do, too.

"Don't…!" but before she could figure out what she wanted to tell Joker not to do…he did it. Tim kind of shuffled forward. The door swung closed behind him with a clang! and Batgirl tried not to cringe. Not to cringe at the noise, of course, because she was sure she could defeat Tim…if that was, indeed, what Joker had planned. It would take a bit of finesse to manage it without mangling her friend, but she was sure it could be done.

"Have fun, kiddos! Don't do anything I wouldn't do! Heeeehahahaha!" He twisted something on a control panel, she couldn't see what, as he spoke, and then ran out the door, Harley close on his heels. Batgirl eyed Tim, who was approaching her with the obvious aim of fighting her. She could take him. She reached for her utility belt, thinking that if she could just gas him unconscious, it would be the least painful…for all involved. Unfortunately her belt was gone. She glanced up at the catwalk above them. No belt meant no rope and no grapples and no way to get up there to make their escape.

Then the water began to flow out of the pipes and she realized how bleak her situation really was.


To be continued…