Olivia was sleeping soundly in the passenger seat as Ed continued driving slowly along the highway. He had left her to sleep, not wanting to wake her because he could see that she needed rest still. She was exhausted and even the slightest movement seemed to drain her. She was slow on her crutches, trying to put weight onto her leg and get moving again, knowing that she had to keep up with her physiotherapy. But it was tiring her. She was fed up of not being able to do the things that she was able to do before her accident.

As he turned off the highway, he saw that Olivia was tossing and turning where she sat. He didn't wake her, knowing that she needed to rest. She had to sleep, but it seemed that her sleep was plagued with nightmares. Ed knew that they would soon be back in Gotham, but a part of him didn't want to go back there. He much preferred the idea of driving along the coast for as long as possible, but he soon left the coast and headed interstate.

It was gone seven in the evening when Olivia woke up. Peeling her eyes open, she yawned loudly and blinked profusely. Looking around, she saw that they were still on the highway and she wondered where they were, but she didn't entirely care. They were heading back to Gotham and she would get there one way or another. Although, as they headed back to the city, Olivia wondered what would be there for her.

"Are you feeling hungry?" Ed asked her.

"Yeah," Olivia said, feeling he stomach rumble. "Do you think you can find a drive-thru or something? I don't know if I can handle walking into a restaurant right now."

"Of course," Ed agreed with her on that point and she leant further back in the seat, closing her eyes for a few moments again and feeling the sun hit her face. The sun was dipping low and it was particularly warm still.

"Listen, Ed," Olivia said to him and turned her gaze onto him, finding herself wanting to talk to him about her worries, but she didn't know if that was possible. It wasn't like it was before, no matter how much Olivia wanted it to be. "Do you know anything about the Court of Owls?"

"I might have heard something about them," Ed confessed to her with a nod of his head. "But I haven't managed to infiltrate them. I had heard that they are the ones who are running Gotham. Why do you want to know about them? Actually, how do you know about them?"

He kept one hand on the wheel as he turned to look to Olivia and she shrugged her shoulders, moving to toss a hand through her hair. She pushed it behind her shoulders and let it sit there limply. "Jim told me about them," she said, figuring that Ed could do no harm while he was with her. Besides, he might be able to offer her some insight considering she hadn't been in Gotham for quite some time. "You know how I told you about our Uncle Frank being our own family left?"

"I remember," Ed said, pushing his glasses further onto his nose as he overtook a car.

"Well, Jim said that he was a member of the Court of Owls and that he was the one who killed our father," Olivia said and she looked down to her hands in her lap, toying with her fingers for a few seconds as she felt Ed look over her for a brief moment.

"I'm sorry, Liv," Ed said.

Olivia shrugged. "He's been dead a long time and Uncle Frank…he ordered the hit on dad. But that won't bring dad back now…being angry with him is futile too because Uncle Frank is dead. He died and Jim has taken his place in the Court of Owls."

"He was still your father."

Olivia nodded. "I know," she said. "But to be honest, Ed, all I've really known is Jim. I just want him to be safe and I know that he doesn't entirely like me right now, but he is still my brother. Despite everything, he is the only family I really have."

"He doesn't hate you," Ed promised her. "He could never hate you. He is just angry. You know how Jim can be."

Olivia scoffed. "Don't I just."

…

Jim had been making his morning coffee while he spoke to Harvey and told him about the Court of Owls and their plan. Jim had managed to work out that there was some kind of weapon they intended to use to destroy Gotham, but he had no idea where it was or what it was. And so Jim knew that he had to break in and try to find out. The woman who led the Court, Kathryn, was someone he had tried to get close to.

"Her last name is Monroe," Harvey said to Jim down the phone as he held his mug of coffee. "She's quite well renowned in Gotham society."

"I gathered as much," Jim said.

"But you might have another issue," Harvey informed Jim in a gruff voice. "Lee wants me to investigate the death of your Uncle Frank. She seems to think that he's died under suspicious circumstances. I'm trying to keep her at bay, but you know just how Lee can be."

"Like a dog with a bone," Jim commented. "But if you can give me time then I might be able to tell her the truth."

"She seemed like she was in a dark place," Harvey responded.

Jim didn't entirely know what to say to that. He didn't talk to Lee. In fact, he went out of his way to avoid her while he was at work. The only time she did say something to him was about his sister, but even then he could tell that she would rather leave a message or have someone else deliver the news.

"Anything else?" Jim simply asked.

"Yeah, Barnes was transferred from Arkham last night."

"Transferred?"

"Don't worry, we will find out where he was transferred to and we will find him. But, more importantly, have you heard from your sister?" Harvey questioned him.

Jim sighed and remembered the phone call that they'd had the night before. She had called him from some cheap motel and promised him that she was fine. He had demanded for her to get away from Ed and tell him where she was so that he could find her, but she had refused. She told him that she had promised Ed this time and that, despite everything, she knew he would never hurt her.

"She called last night and said she should be in Gotham in a few days," Jim said. "Ed's driving her back. I don't like it Harvey, but she refused to tell me where she was. The idea of him getting his claws back into her…I swear to God…I kept her away from Gotham for her own good."

"I know you did, but she is an adult, Jim," Harvey reminded him of that fact. "She can make up her own mind."

"I wish she couldn't," Jim grunted. "Either way, she promised to call me tonight so at least I know she's safe. I swear I'm going to kill Nygma when I get hold of him."

"I think there might be a line to do that," Harvey retorted. "Listen, Jim, I've got to go. Be careful, alright?"

"Do my best," Jim said and he hung up.

He finished off his coffee before shrugging into his suit jacket over his white shirt and red tie. He picked up the keys to the apartment and left for the door, wondering if he should try and find another place at some stage. He had given up the previous apartment he shared with Olivia, but if she was coming back then he might need a bigger place for her to share with him. That was unless he could persuade her to leave again. Shaking his head, he moved to the door and opened it, heading out and locking up.

"Hello, Jim."

Looking to the side, Jim glanced upwards to the stairs leading from his apartment to the street. He wanted to curse loudly as he locked the door and pocketed his keys.

"Penguin," he said at the sight of the man stood in front of him. He was dressed in a smart black suit. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised you're not dead."

"Yes, I am quite hard to kill," Penguin declared, a taunting edge to his tone as a sudden noise behind Jim attracted his attention. Turning his head over his shoulder, he saw a young woman stood there, holding a flamethrower in her hands. Jim recognised her as Bridgit Pike, one of Strange's manipulated minions. What was she doing with Cobblepot? Jim had no idea and he almost didn't care.

"I take it this isn't a social call," Jim said and looked back to Penguin.

"I'm looking for Ed," Penguin said to him. "And it turns out that you were the last one who saw him."

Jim looked weary, not certain of what he should say to Penguin. He technically didn't know where Ed was, but he had no intention of telling Penguin that he had his suspicions on where he might be.

"He escaped from police custody," Jim said and shrugged his shoulders. "I haven't seen him since."

"Escaped from the great Detective Gordon? I think not," Penguin said firmly with a shake of his head, moving past Jim and walking slowly. Turning around, Jim didn't let Penguin leave his eyesight as he wondered just what it was that Penguin was planning. "You see, I know that Ed was looking into a group known as the Court of Owls and that he was running riot around Gotham…but suddenly…he disappears."

"Well, he's not here," Jim said firmly. "And I don't know where he is, but if I was you then I wouldn't look into the Court of Owls. You don't know how dangerous they can be."

"Oh, I doubt they know how dangerous I can be, but they haven't met me," Oswald declared and he looked Jim in the eye as Jim did his best not to let his anger take hold of him. The man in front of him was still the man who had tried to murder his sister. He wasn't going to sit back and forget that anytime soon, but he didn't need Oswald interfering.

"Listen," Jim snapped. "I don't know where Ed is, but even if I did, I wouldn't tell you because that would be helping you and after what you did to my sister, I will never help you."

Oswald remained silent, lips pursed as Jim stood inches from him and glared straight at him, the anger in his stare palpable.

"You might need my help, Jimbo," Oswald said and he pulled a phone out of his pocket. He placed it in Jim's hand, giving him no option to refuse it. "My number is the only one on that phone. You let me know what happens if you do find Ed."

Jim remained where he was as he watched Oswald and Brigit leave him along and he knew right then that he had another problem on his hands.

…

"I need you to listen to me, Olivia, and I am being serious," Jim said down the phone when his sister called him that night. Olivia was sat on the bed in a more upmarket hotel. Ed was in the bathroom, freshening up and washing his face as he tossed Olivia a burner phone and she called her brother.

"You mean to tell me that this Court of Owls intends to use Tetch's virus to take over Gotham?" Olivia checked with her brother. "How is that even possible?"

"Kathryn has taken Barnes. He is infected with the blood…they can use him to recreate the virus," Jim said to his sister. "And there is another problem as well, Penguin is still alive."

"What?" Olivia's voice was high pitched as she shrieked down the phone and Ed came out of the bathroom dressed only in a white top tucked into his grey trousers with black socks. His hair was wet and he had removed his glasses from his face. He squinted as he looked to Olivia and her gaze met his. "What do you mean Penguin is still alive?"

Ed's jaw tightened at that piece of news. How was he still alive? Ed had shot him. He had watched him fall into the water and he had dealt with him. But clearly he was like a cockroach and refused to die. Ed shook his head, hands on his hips as he walked up and down the length of the bed.

"I mean that he came to me and told me he knows all about the Court of Owls," Jim said to his sister, his voice clearly tired and Olivia wondered if he had actually been sleeping. Knowing Jim, the answer would be no. "He also knows that Ed is still alive and out there somewhere. I said that I didn't know where he was, which technically isn't a lie, but you need to stay away from Gotham for a bit longer."

"And you?" Olivia questioned from her brother, trying to get comfortable against the pillows behind her but struggling to reach behind her to move them. Ed noted her movements and did it for her, taking hold of the pillow and adjusting it to let her slip further down against them, seeing her wince at the movements.

"What about me?"

"You need to be careful, Jim," she warned her brother. "If they are trying to destroy Gotham with the virus then you need to know that you're in danger…and if they find out you're double-crossing them…Christ, Jim, can you not just stop being the hero for one day?"

"You think that's what I'm doing?"

"I think you're risking your life and I can't lose you," Olivia said. "Because you've had so many chances, Jim…and I know you can't stand the sight of me right now and I don't know if we will ever be the same as we have been, but you're still my brother."

There was silence then as Jim let her words sink in. He sniffed as Olivia bit down on her lip and Ed looked out the window of the hotel, peering behind the curtains and thinking about Penguin once more.

"Is that what you think? You think that I hate you?" Jim questioned her.

"Why would you not?"

"Because you're my little sister, Olivia," Jim said to her. "No matter what has happened between us, you're still my sister. I love you, Olivia, and I want you to be safe. That's why I need you to stay away."

Olivia felt tears well up in her eyes and she wiped them away. She kept a hand to her face, pushing her hair behind her ears. "I love you too, Jim," she said to her brother. "Please be careful. Promise me that much."

"I promise," Jim said. "And you stay away from Gotham, Olivia. You have to for the time being and…I hate myself for saying this…but maybe Ed staying away isn't the worst idea either. Is he still with you?"

"Yeah," Olivia said, looking to the back of Ed as he continued to look over the street beneath him. "We're fine. Ironically, you don't need to worry about me."

"That will never not happen," Jim grunted back to her. "But I need to go, Liv. I need to sort this out. I'll call you when I can on this number."

"Alright…be careful, Jim. I love you, alright?"

"Love you too, Liv."

He hung up and Olivia dropped the phone onto the mattress next to her. Her eyes darted over to Ed and she spoke in a soft tone.

"You heard all of that, didn't you?"

"How can he not be dead?" Ed wondered, clumps of wet hair sticking to his forehead as he shrugged his shoulders and turned to look at her. He dropped his hands to his hips and Olivia noted droplets falling from the ends of his hair onto his shoulders. "I shot him. I made sure he was dead."

"Well, he's not dead," Olivia said to Ed.

"I will remedy that," Ed said in a dark tone that she had only heard a handful of times before. Olivia held a hand up firmly and pointed at him.

"No," she said in a warning. "You are going nowhere near him, Ed. In fact, we're not going anywhere near Gotham."

"Excuse me?" Ed asked, folding his arms over his chest.

"You're not going to kill Oswald," Olivia said determinedly. "We're not going back to Gotham because the Court of Owls intends to destroy it and Jim won't leave because he has to be the one to stop them. Jim didn't tell Oswald where you were either, mainly because he has no clue where you are either."

"So what? You think he won't find me? If I don't kill him then he will kill me first," Ed said.

"Why does everything have to end in someone being killed?"

"Because Penguin is dangerous to us," Ed said to her and Olivia wanted to roll her eyes at that. He was only dangerous if they returned to Gotham, but that was exactly what she wanted to avoid. She wanted to avoid going back there for the time being.

"Ed, we are not doing this…I am not doing this…if you want to kill-"

"-Sh," Ed suddenly demanded from Olivia and her brows arched on her forehead.

"Excuse me?" she snapped back at him.

"Sh," Ed hissed again and he saw her open her mouth once more before he rushed towards her and placed a hand over her mouth. She protested against him, but went silent as soon as she heard the noise too. It was footsteps and rustling right outside of their room.

Once Ed was satisfied she would keep quiet, he let go of her mouth and motioned for her to stay where she was. She sat up on the bed, her limbs protesting as she swung her legs off the bed and noted her crutches leant against the wall across from her. Ed had moved then when she had gotten into bed.

Ed headed over the dirty red carpet and picked up the gun he had left on the dressing table. Standing by the chipped wooden door, he peered through the peephole and saw the figures in the corridor. He was about to throw the door open and demand to know what the four masked men were doing, but he had no chance. The room suddenly began to fill up with smoke and Ed looked at it moving underneath the door and he shook his head.

"What the hell is that?" Olivia hissed and Ed shook his head.

"I suspect something to knock us out," Ed said. "Come on, we need to find a way out of here."

"I'm not quick enough," Olivia said to him as she began to cough and Ed moved to the window. It only opened several inches considering they were several storeys high. Cursing, Ed tried to think of what he should do as he glanced back to Olivia, seeing her coughing and spluttering as he knew there was no way out of this.

"Come here," Ed urged from her and he helped her to stand up. Wrapping his arm around her pyjama covered waist, he half carried and dragged her towards the bathroom. Closing the toilet lid, he sat her down there and shut the door to the bathroom. The smoke was coming in through the gap and Ed grabbed a towel from the rail, tossing it in the shower and letting the water fall over it. Once it was wet, he picked it up and stuffed it at the bottom of the door, trying to stop the smoke getting in.

"Who are they?" Olivia asked him as he stayed where he was and picked his glasses up from the vanity in the bathroom.

"I would imagine the Court of Owls," Ed said to her. "I doubt Penguin could hire goons like them."

"I…how do we escape this?" Olivia asked him.

"They're going to come in here," Ed said, adjusting the gun in his grip. "So I need you to stay down."

"What?"

"Get in the bathtub," Ed urged from her. "I'll deal with them."

"Are you crazy?"

"Possibly," Ed said and he helped her up once more. "There's four of them out there and they're going to come in here eventually, but I have enough bullets for each of them. Now, get down and let me take care of this."

"Ed, they could kill you."

"I never knew you cared," Ed drawled, forcing her to sit on the edge of the bathtub.

"Of course I care, you idiot," Olivia said, hitting him against the chest. "But going out there all guns blazing when there are four of them is a stupid idea."

"So what? You'd rather let them take us?"

"Of course not," Olivia snapped back, "but I'd rather try and stay alive for as long as possible."

"And that's what I am trying to do," Ed said and picked her legs up, swinging them into the bathtub. "Now stay down and let me deal with this, alright?"

Olivia was about to complain before she slipped into the tub and Ed made sure she was as hidden as possible. Hiding behind the door, he raised his gun as he heard the room door open and he knew they would be coming in. Keeping his posture steady and straight, he waited for them to open the bathroom door. It jammed on the wet towel behind it and gave Ed chance to fire the first shot at the man coming in. But the man was quick, duking down and reaching for Ed's wrist, grabbing it and twisting it painfully until it was behind his back.

"Ed!" Olivia shouted his name as the man forced Ed to the ground.

The four assailants flooded into the room, each one dressed in a gas mask as the smoke began to enter the bathroom and Olivia tried to pull herself from the tub as Ed's gaze met hers and he had no chance to say anything before the man used the butt of his own gun against him, hitting him around the head and knocking him unconscious.

"Ed!" Olivia roared again as he fell to the ground and she slipped from the tub to the ground, crawling to him as she looked up to the man, once again choking from the smoke.

"Who are you?" she demanded from him, but he said nothing as she slowly collapsed to the ground, her lungs aching and her vision going black as she passed out by Ed's body, her hand gripping onto his tightly.

...

A/N: I'm not sure if anyone is still interested in this, but would love to know what you think!