Be Helpful

"Man, why does he always want to meet so late at night. I'm freezing here!" Jake Peralta shivered atop a roof.

On this cold autumn night, Detective Peralta got a mysterious text from his good friend, Nathan Walker. Nathan was not very liked by the captain of the precinct, and he didn't really work well with the cops of Bludhaven. So, secret rooftop meetings were the way to go for now.

"Shoulda worn more layers than, Peralta," a voice called from behind.

Jumping at the greeting, Jake turned around to see the familiar black armored hero with a blue bird on his chest.

"Jesus, man! Do you really have to do that every time we meet up?" Jake asked.

"Honestly…it's part of the fun," 'Nathan' replied.

Bludhaven's Aerial Avenger extended his hand as a sort of olive branch to apologize for the scare. Jake shook it and accepted the apology.

"So, what have you worked out so far?" Jake asked.

"Turns out our culprit has been participating in all seven robberies. He's the one guy who keeps surviving," Nightwing answered.

"Dammit why didn't I think of that before. It makes sense. Show up, order the others to kill each other, and keep the money for himself."

"That's not all. The three banks hit in Gotham were all mob banks, specifically Falcone banks."

"Ok ok so our perp isn't just randomly robbing to get rich. He's going after Falcone?"

"Not exactly. If he just wanted Falcone, why bleed into Bludhaven," Nightwing explained, "Falcone wasn't the only one with dirty money in those banks. Intel from one of Batman's insiders tells us that the stolen money was joint money. Connected to some sort of criminal ring here in Bludhaven."

"So, then the banks in Bludhaven that were robbed-"

"Were Bludhaven mob banks. Course that organization remains unidentified at the moment."

"Ok cool cool cool. We've got a perp with a vendetta against the Bludhaven mob. Maybe he lost someone close to HFS addiction, y'know before you tore apart that operation."

"There's a new drug on the street too. WHYPHY. Stands for Work Hard? Yes! Play Hard? Yes! Stuff's apparently much more potent than HFS."

"City that never sleeps, I guess."

"In the meantime, we'll have to set a trap."

"But there's only three major banks left in the city. How will we know which one he'll hit?"

"We don't. So, we bug all three."

"Dude, that's gonna take a boatload of paperwork. Warrants, squad assignments. Most of the department's on the corrupt payroll. We'll never get it done."

"Chances are all three banks are mob banks. We just need to find a judge who's willing to sign off on the warrants."

"….I'm guessing that's my end of the bargain," Jake crossed his arms.

"I mean I'm gonna help too. There are a lot of judges to filter," Nightwing shrugged.

"Sigh, fine fine, I'll see what I can do. But how am I gonna run this by Captain Holt?"

"Tell him the intel came from Gordon."

"Ok, what if he asks Gordon?"

"Jim's a friend. He'll play along."

"Alright. I guess that's our plan of action then."

In the distance, a loud siren blared into the night as fire trucks rushed by on the street. Jake whipped his head around to see what was going on.

"Guess you're gonna go-" Jake turned around only to be met with air as Nightwing disappeared once again, "…check that out. GAH every time goddammit!"


The next morning, a sleek black car rolled up to Luigi's Pizzeria followed by two black SUVs. A tall man with tanned skin and grey hair stepped out. He straightened black suit and fixed his black tie. The collar of his red dress shirt was crinkled so he ironed them out with his fingers. Satisfied with his appearance, he entered the restaurant. Not a single customer was present. The owner, presumably, Luigi casually swept the floor. Looking up at the newly appeared man and his small entourage, Luigi nodded his head and pointed to the kitchen. The man nodded back and walked past the double doors. In the back of the kitchen were various men in suits sitting around a table. The bodyguards stood around the room securing the perimeter. A metal detector stood in front of the table. The man walked in after handing one of the gentlemen his pistol. Around the table sat some of Bludhaven's top crime bosses including Michael Gambol of the west side, Eugene Choi of the east, Mark Spencer of the south, and the newly arrived Jimmy "the Butcher" Figgis of the north.

"Now that Jimmy's here, let's get started," Mark announced.

"Apologies for my tardiness," Jimmy stated, "I had a personal matter to attend to."

"Is this it? The big man ain't comin'?" Eugene asked.

"Seems kinda odd. A meeting of this magnitude I'd assume would be worth the attention of the boss," Michael scoffed.

"The big man comes when the big man comes," Jimmy said with finality.

"Let's move on," Mark tried to defuse, "Bring it in boys."

Two Chinese men entered and placed a large TV onto the table. After a couple of seconds, the screen turned on with some static before the face of a Chinese man appeared.

"What's this?!" Eugene growled, "Even you think you're too good to show up in person?"

"This business we are in is a dangerous one," the man in the TV spoke, "I am simply using my means of survival. With the recent robberies of over 160 million dollars across four banks just in Bludhaven, the police are bound to uncover my identity as your bookkeeper. Thanks to our sources in the BPD, we know that the cops not on our payroll are looking to gain warrants in our remaining banks. Luckily, I have moved the money to a singular secure location."

"Where, Lau?" Michael asked.

"Only I will know. Call it insurance in case any one of you decides to turn coat."

"You saying you don't trust us you kung pao prick!" Michael pressed on.

"Doesn't matter what I think," Lau answered smugly, "The big man doesn't trust any of you. I'm simply acting on his orders."

"And where the hell are you going now anyway?" Eugene asked.

"Hong Kong. The Chinese won't extradite one of their own. I'll be safe over here from the American cops. Rest assured; your money is safe."

"Ha ha ha," a cold deadpanned laugh made itself known in the back of the kitchen.

Quickly all the guards pulled out their pistols and pointed to the corner. From the darkness, a man in a dark purple suit and green vest walked out. His hair a disheveled vomit green, his face powdered white with messy make-up, his eyes encircled with smeared black eyeliner, and scars traveled ear to ear across his lips covered in faded red lipstick.

"And I thought my jokes were bad," the man claiming to be 'Joker' grinned.

"Gimme one good reason why I shouldn't have my boy here rip your goddamn head off?" Michael growled.

"Wanna see a magic trick?" 'Joker' asked.

He placed a pencil on the corner of the table and waved his hands.

"I'm gonna make this pencil disappear right into your eyes," he announced.

One of Michael's thugs got annoyed and approached 'Joker'. With fast reflexes, 'Joker' grabbed the thug's neck and slammed his face into the table jamming the pencil right into his eye.

"Ba da! It's gone!" 'Joker' smiled as he sat down.

"Are we really gonna entertain this clown in a cheap suit?" Eugene asked.

"Uh hehe the suit wasn't cheap. You should know. You bought it," 'Joker' retorted.

Angered, Michael stood up only to be assuaged by Jimmy.

"Sit down," Jimmy ordered, "Man's got enough balls to walk into a room full of armed men ready to kill him in a blink of an eye. Least we can do is hear him out."

"I like this guy," 'Joker' licked his lips and gestured to Jimmy.

Michael calmly sat down as all the other bodyguards lowered their weapons. 'Joker' looked scanned around the room and nodded his head. Cracking his neck and knuckles, he began his soliloquy.

"Why don't we look back on oh just about a year or so? Bludhaven was an easy, simple marketplace for you all. You each were in charge of a region. HFS was flowing smoothly in and out of the city. Kids, college students, grandmas, they all bought the stuff. Most importantly, not a single cop batted an eye. Anyone stupid enough to get caught by one of those self-righteous officers were let go thanks to one of your lawyers or corrupt judges. Life was simple, breezy even. But then, something happened. Someone was dumb enough to try and expand over to Gotham City, home of the capes."

At that comment, everyone looked over to Michael Gambol who hid his face in embarrassment.

"And why was that a bad move?" 'Joker' continued, "Because Gotham is fucking teeming with capes! Batman, Batgirl, Robin, hell fucking Wonder Woman has been seen flying in and out of that cesspool! As such, your greed attracted the attention of one of those capes. You all and your high and mighty hubris let a teenager wreck your entire operation in a week three years ago! What happened? You let your balls drop off or something?"

"You got a point you bastard?" Mark asked.

"If you'll let me finish," 'Joker' held up a finger, "Long story short, you all have attracted your own home-grown cape. You have your little group therapy sessions here in a pizza place in broad daylight because none of you want to risk running into the so-called Aerial Avenger. And that's the problem. Nightwing has shown Bludhaven your true colors. The ninety-ninth precinct? Their arrest numbers of skyrocketed. They're making the other precincts look so bad that suddenly all the cops are trying to be heroes too. Say, ninety-ninth? That's your turf isn't it, Butcher?"

"Get to your point a little quicker, freak," Jimmy scowled.

"You bozos have let Nightwing grow and fester into a symbol. What you boys need to do is cut down the symbol. It's simple really. We kill Nightwing.

The men all looked at each other. Some looked intrigued by the proposition. Others rolled their eyes and scowled not wanting to partake in such an endeavor.

"And you think you can do it?" Eugene asked.

"I'm the best chance you got. Cuz uh the TV's plan over there? Yea that's gonna fail spectacularly. Hong Kong? You think Nightwing won't follow you to Hong Kong? He's gonna drag you by your nice, tailored suit collar, bring you right back here to American soil, and make you squeal. I know a squealer when I see one."

"If killing Nightwing is so simple, why haven't you done it already?" Jimmy asked.

"And here I thought you people were businessmen. If you're good at something, never do it for free."

"How much?" Mark asked.

"…..I want half."

*BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA*

The entire room erupted in laughter. Men pounded the table and cackled at the 'Joker's' ridiculous price. Calmly 'Joker' leaned against his chair and waited for all the commotion to die down.

"You're crazy!" Michael spat in 'Joker's' face.

"I'm not," he coldly replied, "No, I'm not. If we don't deal with this soon, little uh Gambol here won't be able to get a nickel for his grandma."

*SLAM*

"ENOUGH FROM THE CLOWN!" Michael pounded his fist on the table.

As Michael got up and approached 'Joker', the imposter clown backed away and opened his suit jacket revealing multiple grenades. All the pins were attached to a single wire secured on his thumb.

"Let's not blow this out of proportion, hmm?" 'Joker' warned.

Immediately, Michael and all the other criminals backed away to the other side of the room.

"You think you can just steal from us and walk away?" Michael growled.

"…..Pretty much yea!" 'Joker' answered.

"I'm putting the word out. 500 grand dead. A million alive, so I can teach this clown some manners."

"Welp. Ok so Gambol is out. But the rest of you," 'Joker' pointed to the remaining bosses, "give me a call when you wanna deal with this bird infestation seriously. Here's my card and I'll be one my way."

'Joker' placed a joker card onto the table. Slowly, he backed out of the kitchen still waving around his hand that was attached to the grenades in case anyone tried any funny business. Kicking open the back door, 'Joker' passed the threshold and disappeared.


"Dick, baby, what have I told you about splurging on fancy restaurants?" Zatanna scolded her boyfriend as they sat down at their table.

"That I should only do it for special occasions?" he replied cheekily.

"So why are we here at Carte Blanche?"

"Because I love my beautiful girlfriend?"

Zatanna rolled her eyes but still blushed a slight tinge of pink. How could he make such a corny line so smooth? She reached over to take his hand and give a little squeeze.

"Why are we really here, Dick?"

"I dunno. Just thought we could have a relaxing night out. This latest case has me spinning a bit and I know you've hit a bit of a creativity block coming up with new acts for your show. A night on the town could take our minds off things for a bit," he answered smiling sincerely.

"You're sweet."

"I try."

"My goodness, Zatanna Zatara in the flesh!" a smooth deep voice called out.

Both Dick and Zee turned their head to see a tall lanky gentleman in a bright white suit with matching black tie and dress shirt. His long blonde hair silkily flowed down his head just barely missing his shoulders. Wrapped around his arm was a blonde woman wearing a matching white dress.

"Uhhh hello," Zatanna awkwardly greeted.

"Madam, it is an absolute delight to meet you. I'm such a huge fan," the man bowed and kissed the top of her hand.

"Oh wow, thank you Mister uh?" she asked.

"Desmond. Roland Desmond," Mr. Desmond answered, "Oh how rude of me. Good evening to you as well, Mr. Grayson. Pardon, Detective Grayson."

"Hi to you as well Mr. Desmond," Dick answered.

"This is my date for the evening, Svetlana. She is one of the principal dancers for the Russian ballet in town," Roland gestured to the woman on his arm.

"Oh how fun!" Zee commented.

"Yes. We in the ballet are big fans, Ms. Zatara! Big big fans!" Svetlana gushed.

"Are you enjoying your evening here?" Roland asked.

"Uhh yea, we're doing pretty well," Dick answered.

"May we join you? It's not every day we get to meet such astonishing celebrities. We can put a couple of tables together," Roland requested.

"Uhhhh I'm not sure they'll let us do that," Zatanna said looking around for staff.

"Nonsense…..I own the place," Roland smirked and snapped his fingers gesturing for the staff to bring over an extra table.

Awkwardly, Dick and Zee sent glances to each other and used their special sign language.

Dick: Uhhhh this is awkward.

Zee: Tell me about it! Who is this dude?

Dick: So much for a night out together…

"So uh, Mr. Desmond," Zatanna began.

"Please, Zatanna. Call me Roland."

"Ok, um Roland, sir, may I ask what you do for a living?"

"Of course, miss. Though I'm surprised you and Detective Grayson here haven't heard of me. I am the owner and CEO of the Stratton Oakmont Corporation."

"Oh wait, I know that company! You deal in real estate, right?" Dick realized.

"We have our hand in a lot of things," Roland replied, "Real estate, construction, investments. A multitude of business dealings. However, lately I'm considering dipping into politics."

"Politics?"

"Yes. Many people may not know this, but I have a law degree in criminology. I've lived in this town of Bludhaven nearly all my life. It pains me to see her fall so far from grace. As such, I have decided to run for the office of District Attorney."

"Really now?" Dick said suddenly intrigued.

"Absolutely. You all are the first to hear of this announcement. I was going to hold a press conference in the morning," Roland stated proudly, "I remember when I was a young boy. My brother and I used to play in the lush green park. Our parents let us wander and explore the city because there was nothing to worry about. I don't even recall locking our doors. Now with all this corruption and shady dealings, this city has become a shell of itself."

"I agree with Roland," Svetlana added, "Dick, Zatanna how long you have been dating?"

"Umm nearly seven years now," Zatanna answered smiling.

"And yet you pick here of all places to settle? In Bludhaven? How you raise children here?" the Russian pressed on.

Zatanna blushed a little at the thought of her and Dick even having children.

"I mean it's not all bad. There are good people here too," Dick intervened.

"And now you have this crazy man jumping from rooftop to rooftop," Svetlana continued.

"Now now, my dear. I think Bludhaven should be proud of an ordinary citizen standing up for what's right. He inspired me to run for office after all," Roland added.

"Yes, but you are to be elected official with a face. This uhhh Nightwing is vigilante hiding behind mask. Gotham has Batman but one could say Batman is public figure with Justice League. What say you, Detective?" she asked looking over to Dick.

"Uhh well I mean, masked vigilante? The guy definitely has a few screws loose in his head. Who appointed him as judge and jury?" Dick lied as easily as he breathed.

Slyly, Zatanna crinkled her nose ever so slightly that only Dick noticed and took as a signal that he was overplaying his part just a tad.

"I'd like to this we appointed our new Aerial Avenger," Roland continued the conversation, "We all stood by and let dirty cops and mobsters run our city. I honestly applaud Nightwing and hope to meet him some day."


After dinner, Dick and Zee decided to take a stroll through the park not wanting to waste the beautiful evening moonlight. With her arm looped around his, Zatanna walked in step with her boyfriend as he looked off deep in thought.

"Well, I gotta admit it was kinda rude of him to interrupt our date night," Zatanna mused.

"Hmmm," he grunted.

"Although he seemed to support Nightwing pretty fervently. It'd be nice to have a big city official on our side."

"Hmmm."

"I don't really know how I feel about his request for me to perform at his fundraising gala. I feel like it would mean I endorse him, and I don't really know him all that well."

"Hmmm."

"Oh and I'm pregnant," she casually threw out.

"Hmmm….WAIT WHAT!?" he snapped out of his trance to look at her with wide eyes.

"Oh so you are listening?" she gave him a look.

"Sorry sorry. I just….the name Desmond. It just sounds so familiar. I can't put my finger on it just quite."

"Well I mean, he is the CEO of Stratton Oakmont. Maybe you've heard his name thrown around at a Wayne gala or something."

"No that's not it. Desmond Desmond Desmond."

"Gosh the sky is so pretty tonight. Won't be long until we get a full moon."

"Moon…."

He looked up into the sky all suddenly memories of that fateful summer seven years ago flooded his mind. Ash and rubble surrounded the area. A strong teenager in white flipped over a boulder revealing a red head in yellow, an Atlantean in red, and a young acrobat in a cape.

See? The moon!

No wait before that. Arms clasped in shackles. Trapped inside a containment tube. Superboy in white tearing the door off. Scientists all in shock. Scientists. One particular scientist.

Project Blockbuster will give me the power to restore order to Cadmus!

"Blockbuster," Dick said aloud.

"Huh?" Zee asked.

"Desmond…Blockbuster. Roland said he had a brother. His brother has to be Mark Desmond, a Cadmus scientist!"

"Wait what?"

"Cadmus! When Kaldur, Wally, and I freed Conner from Cadmus, one of the lead scientists was Mark Desmond. That's where I've heard the name before!"

"Well I mean to call them brothers is a stretch. Could be a coincidence."

"Maybe. But I dunno. I get a weird vibe from him."

"Dick, even if they are brothers, there's no guarantee Roland is as shady as Mark was."

"Even so, if Roland wins the DA job, I'd like to get a better look at who I'd most likely be working with."

"In that case, I'll accept his offer to perform at his fundraiser."

"Zee? What? No, don't do that?"

"Why not? What better way to get a closer look at the guy than to participate in his event?"

"But I don't want to put your reputation on the line if he turns out to be bad," Dick stopped their walking and held her hand.

"Baby, it's fine. I've learned to trust your bat-paranoia. If you think there's something amiss, then I'd support you. Besides, Aly would probably figure out a way to spin me out of all the drama."

"Ok. But only if you're fine with performing at the event."

"Anything to help you out."

She leaned closer to peck him on the lips as his phone vibrated signaling a text message.

Peralta: Nathan, Need 2 meet NOW. 911

"Nathan? Who's Nathan?" Zee asked.

"Uhhh Nathan Walker. It's an alias I came up with for Peralta to hide behind in case anyone asked who he was talking to," Dick answered.

"Nathan…..Walker? N? W? Night? Wing?...Seriously!?" Zee looked at him skeptically.

"I mean, it works, doesn't it?" he shrugged.

"I-I don't even know how to comment," she rolled her eyes, "At any rate, if he had to text 'now' in all caps and send a 911, it has to be urgent."

"Yea but-"

"Go. I'll be fine. Just do your thing, Mr. Walker."

"I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you," he leaned in to kiss her.

"Just to make sure you come home at a reasonable time," she pulled him in close to whisper in his ear, "I'm wearing the little skimpy red one right now. Don't keep me waiting."

She kissed his cheek as the tips of his ears started to burn. Winking, Zee began walking away with a little sway in her hips. Dick stood around looking dumbfounded and staring at said swaying hips. After a few seconds, he shook his head back to reality and realized he still needed a little help.

"Hey wait! Could you at least help me get changed!?"


Peralta stood on the familiar rooftop vigorously tapping his foot. He looked at his watch noting that it was getting close to midnight. When he looked up, his good buddy Nathan Walker was standing right in front of him with his arms crossed.

"MOTHER FLIPPER!?" Jake yelled jumping backwards, "I didn't even hear you!?"

"That's the idea," Nightwing smirked, "I thought you hated our rooftop meetings."

"No! I hate it when you keep me waiting in the cold. But that's not the point. Sigh. They knew we were coming."

"Hmm?"

"The mob. They knew we were coming. We got the warrants thanks to Judge Elena Moreno, but when we got there, the money was gone. Across three banks, 150 million dollars vanished. Poof."

"How? What happened?"

"I don't know! I talked to Holt, and we mobilized everyone. Got Moreno onboard. Then no money. At least this Joker creep won't be robbing any more banks. But how did this get leaked!?"

"There's a mole in the precinct. There has to be."

"Yea I agree, but who? I've worked there for years. I know the detective squad like a family. Hitchcock and Scully are too dumb to pull this off. Charles has a heart of gold. Rosa's a little rough around the edges but I went to the academy with her. She loves justice just as much as we do. Amy is too much of a stickler to the rules. She'd never break them. Sarge is a family man. He cares more about his wife and kids than anything. He's out. That just leaves….Grayson and Holt."

"Grayson is clean," Nightwing answered with finality.

"How can you be sure?"

"Grayson has a trust fund with Bruce Wayne. Why would he get involved with the mob?"

"Yea but I dunno. Maybe there's motive there? Rich boy got into an argument with hard core dad? Joined the mob as a rebel?"

"Then joined the police force to fight said mob? Too roundabout. Besides, his girlfriend would kill him if he joined the mob."

"You seem to know a lot about Grayson."

"He's from Gotham. I might've saved his ass a few times when I worked there," Nightwing shrugged.

"I guess. Oddly I'm gonna have to rule out Holt too. He's too much of an outsider."

"Agreed. Plus, anyone Jim recommends should always get the benefit of the doubt. Precinct is big too. Could be any one of the working officers."

"Gahh this is giving me a headache. Mob money's gone. Wannabe Joker is still on the loose. Mole in the precinct. God this used to be so much simpler."

"The night is darkest just before the dawn."

"Yea well this is looking like a crummy night so far."

"Were you able to find anything from those three banks."

"I have copies of withdrawals over the past two weeks. No one wants to sift through them though. Most people think the case is a dead end."

"I'll do it."

"Dude, there's gotta be like hundreds of pages to go through. You'd need like a supercomputer to scan through all those accounts."

At that last comment, Nightwing just smirked.

"Ok yea well screw you and your fancy toys," Peralta rolled his eyes as he handed the file over to Nightwing.

"Thanks. I'll look at this quickly and let you know when I find something."

As the pair shook hands, an air of awkwardness fell between them as Peralta crossed his arms and stared right into the whites of Nightwing's mask. The vigilante tilted his head in confusion as Jake continued to stubbornly and staunchly kept eye contact.

"Uhhh is there anything else I can help you with, Peralta?" Nightwing asked.

"Nope. All good here," Jake smiled.

"Ok. I'll just be going then."

"Yea cool cool cool. You do that."

Testing a theory, Nightwing stepped to the left. Jake followed with his head. Nightwing stepped to the right. Jake turned his head again. Nightwing backed up then walked forward again. Jake kept his eyes right on him.

"Ok, man. What are you doing?" Nightwing finally asked.

"I want to see you leave. I'm not getting duped midsentence again. I'm gonna stand here and watch you jump off the building or fly into the sky or teleport into the darkness or whatever you do. I am not getting got this time around!"

Nightwing put his hands on his waist and rolled his eyes. The two engaged in a bit of a staring contest waiting to see who would break first. Not wanting to waste any more time, Nightwing opted to play dirty.

"LOOK OVER THERE," the masked man yelled, "BRUCE WILLIS!"

"What? WHERE!?" Jake whipped his head around to find the star of his favorite action/Christmas movie, "Hey wait, Bruce Willis isn't…..OH COME ON!?"

Like magic, Jake turned around to an empty space as Nightwing once again vanished.

"Stupid, Peralta. How the hell did you fall for that one!?"


Back at the Arconia, Zatanna sprawled out on the couch with Pocus sleeping peacefully on her belly. She had been napping soundly waiting for her beau to climb into the apartment and carry her to bed. Instead, here she was still laying on the couch as "The Great British Bake-Off" played in the background on the TV. Stirring, she rubbed her eyes and gently placed Pocus to the side. She picked up her phone and saw that it was ten minutes till 3am. Seeing that she was still on the couch, Zatanna quickly deduced that Dick hadn't come home yet. Rolling her eyes, she went to the closet and pulled out one of his thick warm hoodies. After tucking Pocus into his little bed, she left the apartment and headed towards Nightwing HQ.

At the warehouse now dubbed "The Nest" or something (name pending), Dick sat at the computer letting the program scroll through all withdrawals made at the three banks in the past two weeks. To the side was a mug half full of now cold coffee and a plate with a mostly eaten salmon bagel. He had taken most of his armor off so now he just sat around in an undershirt and a pair of sweatpants. A camera alert appeared on the screen showing his beautiful and probably annoyed girlfriend approaching the entrance.

"One thing I do take solace in dating a bat such as yourself," she began as she entered, "is that I can be assured that you're not out cheating with another woman. Instead, you're cheating on me with work."

"Sorry, Zee. Peralta gave me some new developments on this Joker mob case. We think there's a mole in the precinct."

"Oh not this whole mole thing again."

"I hate it too. But someone definitely leaked that we were pursuing warrants on these banks. Now the money's gone. He gave me a list of withdrawals made in the past two weeks but it's a lot to dig through."

Understanding that he wouldn't be moving any time soon, she walked over to his rolling chair and tugged slightly.

"Huh? Zee?" he looked up as she pulled him away from the desk.

Walking around to the front, she sat in his lap and then scooted them closer to the keyboard. Curling her legs up, she leaned back into his chest and settled in.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Two eyes are better than one. Besides, you must be tired. Full shift, date night, and now this? You might've missed something."

"Ok. Thank you."

He leaned forward and rested his chin on her shoulder. His left arm wrapped around her waist holding her tightly. Her own hands were resting on the keyboard while his right hand held the computer mouse. For a while, they both stared at the computer screen as account numbers, names, and withdrawal amounts rolled through the screen. Lack of sleep was starting to get to Dick as he gradually lowered his head and buried his nose into her neck.

"I'VE GOT IT!" she yelled jolting him awake.

"Huh what?" he groggily shook the sleep off.

"Look! Here!" she pointed out excitedly, "These three different LLC's withdrew money at the same time across the three banks."

"Sloan International, Red Dragon Holdings, Sun Spirit Limited. You're right! They all withdrew the same amount too!" Dick realized, "Computer, cross reference these three LLC's."

As the computer analyzed the new findings, it revealed that all three shell companies were owned by one singular company.

"Lau Security Investments," Zatanna read the screen.

"That's it! That's our guy! He's the one who pulled out all the mob money!" Dick exclaimed with joy, "Andrew Lau, their CEO has to be the mob's bookkeeper of some sort. Yes! Finally, a lead!"

"Says here that their headquarters is in Hong Kong."

"Then I guess I'm going to Hong Kong. You're the best, Zee. God, I love you!" he smiled kissing her.

She got up to stretch as he texted the new findings to Peralta instructing him to get a new warrant for when Lau returned to American soil.

"Great! Now that that's done, we can go-" she turned around to see him still at the computer, "-home?"

Not really hearing her, Dick pulled up blueprints of the Lau Security Investments building and began planning his assault strategy. Rubbing her forehead a bit, she pulled her hair back into a pony tail and held it together with a rubber band she found on the desk. Settling in once again in his lap, she rested her hand on the computer mouse with his.

"Personally, Dick, I think you should fly in from the outside and enter through this floor…"

AN: As I'm writing this, I'm realizing that certain themes and setup I'm gonna have to cut if I don't wanna copy-pasta the movie haha. In theory things should work out as I make this Chalant adaptation. As we move closer to season 2, things will admittedly get a little darker. Also just because I'm too lazy to think a few of these through, I'm just gonna gloss over certain additions to the team so that season 2 can get set up. (I mean the actualy show runners did that too sorta with the time jump haha). Don't worry, we're still gonna have our Chalant moments, promise! Hope yall enjoy the read. Pls leave a review if you have any suggestions!