I'm waiting in Bruce's office for Dick to arrive an hour after sunset.

"It suits you." I spin around to face Bruce. I hadn't noticed him leaning in the doorway; I'd been too busy snooping at the photos on his bookshelf.

"What?" I ask, confused and feeling a little guilty at being caught prying.

"Your batsuit."

"Barbara's batsuit." I correct him.

"Yours." He insists. "You look good."

"I feel good," I admit. "I always wanted to be Batman when I grew up," I say. "I guess this is about as close as I'm going to get." Bruce smiles, his eyes crinkling up at the corners, and I smile back, stomach jumping.

"Does the cowl pinch?" He asks, gesturing to my head. "Barbara always complained that it wound pinch under her eyes."

"Kind of. I thought maybe I had it fastened too tight." I reply, adjusting it a little.

"Let me." He walks over and I spin around, giving him access to the back of my cowl. I feel him adjust the fastenings. "Alright, turn around." I turn back to face him. He stands only inches away from me, hands on my face, still correcting my mask. "Better?"

"Yeah." My voice catches. He's so close I can feel his body heat radiating off him. His closeness is making me think crazy things. Like how nice his eyes are. Warm and kind. I bite my lip, drawing those warm eyes to my lips. My breath catches in my throat. I know what's about to happen, and I don't move. Bruce's eyes flick back up to meet mine, one hand still caressing my face.

He kisses me, and I don't protest. I let him pull me closer, into the kiss. I let him slip one hand down to rest on my lower back, and I move my arms around his shoulders. I let him slip off my mask and toss it onto the desk behind me. I lose myself in the feeling.
Then we hear someone thundering up the stairs.
Bruce and I break apart, slightly out of breath. I have just enough time to smooth down my hair before Dick enters the room.
"New girl! Come on, you don't even have your mask on yet. Get a move on." He urges. "Hey, Bruce." He adds as an afterthought. I grab my mask off the desk behind me and sidestep around Bruce.
"I'm ready," I announce, slipping my mask back on. It does fit better now. "Let's go."

¿?

I crouch on the rooftop next to Nightwing, overlooking the alley below.

"Out this alley is the only other exit. It's either here or the front door." I say confidently. "We can cover them easy."

"While I like your confidence, slow your roll, new girl." Dick shakes his head. "Sionis didn't get to where he is today by leaving things to chance. His back up plans have back up plans."

"Sounds like someone else we know," I mutter, my thoughts turning to Bruce, not for the first time since leaving the manor.

"Ha! No kidding." Dick stood up tall, cracking his neck. "We've done all we can here. Keep your eyes peeled tomorrow night for any crafty escapes but I think we'll be okay. Let's go, I'll drop you off at the Manor."

I shake my head at him. "Thanks but I'm still too keyed up to go home yet." Home? When did I start calling Wayne Manor home? "I think I might patrol a bit. You know, save some damsels in distress or something."

"Your choice new girl. Don't bite off more than you can chew, or start any fights with Gotham's Most Wanted!" He calls, darting over the rooftops.

I leap easily from one rooftop to the next. As much of a drill sergeant Bruce is when it comes to training, I can't deny it pays off.

And now I'm thinking about Bruce again.

I balance on a drainpipe, frowning. The kiss has confused me. I hadn't thought about Bruce in that way, not really, until tonight. And I can't deny that it would be good. And easy. Bruce is the good guy, the hero the girl is supposed to fall for. I crouch on the ledge of the building I'm on, looking down at the busy intersection below. Even at this time of night, well past midnight, Gotham is still bustling. I try to stay alert but my thoughts are drifting too much. The kiss was… nice. And full of possibility.

But Edward is still in the front of my mind. For every positive thought I have about Bruce, one ringing truth is still inescapable. He's just not Edward. And I miss him suddenly. I miss him so much I can almost believe he's here, can almost smell his stupid cologne.

"Well, don't you just look like the perfect little hero; cape fluttering in the wind." Oh man, I wasn't imagining the cologne. I stand and turn to face Riddler. I'm embarrassed I didn't hear him approach. "I guess there's no point asking what you've been up to the last few weeks." He says, looking pointedly at my batsuit.

"Not really." I answer. "So, what's a guy like you doing in a place like this?" I quip, trying to keep the conversation light. It's the first time I've seen him in weeks, and I don't want to argue.

"Where else would I be if I were looking for you?" He saunters slowly towards me.

"You've been looking for me? Why?" At least my voice isn't as shaky as I feel. He stops directly in front of me, silent for a moment. I look back at him, not wanting to break the quiet. Eventually, he speaks.

"Belle," He breathes and pulls me by my wrists towards him into a bone-crushing embrace. He kisses me like the last few weeks have affected him just as much as me, like we're somehow running out of time. He steers us back, further onto the roof until I come into contact with a large air conditioning unit. Without breaking the kiss, Edward grabs my hips and lifts me until I'm sitting on the unit. I take advantage of the new position and wrap my legs around him, pulling him even closer.

Riddler makes a disgruntled sound and draws back for a moment. Before I can complain he tears off my mask and tosses it to the ground beside us. He kisses down my jaw and neck before eventually moving back up to my mouth. I'm grasping at his shoulders in a way that I know means my nails will leave marks on his skin.

We finally pull apart to breathe, his forehead resting against mine, both of us trying to catch our breath.

"I missed you too," I say, making him chuckle. "Is that why you wanted to find me?" I ask, eyebrow raised.

"Not the only reason." He says, kissing me again. Just as we start to get carried away, he steps back, leaving me sitting on the air conditioning unit. "I found you because I have a warning. While you're out here, playing dress-up with Batman, you have enemies you aren't even aware of."

"Enemies like who?" I ask, sliding off the air conditioning onto my feet. I pick up my mask and dust it off.

"Everyone you've ever annoyed, really." Riddler glares, and I shrug. Annoying people is my talent. "Tetch for starters, and Zsasz has a special spot picked out for your mark. Mine too, I'm told." He mentions, almost like an afterthought.

"This is because of what we did, isn't it? Back in my world, I mean." I put my mask back on, attempting to make myself look braver than I feel.

Riddler looks grim. "That would be a safe assumption. Our biggest problem though, is Crane and Quinn."

"Well, Crane already took a shot at me, right? The guy is ninety per cent Halloween costume, he doesn't scare me." This is a downright lie, and we both know it.

"While Crane and Quinn on their own are hardly threats, it appears they've joined forces."

"What?" I exclaim. "Scarecrow is working with Harley? I didn't think those two were friendly."

"Apparently they've found a common cause." Riddler walks back towards me and takes my mask off again. I'm starting to think he doesn't like it. "You need to be careful." He says, holding my gaze, his face open. "Come back with me." The please goes unsaid.

"Edward, I…" This is hard to say. "I can't. Not yet." His expression closes down immediately. "I want to, trust me, I want to. But I'm kind of in the middle of something." His usual sneer returns to his face.

"In the middle of something. With Batman?" He asks, voice full of venom.

"Yes, but that's not what this is about. It's about me helping the city!" I insist. "I've stopped one arms deal already, and I'm about to help stop another."

"And make more enemies?" Riddler explodes. "Are you trying to get yourself killed faster? I tell you that half of the rogues are out for your blood, and you plan on pissing off a few more?"

"If it stops guns flooding the streets of Gotham, then yeah, I plan on making some enemies." I retort, and Riddler turns away in disgust.

"You sound just like him." He says. Once I would have been proud to sound like Batman, but the way Riddler says it makes it sound like an insult.

Instantly I'm exhausted. I just want to crawl into bed, block out the world and stop thinking so much. "Edward." I sigh and walk towards him. I put my hand to his face and he leans into my touch almost absently. I lean in slowly, giving him time to pull away if he's really mad. He doesn't. I kiss him softly before pulling away. "Edward, I care about you. A lot. But we can't keep having this fight over and over. And I can take care of myself, despite what everyone else seems to think."

Riddler sighs, and I can now see he looks almost as exhausted as I feel. "I know you can. But if you need me, you know how to find me." He presses something into my hand. I look down to see I'm holding a key. "Lacey Towers. It's a safe place, if you need it." He lets me go, and I watch him walk away towards the fire escape.

¿?

The next morning I'm standing in the kitchen waiting for Bruce to wake up and come for coffee. It had been so late when I finally got home the rest of the Manor had been asleep and my mind was so scrambled I figured it would be easier to have this conversation this morning.
I'm downing my second cup of coffee when Bruce finally comes into the kitchen.

"You're up early." He observes, pouring himself a cup of coffee from the machine on the counter.

"You're not." I retort. "Did Batman sleep in?"

"I've been up for a few hours. What time did you get in? I didn't hear you." He walks over and sits next to me at the counter.

"Pretty late. And I have news actually." I try to keep my tone casual, but Bruce looks at me worriedly.

"What happened? Was there trouble?"

"Not exactly. Dick and I checked out Sionis's drop point. I think we'll have the place pretty well covered tonight." I'm stalling and I know it. I'm not looking forward to the next part of the conversation. "Dick went home, but I stayed out patrolling for a while longer."

"Why do I not smell pancakes?" Dick asked loudly, walking into the kitchen. "Alf always made pancakes when I lived here."

"But you don't live here anymore," Bruce replies as Dick helps himself to coffee and sits up on the kitchen counter. "What are you doing here so early?"

"Mostly I came in search of pancakes. But also to check new girl got home safe." At my look, he exclaims, "What? Gotham is a dangerous city!"

"At this point, I think I can take care of myself." I poke my tongue out at him, very maturely.

"Belle was just giving me a rundown on your night. You don't think we'll have any trouble tonight?" Bruce asked, refreshing his cup and mine.

"No accounting for bad luck, but we should be okay."

Dick and Bruce start to change the subject, so I gather my courage. "Something else happened last night," I announce, shutting them both up. "Apparently I am public enemy number one with the rogues at the moment. So that might be a problem."

"How do you know that?" Dick asks.

"Also Scarecrow and Harley Quinn are hanging out, making evil plans together," I add.

"How do you know that?" Bruce repeats, though judging by his face, he can guess the answer.

"And I ran into Riddler." I finish lamely. "It wasn't on purpose! He found me, he warned me about the other rogues, we fought and he left." All of us are silent for a beat.

"Damn it, New Girl, didn't I tell you not to get into any fights with rogues?"

I look away from Bruce's intense glare to grin slightly at Dick. I can see his comment for what it is- trying to ease the tension building between Bruce and me.

"Belle, go wait in the study. I'll be with you soon." Bruce says, his voice deceptively calm.

"Bruce…" Dick cautions but is silenced with a glare.

"Now, Belle." He says, and I scoot out of the kitchen towards the study. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to enjoy this conversation. I can only hope Dick can talk Bruce into calming down before he meets me in the study.

Far too soon, Bruce walks into the study and shuts the door behind him. His poker face gives nothing away. I stand there in the middle of the room, leaning against the desk, feeling like a naughty school kid about to be seen by the principal.

"I didn't go looking for him," I say after a beat of silence. I'm looking at his feet because I can't make myself meet his gaze. "I know that was a condition of staying here. But I didn't look for him."

"I know."

"And I haven't called him or spoken to him at all since I got here," I add to my defence.

"I know." He says again. I sigh.

"I can feel the disappointment coming off you from here." I finally raise my eyes to meet his. I notice he's not denying he's disappointed. He walks towards me and takes a seat behind the desk. I face him, still waiting for his reaction.

"You said Crane found you when you first got to Gotham?" He asks, face still blank.

"Um, yes?" I'm confused with this line of questioning. There is much less yelling in this conversation then I was expecting.

"Tell me everything you remember about it. Anything he said, anything you noticed about where you were kept."

Hesitantly, I reply. I go through every detail I can recall. Bruce asks a few questions, asking for specifics but mostly he just listens. I finish my recount and drop in the chair opposite the desk.

"Hey, Bruce, not that I'm upset exactly, but I figured there would be more yelling on your part. You know, about the meeting Riddler thing." There's a long pause.

"You were right." He finally says.

"I generally am." I quip. "What about in particular?"

"You need to make your own mistakes." He says, and I remember the conversation we had earlier. I could be wrong, but I swear his eyes dart to my throat and back up to my face. "And I want to apologize for last night." Does he mean the kiss? "It shouldn't have happened. " He definitely means the kiss. "I can see how you feel about Nygma. And I won't stop you."

"Really? So… Am I getting kicked out?" I can feel the pit in my stomach growing and growing until he answers.

"You can stay. You know how I feel about it, how everyone feels-"

"Yeah, Tim is real generous with giving out his opinion," I grumble.

"But," He continues. "You can stay here. You can work with us." His gaze softens. "I know you. You aren't going to switch sides on us. You aren't Riddler's Harley Quinn." He says, and my memory takes me back to that day in my bedroom, what feels like a million years ago, when Batman is warning me I'll end up like Harley. This apology means a lot to me, and he knows it.

"I can go and see him?" I ask, because I want to be sure.

"If you'd like. But you have training and a strategy meeting tonight, don't be late." He warns, but I'm already out the door and halfway up the stairs to my room. I throw on some clean jeans and a top and am brushing out my hair in the bathroom when a flash of discolouration on my neck catches my eye. I groan out loud. A hickey. From Edward. That must have been what Bruce was looking at.

Awkward.

But right now, I can't bring myself to care. I'm ecstatic. I'm going to see Edward.

¿?

I stand in the Lacey Towers elevator, a bundle of nerves. My hands shake a little as I slide the key into the door and push it open.

"Who's there? How dare-" Riddler comes into the entryway and stops in his tracks. "Belle?" He sounds surprised.

"Uh, hey. You gave me a key, remember?" I hold the key up. Maybe I wasn't supposed to just show up unannounced?

"It was last night. Of course I remember. I just… didn't think you'd actually show up." He admits. "What happened to Batman?"

"He isn't my father," I say, not wanting to get into the whole Riddler ban conversation. "I wanted to come over and see you."

"Well, come in then." He gives me that smile I love, with one eyebrow cocked and sweeps his arms back in an exaggerated 'welcome in' gesture. I walk through the entryway into the kitchen and dining area. He busies himself in the kitchen making coffee while I have a seat at the dining table facing him. "Did you have any particular plans for the day?" He asks. "Or just visiting?"

"Just visiting I guess." I reply. He brings the coffee cups over to the table and takes the seat across from me.

"Would you like to finally go on that sightseeing tour of Gotham?" He offers. I sit up straighter, excited.

"Yes. I still want to see GCPD, and anywhere else Gotham tourism suggests." I grin.

"I would recommend the Botanical Gardens. They were never really impressive until a few months back when Poison Ivy went to visit. It's much more interesting now. And a lot more dangerous." At that comment I raise an eyebrow at him. "Oh don't worry. They have most of the carnivorous plants contained now."

"Alright, add that to the list. Where else? Are any of the places from Arkham City up and running again?"

"The church has been remodelled. The Museum is open, and they have real exhibits now, not the collection Penguin had in there."

"Definitely there!" I interject, and he continues on.

"We can go to the Iceberg Lounge if you'd like. Penguin does owe me a favour. And thankfully isn't holding a grudge against me." He smirks.

"Actually…"

"Please don't say what I know you're about to say."

"I would really like to meet Penguin." I finish, grinning at the anguished look on his face. "What? If I'm staying, I should know who to avoid, right?"

"That is a poor excuse to meet Cobblepot, but fine. I'll likely have to talk to him to arrange a table at the Iceberg Lounge for tonight. We'll go to the museum this afternoon and I'll introduce you." He shoots me a glance. "You're lucky he isn't filling the museum with his collectables anymore. You'd be in a glass case before you could blink."

"I trust you to save me." I wink at him and finish my coffee. "Alright tour guide, where to first?"

"GCPD. Get the least appealing one out of the way." He rolls his eyes, but I know he's just being dramatic. We travel down in the elevator and Edward flags down a cab.

Sitting in the cab, I take in the costume Edward is wearing as a precaution for the GCPD visit. Dark jeans, leather jacket, ball cap and a dark green tee-shirt, because obviously he can't help himself. He looks good, but nothing like himself. Call me crazy, but I prefer the green vest and tie look.

He's tapping away on his phone when he looks up. "This is our stop." He announces. I'd been so busy checking him out I hadn't realised. It's a massive stone building, gothic architecture typical of Gotham, complete with gargoyles on the roof. We jump out and I follow him to the building, up the few stone stairs out the front and in through the doors.

It's just as impressive inside. Big stone arches, cops running everywhere. Edward stealthily moves us in from the reception area and we ride the elevator up into the main open plan office. There's a large cell in the middle of the room that Edward glares at for a moment. I look over towards one of the desks to the side of the room and my jaw drops. A man stands at the desk, talking to two men in uniform, and he has a hook for a hand.

"No way," I hiss, smacking Edward in the arm to get his attention. "That's Cash. Aaron Cash! From the Asylum!"

"I know." He hisses back. "I'm not quite as impressed as you are, I'm afraid. We never got along." He looks towards Cash from under his ball cap with distaste.

"I want to say hello."

"Are you mad?"

"Probably, but I still want to say hello. Go wait by the elevator, just in case he sees you. I want to see the Asylum one day, but I don't want to be breaking you out of it today." I lean up on my tiptoes and kiss him on the cheek. He walks towards the elevator, grumbling under his breath about misplaced adoration.

I wait until Edward is far enough away to look inconspicuous. Butterflies in my stomach, I approach Cash. I wait until he finishes his conversation with the uniformed officers before walking up to him and clearing my throat to get his attention.

"Miss. Can I help you?" He looks at me, and I notice the sign on the front of the desk with his name.

"Wait, you work here now? What happened to the Asylum?" I ask, shocked. When had this changed? Cash was a guard last time I checked.

"Asylum is under construction. They're tryin' to rebuild it ever since Arkham City went bust. You livin' under a rock?" He asked, looking at me a bit closer.

"Sorry, just out of the loop I guess. I just wanted to say hi." I say, sounding timid to my own ears. Cash is a pretty big dude with a big personality. I'm a bit intimidated, so sue me. "I'm uh, a fan of your work. Back at the asylum and now with GCPD, I guess." I lean towards him and lower my voice a little. "And any friend of Batman's is a friend of mine."

That gets a huff of laughter from him. "You a fan? I'll pass on the adoration; he never gets sick of that."

"Nice to meet you." I nod at him. "I'll run into you around Gotham, I'm sure." I mean, I'm chasing bad guys most nights, so I probably will. The comment seems to confuse him a little, but I head back towards the elevator before he says anymore. Edward looks at me, his expression half exasperated half amused.

"Was that what the attraction was here? Cash is another one of your heroes?" He asks as we ride the elevator back down and head outside.

"Actually, no. I didn't know he was working at GCPD until now. I was actually hoping to see Gordon." I admit, and Edward looks at me sideways while hailing another cab.

"You didn't know? Are you saying you don't have any foreknowledge this time?"

"Uh, no. Didn't I mention that?" He shakes his head. "Oh. Well, I don't. The last thing I knew was last time I was in Gotham. I have no idea what is going on now." I confess, and I realise just how much that bothers me.

"Interesting," Edward says as we get into the cab. "There was no new game?"

"There was, but I… lost my interest in them." I shrug. "After everything that happened, I'd had enough. It seemed weird to play them as games when I had actual relationships with the characters in them. Can we go to the gardens next?" I change the subject. Edward tells the driver where to go and looks back to me, silent for a long moment.

"I'm glad you came back." He says after a moment.

"Me too." I lean across the back seat to kiss him and lean my head against his shoulder. We sit like that for the rest of the trip until we reach the Gardens.

¿?

"Stop here," Edward demands, and the cab driver pulls over to the side of the busy street.

"What's wrong?" I ask, following him out of the cab. "Are we being followed? Should I get ready to kick some ass?" That makes him smile.

"Food stop. We could take lunch with us."

"Like a picnic? You romantic, you." I laugh, and he rolls his eyes.

"Don't make me feed you to one of Ivy's carnivorous plants."

We stop in at a deli and get sandwiches before walking down the street towards a giant building covered in plants. Ivy sure did a number on this place. But it is beautiful, in a 'nature reclaiming civilization' kind of way. Edward has ditched the ball cap now and is looking more like himself. We stroll through the Gardens, looking around at the plants grown by regular workers and the plants grown by Poison Ivy. The latter are much more interesting. At one point Edward pulls me back from trying to smell one of the flowers.

"I wouldn't do that. You might find yourself strangely willing to kill any human hurting any plant life." He warns. After that, I keep my distance a bit more.

After a while, we find a quiet section of the Garden and sit down to have lunch. I never thought I'd see The Riddler dressed in street clothes, sitting on the ground eating a sandwich, but here we are.

Once lunch is finished, we sit there for a while. I lean against Edward, more comfortable on the ground with him than I would be on a lounge chair. I don't know how, but right now, I am completely content.

"Tell me a riddle?" I ask, looking up at him. He frowns slightly.

"You hate riddles."

"I know. But you love them. So I want to hear one. I want you to tell me one." I say, still looking up at him. He looks back at me for so long I start to think he isn't going to speak. Until he does.

"What is mine, but only you have?" He finally asks, placing a light kiss on my forehead. I think about it, but come up blank.

"I give up, what is it?" I surrender.

"My heart." He replies simply. I look up at him in shock, any reply I had dying in my throat. I sit up properly and kiss him, the only reaction I can think to give. It's not like our rushed kisses on the rooftop the night before. It's slow, and chaste, and feels different. And wonderful.
We pull apart and Edward rests his forehead against mine. My chest feels like it's about to burst. How clichéd is that?

"We can spend the afternoon at the museum if you like. I'll meet with Cobblepot, arrange a table at the Iceberg Lounge for tonight. You can come and meet him, if you still want to." He offers, climbing to his feet and helping me up.

"Sounds great. Is that giant, moving dinosaur still in the front room?" I ask. "That thing gave me a heart attack the first time I played." We walk, hand in hand, back out to the street to catch another taxi.

"I believe so." We climb into the backseat of the cab. I grab Edward's hand and he looks over at me.

"Hey, you know that riddle you told?" I say, and he nods. "Well, ditto." He smiles that smile I love and leans over to kiss me.

A/N: Believe it or not, I am still here! It has been a while, but I come bearing good news. I have finished this story. Completely, 100% done. (Thank you Camp NaNoWriMo) I will be updating once a week or so until the end. It went in such a different direction than I had planned, but what are ya gonna do? Thanks to everyone still reading this!