A little over a week had passed since Batgirl rescued Alex from Jokers thugs out in the countryside and after taking some days to recover he was feeling much better, being able to walk and run without any pain or soreness whatsoever. Just as Batman had said Batgirl had visited him at his apartment and Alex had thanked her for helping him to which she had said that it wasn't a problem. When asked about her suspension she only said that Batman was just being stuck in his ways about how she handled the situation. Other than that, they came to the same understanding that Alex had made with Batman earlier; he would cut back on his use of lethal force and in turn she helps him capture the bad guys. A win-win in Alex's opinion.
Anyways, being as Alex could move about freely it was back to work at the RSS but seeing as it was the Marine Corps birthday today would be a special day. Alex invited Barbara to join him and the Poolees for morning PT and she had to his surprise agreed. Currently they were running down the streets by GCU, singing cadences to wake the student population up early.
"Back in seventeen seventy-five…"
"…My Marine Corps came alive!"
"First there came the color green…"
"To show the world that we are mean!"
"Next there came the color blue…"
"To show the world that we are true!"
"Then there came the color gold…"
"To show the world that we are bold!"
"Last there came the color red…"
"To show the world the blood we shed!"
They finished the run back at the RSS totaling at a run of about five miles, breaking off about most of the Poolees however Barbara seemed to be just fine after the run. Alex decided to finish off the PT with a pyramid of pull-ups before sending the kids off to go to their classes.
"Do you guys always sing about killing things?" Barbara asked once all the Poolees had left.
"Mmm, pretty much yeah. What you didn't like the one about crushing the little yellow birdie?"
"That was actually kinda funny, guess nothing is safe from you guys."
"We're equal opportunity warfighters. So, since Halloween was kind of a bust I was wondering if you wanted to celebrate the birthday with me? I'm not going to the ball this year so I was just gonna celebrate on my own."
"Yeah you definitely owe me for that, pick me up at eight?"
"Sounds like a plan, see you then." He says before she leaves. Once she's gone Alex showers and changes over into his woodland fatigues before going over more paperwork on the computer. He managed to kill a couple of hours and it's around noon when he hears the door open.
"Marines, how can I help you?" He asked, once again not looking up to see who it is. though he really should pay attention to who walks in though cause the voice that speaks makes his stomach drop.
"Look I know we fought earlier but I really need to talk to you." The voice says. Without looking up Alex quickly grabbed the 12-gauge shotgun he kept under the desk and points it at Harley Quinn. She's in normal civilian clothes and a quick once over reveals that she's not carrying any weapons that he can see.
"Back the fuck up!" He shouts, keeping the shotgun level with her chest. Yeah he know how this looks, pointing a shotgun at her when he wants to help her but he have no idea what her intentions are. She could be wearing a suicide vest for all he knew!
"Whoa whoa, calm down Alex! I'm not here to fight with you!" She says, raising her hands to placate him but he keeps the shotgun up anyways.
"First off its Sergeant, only my friends call me Alex." He tells her and he can tell that those words hurt. "Secondly, how dare you just walk in here and think you can talk to me like we're still buddy-buddy after all the shit you've put me through." Alex knows that he sounds like a dick but he really needed to get that off his chest before his finger accidentally slipped and pulled the trigger.
"I…I know I've made some mistakes, but I thought you were dead! Now that I know your alive… I really need to talk to you." She says and he can tell she's serious.
"Talk then." He tells her, using the shotguns muzzle to point to the chair behind her.
"I've been thinking about what you said back at the shipping yard, how you wanted ta me. I...I need ta let ya know that ever since that night four years ago my life has been one big joke..." She starts to explain.
"A joke, right? Cause hurting and killing innocent people is a joke. Tell me, was it a joke when I shot you? Was it funny when I spiraled into depression and had to get psychiatric help for suicide? You were a smart person last I remembered so I find it very hard to believe that your completely oblivious to what you've been doing." Alex scolded.
"I… I know, ok? Truthfully the whole dumb, love-struck sidekick thing is an act. I'm very aware of the things I've done, what I've become… at first I just wanted to help him because I thought I loved him, I convinced myself that I could cure him. Then that night happened and I hurt you, I realized my mistake but then I was told you were dead and I thought I had nothing to go back to. I felt resigned to the path I had started on, surrendered to it and found joy in it. Sure, I get beat around sometimes but that's my punishment for being what I am, a criminal. But now that you're here… things are different. I know you're angry with me, but I want you to know that I'm sorry for everything." She admits. So all of this, is some form of self-punishment? Oh, lord she is a few rounds short of a full magazine, isn't she?
"Anger doesn't even describe what I've felt for you these past years. Every night I dreamt of putting a bullet through your skull, the only reason I didn't kill you last week was because my new friend put the damn idea that I could save you into my head and made me realize that despite everything you've done I still care about you." Alex admitted, all traces of anger fading as he lowers the shotgun.
"No don't say that, I don't deserve that!" Harley cries.
"Harleen, we can fix this if you just let me get rid of the Joker. Tell me where he is and I can end this."
"I…I can't. I'm sorry but this is my mess to fix..."
"Damn it don't do this, you're going to get yourself killed!"
"And I'll have deserved it."
"I won't let you throw your life away like this, it was a mistake to have given up on you before but I will save you!"
"I'm so sorry Alex, But it's too late for that."
She suddenly grabs the muzzle of the shotgun and uses it to pull Alex over the desk before running out the door. By the time he gets up and outside she's long gone...
...
Barbara was surprised when Alex picked her up from her apartment, she had expected it to be a casual evening but he had worn his Dress Blues to celebrate the occasion. She quickly ran upstairs to change into more appropriate attire while her dad traded more war stories with Alex while he waited. Barbara decided on a simple dress and headed back downstairs to find that her dad had busted out his old ribbon stack to compare with Alex's.
"Well, I'm ready to go whenever you are Alex." She says trying to leave as quickly as possible.
"Oh no, not without pictures first." Her dad says and Barbara groans quietly to herself.
They let her dad take a few quick pictures before finally heading out for dinner at an expensive restaurant downtown. Apparently, Gotham was more patriotic than she thought as their meal had been paid for by one of the other patrons. It was all very nice but the real celebration didn't start until they got back to Alex's apartment.
"So how does the birthday work exactly?" Barbara asked, having never witnessed the Marines birthday before.
"Well usually we have a cake cutting ceremony. The first piece is given from the oldest Marine present to the youngest to symbolize the passing of knowledge. Then General John A. Lejeune's birthday message is read followed by an address from our current Commandant. Finally, we end the evening with a banquet and dancing. Then all the Marines go get drunk at the nearest bar. Hey don't give me that look, we were formed in a tavern what do you expect?"
"That's very formal of you, and here I thought you were all mindless killing machines."
"Hey, we take tradition seriously. Every Marine, no matter where they are celebrates the birthday."
"Well let's get started, I'm anxious to see you act formally for once."
Alex then goes to the fridge and pulls out a small cake, placing it on the counter before using his ceremonial NCO sword to cut the cake into quarters. He takes a piece and hands it over to Barbara.
"I know you're not a Marine but hopefully you've learned a thing or two from all the time we've spent together." He jokes as She accept the cake.
He then read off General Lejeune's birthday message and played General Neller's address to the Marines on the TV. They'd already eaten so they skipped the banquet part and moved onto the dancing portion. One wouldn't think it possible but you can indeed break dance in Dress Blues, but apparently, it was a common thing to see during the Marine Corps Ball, as Alex was currently demonstrating. Once they got tired of dancing around the apartment they called Alex's friends from Camp Pendleton, Alex drunkenly sang the Marines hymn, and ended up sitting at the counter for a few drinks. Alex told Barbara the story of his friend Daniels and poured a drink in honor of him. It was touching, to see the love Marines had for one another. It made them seem more relatable. It was getting late and the festivities had passed so they decided to end the night with a toast.
"To my fallen brothers and sisters who gave their lives in service of this great country, may we remember and honor their sacrifice. Semper Fidelis." Alex began.
"To the Marines currently deployed overseas, may you look after one another and come home safely." Barbara added.
"Here's to another year of excellence." Alex finishes and they both raised their glasses before downing the drinks. Once Barbara's glass was empty she looked over at Alex and smiled.
"Happy birthday Alex."
…Mission Complete/ Happy Birthday Marines…