When morning came not long after that, we took The Bat and flew to where the cops were about to clash with the prisoners who now controlled the city. Just as the Tumblers were about to fire into the huge group of cops, The Bat flew down and stopped the line of fire rendering all the Tumblers useless. I looked down as the cops ran towards the prisoners and vice versa. Just like a real war, they clashed together and they clashed hard.

Batman touched The Bat down to the ground and we both got out of it. He looked over at me as we prepared to go out into the middle of all of the fighting and finally stop Bane. And Miranda/Talia, but I was the only one who knew that part.

"Ready?" he asked.

I smiled at him. "Don't hold back."

Together, we pushed ourselves into the crowd of fighting and it didn't take long for the both of us to start getting attacked by various criminals. Thanks to my months of training, plus the four years I had spent at home, I was able to shake off everyone who attacked me. I did have to make sure that I didn't suffer any more blows to the shoulder because it couldn't go through that twice. In between my fights with random people, I looked over at Bruce and saw him going higher and higher on the steps to City Hall. I may have cheered a bit too loud when I saw his gauntlet swipe across Bane's mask, breaking one of the tubes.

They were almost in City Hall. I had to get in there. I quickly raced up the steps, fighting everyone who tried to stop me. I was so beyond done playing around.

I got up to the doors right as Miranda/Talia was behind him.

"Bruce!" I screamed bursting through the doors…and saw Miranda stick her knife in Bruce's side.

"I am."

"No!"

I tried to run up to him, but one of Bane's men who mysteriously appeared out of nowhere stopped me and pinned both my arms behind my back. I tried to wriggle out of his grasp, but he was pretty strong and he was hurting my shoulder, not to mention I was distracted by the sight in front of me.

Miranda looked at me with a coy smile then looked back at Bruce. "And though I am not 'ordinary', I am a citizen." She revealed that she had the trigger and positioned her thumb dangerously close to the button.

"Miranda?" Bruce said in a strained voice. "Why?"

"Talia. My mother named me Talia before she was killed. The way I would've been killed if not for my protector. Bane." She began to fix Bane's mask to put him out of his agonizing pain. "I climbed out of the pit. I found my father and brought him back to exact terrible vengeance. But the prisoners and the doctor had already done their work to my friend…my protector. The League took us in. Trained us. But my father could not accept Bane. He saw only a monster. His very existence was a reminder of the hell he'd left his wife to die in. He excommunicated Bane from the League of Shadows. His only crime was that he loved me. I could not forgive my father. Until you murdered him."

"He was trying to kill millions of innocent people," Bruce mustered out.

"'Innocent' is a strong word to throw around Gotham, Bruce. I honor my father by finishing his work. Vengeance against the man who killed him is simply a reward for my patience and having to put up with that…ridiculous woman you seem to have such feelings for."

"Kris was right about you."

Talia smirked. Bane began to tie a rope around Bruce's neck with the full intention of killing him. "She nearly ruined my plans. I spent so long trying to get close to you and fully earn your trust. She tried to stop me from gaining that trust. But even though you loved her, you couldn't totally believe her and you still trusted me. You see, it's the slow knife, the knife that takes its time, the knife that waits years without forgetting, then slips quietly between the bones…that's the knife that cuts deepest."

"Please…"

She hit the button on the trigger…but nothing happened.

"Maybe your knife was too slow," Bruce said.

One of Bane's men ran into the room. "The truck is under attack."

"Gordon," Talia growled. "You gave him a way to block my signal. No matter." She ripped the knife out of Bruce's side and he gave a cry of pain that made me flinch which resulted in the man's arms tightening their hold on me. "He's bought Gotham fifteen minutes."

Fifteen?! Wasn't it supposed to be eleven? Oh boy…I really hoped I hadn't completely messed everything up…

Talia stood up and looked at the man. "Prepare a convoy. We must secure the bomb until it detonates." She looked at Bane. "Don't kill him. I want him to feel the heat. Feel the fire of twelve million souls you failed." She went up to Bane and gently touched his mask. "Goodbye, my friend."

From that moment of interaction, I could see why so many people shipped them. But actually here living it, I could not ever imagine why someone would write fanfiction for them.

She looked over at me. "Her," she added icily as she began to walk out. "Her you can kill."

The man holding me tightened his grip on my arms even more and I could tell Bruce just wanted to absolutely fall apart.

But he was not about to lose me too. Not yet anyway.

I turned my head and looked right into the man's eyes, giving him my best poor-little-girl face. "Please," I said softly. For a second, I could see a flash of compassion cross his face, but it was gone as soon as it appeared. I turned back around not expecting that to really do anything for me.

Bane came over to me and my heart began pounding. Even with all my training, I would never in a million years be able to beat him. He took his hand and rubbed it across my cheek. I moved my head in disgust, but his hand stayed there.

"You've certainly been a lot of trouble for us," he said to me. "I'll deal with you later." He went back over to Bruce. "We both know that I have to kill you now," Bane said to him. He kicked Bruce and knocked him to the ground. "You'll just have to imagine the fire!"

Without warning, a huge blast killed Bane in an instant and there was Catwoman at the entrance with the Batpod.

"About the whole no-guns thing? I'm not sure I feel as strongly about it as you do."

Now that I had the man holding me thinking I was a defenseless weakling, I bent over and then slammed my head back into his. This allowed his grip to loosen just enough for me to turn around and deliver a very hard punch to his face.

I then ran over to Bruce lying on the ground and after taking the rope off his neck, I took out the vial from my jacket.

"Here. It's something Fox made. It'll stop the bleeding and cauterize the wound."

"Where did he get that?"

"Fox can do a lot in five months. Brace yourself because this is really gonna hurt."

I opened the vial and poured the red liquid over the stab wound Talia had left. Bruce began screaming from the pain and I felt awful, but this was necessary unless he wanted to bleed out. Why the movie never addressed that problem, I'll never know.

Mere seconds after the liquid came in contact with his injury, he was up and moving.

"We have to force that convoy east to the entrance of the reactor," Bruce explained. He looked at Selina. "I need you on the ground. We'll be in the air. Go."

We got back into The Bat while Catwoman took off on the Batpod and went after the bomb to try to get it to Mr. Fox. Tumblers shot at us, but they had no impact. Selina came by and blew them up for us so they were out of our way and we could focus on the truck.

One of the surviving Tumblers sent missiles after us and I knew what was coming. Bruce flew higher and higher above the city and weaved in between several buildings.

"Do you trust me?" he asked.

"Always."

He soared over a building and did a 360 turn which may have just been one of the coolest things ever. He lost the missiles by making them land on a different target and we were back onto the truck's path.

Bruce got in front of it and shot at it over and over again. He finally delivered one huge round and it made the truck Talia was in miss the road and go careening onto the lower level, killing her. Ironically, it was quite similar to how her father died…

Bruce and I landed again and rushed over to the truck.

"Fox showed me how to override the reactor," Talia smiled weakly. "Including the emergency flood. There's no way this bomb will be stopped. Prepare yourselves. My father's work is done."

Oh, no. I wasn't letting her die yet. "Hey, Talia," I said as I stepped up on the truck. I gave her a very hard punch in the face that left an instant bruise. Her eyes then closed forever.

I stepped and looked at everyone's shocked expressions.

Out of earshot of Gordon, I said to Bruce, "I've wanted to do that ever since I saw her flirting with you."

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you."

"I can understand why you wouldn't. Don't worry about it."

When we looked at the bomb, there were four minutes left on it. It was supposed to only be two. Well, that meant that I had two minutes to spare to tell Bruce what he needed to know.

"What are you doing?" Gordon asked.

"I can get it out over the bay," he answered.

"Set it to fly out over the water, then eject?" Catwoman said.

"No autopilot."

Bruce hooked up one piece to another in his attempt to save the city.

"Listen to me," I said. "There's something you need to know. I've left, but I've always come back right?"

"Not the time, Kris."

"You need to hear this. It's important."

"I've got to do this now."

"Just shut up and listen to me for once!" I yelled. Now finally having his attention, I said, "This time, I might not be coming back."

"I won't be either."

"No, stop. I know your whole plan and I know you're going to survive this. I've always known. I knew from the first moment I met you that you were going to become Batman. I knew what was going to happen when I followed Rachel to the Narrows. I knew that your house would burn down. I knew what the Joker was going to do to Harvey." Bruce was looking at me with an emotion I couldn't quite place, but it was breaking my heart all the same. "I know Bane took you to a pit where escape was nearly impossible. I know that there was a prisoner in there who pushed in the protruding vertebra in your back. I know that you tried three times to escape before fear finally found you and you could make that impossible jump from one platform to another. I've always known everything."

"How did you…?"

I gave a dry laugh. "It's complicated. I don't know if I'll see you again because it's never my choice to leave or to come back. But know that I will never stop fighting to get back to you. I love you with everything that I am."

I grabbed his cowl in my hands and threw my lips onto his.

"I love you," I whispered.

"I love you too," he said, completely dropping his Batman voice.

He took off and hopped into The Bat. I looked at the timer and saw we were back on schedule.

"I never cared who you were," Gordon said to him.

"And you were right," Batman answered.

"Shouldn't the people know the hero who saved them?"

"A hero can be anyone. Even a man doing something as simple and reassuring as putting a coat around a young boy's shoulders to let him know the world hadn't ended."

The cockpit closed and I watched in tears as he took off. Would this really be the last time I ever saw him? The man I loved?

"Bruce Wayne?" Gordon murmured.

After less than a minute, we all heard the bomb go off clear of the city. I looked away from Gordon and Selina and began walking away.

As I walked on, I could hear everyone cheering. Of course I was glad they were safe, but I was miserable that I wasn't going to see Bruce again.

I felt a tear slide down my cheek, but I quickly wiped it away.

"Do you wish to stay?"

I spun around at the sound of someone's voice. There stood a man dressed in all black. He looked kind of business-like and very serious, like he had never had a single fun thing happen in his entire life.

"What are you talking about?"

"Do you wish to stay?" he repeated.

The only thing I could assume he was talking about was my leaving to go back home. "More than anything."

"So be it." He turned and began to walk away.

"Wait!" I called. "What do you mean 'So be it'? Who are you?"

"It is done."

"What? You mean…you mean I can stay? I'm staying?"

He gave me a simple nod and I put my hand to my mouth.

"Thank you!" I squealed and I took off to go do what I had to. I needed to find a way to get a message to Bruce.

There was a huge problem though. I had absolutely no idea how exactly he managed to survive that bomb blast and what he did after that. Everyone thought he was dead, yes, but I knew he wasn't. He was supposed to be going to Italy with Selina. I had a feeling my presence wouldn't exactly let that happen right away. I had to figure out a way to get to him. I had to let him know as soon as possible this new turn of events.

Not knowing what else to do, I returned to the Manor. I figured that he would have to come back here eventually. After all, he needed clothes and some way to get in contact with Selina and other stuff.

That was pretty much all I had anyway.

So there I was in the Manor waiting for someone who may not even show up.

But then I saw him. Walking up to the house. I opened the door and stood at the bottom of the steps. Eventually, he looked up and froze at the sight of me.

"Hi," I said softly. Poor thing. He looked more haggard than I had ever seen him before, but at the same time, it was like so much weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

"What are you doing here?" he asked just as quiet.

"I always told you that it was never my choice on whether I could leave or not. But this time…it is."

"Do you mean you're…"

"Yes, Bruce," I said with a small laugh. "I'm staying."

We ran to each other and he lifted me up into the air and spun around with me. We laughed together as he kept going in circles. When he set me down, we looked deep into each other's eyes. I saw only love for me in his and I'm sure the same went for him. I kissed him hard and passionately, not releasing for quite a while as I took in the fact that I could stay with him forever.

I never did find out who that man on the street was. To be honest, I didn't care in the slightest. Because of him, I was able to stay with Bruce Wayne, the man I loved.

If someone had told me a few years ago that a die-hard geeky fangirl like me with no life would end up with the very person I fangirled over for a few years, I would've been offended that they were making fun of me. But here I was with that same person, who loved me despite the fact that I wasn't Rachel and I didn't even belong here in the first place.

As we walked into the Manor hand in hand, I realized that from here on out, I didn't know what was going to happen any longer. I would no longer be able to plan out every little thing.

But I didn't care. After all, unpredictability is the best thing about life.

What a bittersweet moment this is for me! I've never stayed with one OC for so long, and I've gotten really attached to Kris, so it's sad for this to be over!

Special thanks to Wildheart75, rapunzel101, love93, Crystal-Wolf-Guardain-9, grapejuice101, TheRealTayler13, Jessica. Winchester .1995, and of course, nycsinger16 for being such loyal followers of all three stories and for their incredible reviews!

The Dark Knight forever!