Commissioner Gordon was beginning to wonder if he should start on ulcer medication now and save time.
He was standing in the back alley behind the Wish-Fulfilling Jewel, keeping out of the way. The cover story that the restaurant had just been the subject of an attempted robbery wouldn't hold up well if the Commissioner had deigned to appear.
Anyway, it was the location of some of the more puzzling evidence, and a discreet place for the inevitable meeting.
"So the cooks saw a clown, we found a capsule of Joker's toxin, and you apparently saved the day and then died in the attempt. What do you say to that?"
Batman, looking down at the greusome remains on the pavement, said, "That the Joker has enemies on all sides of the law."
Gordon smiled sardonically. "She escaped and got on the warpath all in record time. Witnesses saw the Joker and some heavy run out to a car. The restaurant staff claim they saw Har-"
"Clowns. Who can tell one from another," Batman said, as if musing but with a hardness in his voice.
Gordon sighed, "Alright, alright. We'll run with that for now. I just hope this pays off the way you want it to."
"So do I."
The main office at Wayne Enterprises was more crowded than usual. All three of the ensembles, the committee, minus one, and at the heart of it all, Bruce Wayne was sitting at his desk, glowering with Selina Kyle standing imperiously on his left and Lucius Fox solemnly on his right. A thick flurry of snow was cascading past the big window.
Natalia and the other members of the Wonderlanders looked back with expressions of shame and distinct signs of hangovers. Jerry Black and his gang looked like scolded schoolboys and Gavin and the Waterfront Four couldn't meet the eyes of either group.
"When we started planning the Christmas Benefit for this year," Wayne said in a flat voice, "Harleen brought us a new vision of a grass-roots presenation that would get the small artists and the wider public involved. That would sweep away the paternalistic and stuffy image the Wayne Foundation has painted itself into. Each one of you benefits from this as well, just like we said in the press conference. But apparently you place your pride above the common good. Are we going to prove the snobbish elite right? Are they just throwing change to the masses from a safe distance or are we really about helping our fellow human beings?"
After a roaring silence, Jerry Black raised a hand and said, "Uh, Mister Wayne? Sorry, but, is Harley okay? She's not here…"
Selina, her expression like a mother tigress said, "She was sick before she even got to the club last night. She's taking the week off to pull herself together."
"Yeah," Jerry said, nodding, "She worked damned hard."
"It was a lot of pressure to work under," Arnold Wesker muttered. Whether he was addressing Wayne or Jerry was unclear, but he hadn't looked right at either of them since the meeting began.
Bruce looked at Wesker and then said, in a gentler tone, "We put this on her because she had skills, because she has, well, a different perspective and because she needed a second chance. A second chance, I might add, that she chose to share with all of you! So," he said finally, "in Harley's name, I'm asking you all to take that chance and work together. It's not too late. Try the group session approach she suggested."
"Speaking as somebody who whiled away her youth in Jazz clubs," Selina said, "I've seen the power of improvising in jam sessions. What do you say, ladies and gentlemen?"
After a few moments of silence, Natalia breathed in and said, "I owe you all an apology. What we went through before Harley found us was…terrible. I guess it made me a little too territorial."
"Hey," Jerry said, shrugging good-naturedly, "It ain't like I was perfect. I've been fighting tooth and claw for every song lately; it's been hard getting money in my pocket without even an illegal gig to be had!"
Gavin Jones said, "And I should know better than to judge people the way I did. Of course you did what you had to do. Who doesn't?"
"And also," Jerry amended, "we probably shouldn't drink so much next time."
This broke the tension in the room and chuckles made their way around.
Jones was the first to turn to Wayne and say, "Mister Wayne, it still seems like a longshot, but we'll do it. We've got a studio loft on the waterfront, if you'd all like to join us, we can get started!"
"Mind if the civilians tag along," Bruce said, rising and reaching for his coat.
"I'll take a pass, thanks," said Selina, "I'm going to go check on Harley."