[AN: This chapter could have also been called "How Max diligently avoids his kicking and screaming and starts worming her way into Bruce's heart," but it didn't exactly fit.]

At 3:43 am Terry unlocks her window and steps into her room. Her greeting dies in her throat when he snatches off his mask as throws it viciously onto her bed before storming silently into the bathroom. Max sighs and gets up to relock the window and close the curtains. She's had enough experience with this mood to know that he'll open up once he's calm and not a moment before.

It takes a 30 minute shower and leftover spaghetti but finally Terry looks at her sadly (and when he does this he so resembles Matt that it takes all of Max's willpower not to ruffle his hair).

"Wayne won't take his heart meds."

"How do you know?"

"A couple nights ago I was in the suit and I picked up his heartbeat. It was jumping all over the place. When I asked him if he'd taken his pills he told me to mind my damn business and sent me out on patrol."

Max slides closer to Terry and rubs his shoulders. "He's stubborn, but he's not senile. Maybe he really didn't need them."

"The thought crossed my mind, but the next day I did a little snooping. I picked up both of his prescriptions over a month ago and every single slagging pill is right where I left it. At first I thought he'd forgotten after not taking them for a night or two so I kindly reminded him. He told me that he didn't need them and so he wasn't going to take them." Terry leans forward, resting his head in his hands. "He can't- I don't want him to die too Maxie. What am I going to do?" Terry's voice has steadily dropped until he's only whispering. He looks up at Max and she can see the pain in his face just as clearly as she can see the dark circles that are becoming more and more prominent.

"You're going to go to sleep," she replies. She takes his hands and pulls him to his feet and leads him to the bed. "And tomorrow I'll go talk to Wayne."

Terry shakes his head as Max pulls back the blankets. "Not offense Max but he doesn't like you all that much. Why would he listen to you?"

"Because I excel at pointing out what others overlook," is her simple reply. Terry looks utterly confused but Max just shakes her head with a soft smile. "Just go to sleep Ter.

::

It takes Max two trains and a cab ride to get there, but she finally arrives at Wayne Manor. She waits at the gate for Bruce to respond to her page.

"What?" he says gruffly.

"It's me Mr. Wayne. I have some stuff to talk to you about."

"What's wrong with the phone?"

"I wanted to see your smiling face," Max says dryly. When Bruce doesn't respond she presses the button again. "Look the sooner you let me in, the sooner I'm out of your hair. Let's make this as painless as possible."

Bruce grumbles something rude, but Max can't make it out over the creaking of the opening gates. Bruce doesn't wait for her to knock once she reaches the front door; instead he swings it open and regards her angrily.

"This had better be good." He turns and leads the way into the library and takes a seat behind his desk.

"Terry tells me you haven't been taking your meds," Max says, diving right in.

Bruce responds about as well as can be expected. "And how is that any of your business?"

"Technically it's not," Max begins. "But it is Terry's business and it's killing him." Bruce snorts. "If you feel like your life is worth less than it is, fine, but at least acknowledge what your death would do to Terry."

"Old people die Gibson. It's what we do," Bruce spits.

"Well you don't need to facilitate the process," Max retorts. "Especially when you consider the long-term consequences..." She trails off here and scratches Ace behind the ears as Bruce's curiosity builds.

"What long-term consequences," he finally snaps.

"The Powers," Max says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "Think about how quickly 'Wayne-Powers' would be 'Powers-Wayne' before just being 'Powers & Sons'. Think about how hard you worked to build that company. Hell, think about how hard your father worked. You earned naming an entire company after yourself; Powers just waltzed in, shook a few hands, signed a few papers and boom, now he owns half of what you put your blood, sweat and tears into."

Bruce's eyes are so narrow that Max isn't sure whether or not he can actually see her. "I know what you're doing."

Max shrugs. "Doesn't mean I'm wrong. You wouldn't even be four hours dead before they redistributed your stocks and shut out any and everyone you want to leave your company to. After that they'd raid this place, private property be damned. They'll find everything you have hidden, even your long-eared secret. After that it'll only be a matter of time before Batman will be forced to disappear for a little while just to take the heat off and where will that leave Gotham? You worked as hard to clean it up as you did to build Wayne Enterprises, maybe even harder. And the Powers are going to destroy all your hard work bit by bit."

"And how could you possibly know this?"

"They've always wanted what you have. It's in the way they talk about the company and in the looks they give you when you show up to press conferences and public events. The Powers are a proud bunch and you're the only one who keeps them in their places. Without you they'll run amok."

The irritation in Bruce's eyes is now tempered with a slight twinkle. "Kitchen, drawer beside the stove," he barks. Max does what she thinks is an excellent job of hiding her grin until she reaches the kitchen and digs up the bottles. She returns to the library and deposits one pill from each container into Bruce's waiting hand. He pops them in his mouth and dry swallows them, opening his mouth to prove they're gone. "Happy now?"

"Ecstatic," Max says. She returns the bottles to their place and walks to the front door where Bruce is waiting. "Don't make me come back," she says sweetly. She leans up and presses a quick peck to his cheek as he opens the door.

"Believe me, that's the last thing I want," he growls. The corner of his mouth twitches slightly and Max smiles.

"Good."

Later that week when Terry crawls in at a more reasonable hour (1:13) he regards her with confusion and awe.

"Wayne said you went to see him."

Max shrugs. "Did it work?"

"Yeah," Terry says incredulously. "I counted again. He's been taking his pills since the day you went. What'd you say to him, by the way? All he'd tell me is that you hit him where he was weak."

Max grins. "I guess I've just got a way with words."

Terry chuckles. "He also said to tell you that you play dirtier than our last district attorney."

"Coming from him that's a compliment."