A/N: Here we go again!
I drowned once. Stranger still, I don't remember panicking. There wasn't a white light to speak of, if you count watching the sunlight shift to dark gray shades. Funny, here I was trapped under the weight of the water, and somehow my lungs felt like they were on fire. And even though my world was motionless, I can still remember the feel of my mother's hands as she reached for me. The next thing I know, I was lying in a heap, gushing up water under my mother's worry stricken gaze.
"Thank God." The ache of my chest would fade quickly, but my apprehension stayed with me, taking the form of something so benign as a body of water. But maybe it's not the element it's self I feared. I resigned to my surrender so easily—now that's terrifying.
"Oh, Birthday Girl!" Even as the words came bouncing out of his mouth, Del could only hear the collective gasp of the room, no doubt every man, woman and child was burning their lungs as they waited for the edge of chaos to come. With her heart hammering in her ears, she couldn't hear the gunfire, she could only see the flash rounds lighting up the room. Chaos had erupted in the form of terrified faces and soundless screams. He had them scurrying like rats with nowhere to go. "Come out; come out where ever you are!"
Watching Sissy lift the helmet off her head, Del felt her fingers uncurling from the banister. "What are you doing? Del, No!" But she could only see terror, wide eyed terror resting in the faces of men, women…and children. I could slip off-I could slip off and change right now, but if I'm gone…if this madman doesn't find me among them, what would that mean for all these lives inside our walls? Her eyes could only follow Dick as he ducked through the crowd. "Tim go. " Del uttered, unsure if he could hear her command over the din of alarm. "Go! Before they seal off all the exits."
"What about you?! I can't just leave you here, you're my partner!"
"I'm the one he's looking for! And if he doesn't find me, they'll be the ones to pay!" Without wasting the time for an argument she shoved her way around him, laying her hands on Sam's white tipped knuckles. "Sam! Sam, Snap out it!" Sam's chest seemed to fill with air. "I need you to do something. Sam! Are you listening?!" The girl's head barely seemed to nod as her eyes locked on the chaos below. Now, now do you see the world you've fallen into? This is what we contend with. These are the battles we fight. Some of us have died for this. "Go to my wing; make sure the door locks behind you. Then, go into the closet in my study. There's a panel inside to the left that you can remove. It's going to lead you to the servant's passage. You understand?"
She waited for the girl to nod again; all the while the room was still exploding with the sound fright and gunfire. "Follow it, you'll find Alfred's arsenal. Things I know you can use."
"What are you going to do?" She heard Tim ask from behind her, but her eyes were already skirting the stairs. Any moment now…they'll come. He's rounding us up like cattle.
"I know you can do this, now go!" Del could only watch the girl flee as the stairs were overtaken. "I'm gonna to keep him busy for as long as I can."
"How 'bout you, Cupcake?"
The words force Del's gaze to the floor, watching as the clown pulled a fully gowned Cinderella from the crowd by her wrists. Despite the frightened whimpers or the big fat tear drops still on the girl's face, he proceeded to spin her around, that smile growing larger as he won a surprised yelp out of her. By the time he was cackling, he flung her, tilting his head back in full laughing mode as she spilled to the ground.
"Whoops! What can I say? I've got two left feet."
Del could feel the handrail sliding underneath her palm as she crept to the opening of the stairs, fighting not to leap forward as the Joker stooped down in front of the fallen Carlotta. But even as the girl screamed at attempted to crawl back on her hands, her attempts were thwarted the moment she found a knife under her nose.
"Let's see if you're the birthday girl." She half expected him to rip the mask from the girl's face, but instead, the man only reached into his coat, revealing a particular red soled shoe, a shoe the girl was certain Gotham had claimed it for it's self the moment she left it lying there on the sidewalk.
As the clown wrangled one of the girl's feet from her shoes, Del could hear Carlotta's sobs shuddering over the whispering strain. The more he tried to cram her foot into the heel, the harder she wept. "Let go! Let go of me you freak!"
For all his chuckling, the laughter seemed to seep into the quiet as the man ripped the shoe from her foot. Batting the girl's shaking hands away from her face, he pulled he glitzy mask away from her, letting it skirt across the floor. "I see. A freak am I?" Oh, no. Oh, God. "When I'm done with you, Sweetness…you won't have the strength to face yourself in the mirror." Frowning, Joker rose to his feet, giving a shrug with his narrow shoulders before he reached for that flower on his lapel. Even though she couldn't see the acid, Del knew he hit his mark as the girl's whimpers turned into screams. "Ah, music to my ears." He crooned, twirling about as he scanned the crowd for his next victim.
Delilah could feel the bile rolling up her throat as the clown suddenly paused. She could only imagine the terror the man before him was feeling when the Joker kneeled in front of the little girl that was all but wrapped around his leg. "What about you, Princess?" He wants a reaction...
"Wait! Please!" The second the child's screams began to ring through the manor, Del started to take stairs two at time as he pried the little thing away and proceeded to pull her into the empty space. That was until she could see Sissy lifting that helmet. Her heart dropped to her feet as she tossed it, nailing the clown right in the back of the head.
"Why you little-"
"I'm right here!" Oh, that echo, it didn't even sound like her own voice booming over the hum of panic. But it was certainly enough to make him twist on his heels holding out his arms as that wide yellow grin spread across his face. Keep it together. Each careful step down those stairs was one was one step closer to a man who wasn't afraid to die, a man who had nothing to lose—the most dangerous kind of all.
"Ooh, feisty."
"Olly. Olly. Oxen. Free." The words came out bitten, and still they seemed to make the man's gaping mouth curl as he tilted his head letting that cackle of a laugh ruffle its way through the swarming tension. She could see Sissy snatching the little girl by the hand and ripping her back into the crowd and yet, her eyes couldn't linger there, not when the man had a knife in his hand.
"Cute, Toots." He hissed as he slithered closer, close enough to point that blade just under her chin. "But you know…not everyone like's a smart ass." Without another word he kneeled, forcing Del to take a breath as she felt his gloved fingers wrap around her ankle, pulling her foot from its shoe only to place it in another. As her toes sank into the familiar heel, the Joker jumped to his feet.
"Perfect Fit!"
"Come here for round two?" She asked, watching his smile shrink as she scratched her nose.
"That was you, wasn't it?" At that moment, Del couldn't decide what made the flesh on her arms rise. Nothing good ever came from a clown who wasn't amused. But a knife to the throat didn't bode well either, especially when she could feel blood tickling down her neck.
"We both know the answer to that. Now, what is it you want?" Even from this distance, she could see her father's stoic face. It wasn't pale or flushed red like every other body in the room. His eyes were hard. Some might call it shock, but Del knew her father's anger when she saw it. Only Jet's hand on his arm seemed to be keeping him in place.
Feeling his hot breath reaching out to her face, Delilah closed her eyes, listening to the ring in her ears mingled with the sound of his shoes squeaking as he shifted his weight. "Why, I want to play a game! Doesn't that sound fun?!" The girl could only swallow, feeling her throat bob against the blade.
Opening her eyes she found those yellowed teeth gaping wide as his lips curled around his cheeks. You're unarmed, but you're not unskilled. With a deep breath, forcing the bloodied lace to stick to her chest, Del's hands shot out, pushing his face away from her as she tilted her head back to push his armed hand up. With one swift quick in the groin the clown puddled to the floor before her, dropping the blade with a clank. "Not funny."
Listening to the sound of rounds being shoved into their chambers, Del held up her empty hands, sending the blade spinning across the floor with a kick. "So…what game did you have in mind?" She muttered, feeling her insides squirm as the man before her only tumbled back and pulled himself right back to his feet with the ease of any circus performer. Don't write him off. Don't underestimate him. Don't do what Jason did.
Holding out his hand, Del watched as one of his men handed him a roll of duct tape. "Hide and seek of course." He said ripping the tape of the roll. "But for that, you'll have to pay a penalty."
C'mon boys, c'mon. "Ducktape?" Del grumbled, wincing at the sound of the tape peeling from the roll. With her hands and feet bound, Delilah could only watch as the crowd was brought to sit on the floor with their hands taped behind their backs. Say for one squirmy little girl.
"Well, that not your penalty." He said with a shrug, eying Sissy as the girl signed through air. What he didn't expect was for the heiress on the floor to burst out with a laugh.
"What's so funny?! I'm the only one who makes the jokes around here!"
"Oh, you don't want to know trust me." She said, watching the girl suddenly sit on the floor obediently.
"So what did she say?" He asked again.
Now the girl stopped laughing completely. "That Batman's gonna kick your ass."
"Oh? A reunion with Batsy? Wouldn't that be grand?!" He cried, as he yanked her from the floor by her wrists. "I'm counting on it, Cupcake." With that he put a piece of tape over her mouth, making sure to give it a good smack. Perhaps it was good thing that the joker couldn't read sign language. Sister girl happened to be sitting on that knife. Delilah could only let her eyes slide to her father who immediately looked to the child. But as Delilah looked around at these ashen and defeated faces she realized that one in particular was missing. Tim. Just where was Tim? What the hell was he up to?
"Now for the penalty!" Something in his words made her skin feel as if it were running cold. Okay, maybe it wasn't the words; maybe it was gun he pulled from the inside of his coat. Just how big were those inside pockets?! "Shall we spill a little blood, your highness?" But he wasn't pointing the gun at her…he was pointing it right at the crowd, starting with Bruce Wayne himself. "Eeny, meeny…" With every slow word he moved, pointing the gun at men, women and children alike. "Miny..." Jesus. "Oh, what the hell, we'll just pick you."
Surely her heart had climbed in the vicinity of her ears; she couldn't hear the shot over the panicked rhythm of her heart. One moment she had her eyes on her father, watching his eyes grow larger and then…there was nothing but plume of smoke smelling of salt, fire and hot metal. Dad! But the scream she felt tearing out her only seemed to be lost in the shrieking terror.
The floor was unkind to her knees and yet, she couldn't even feel the pain buzzing through her bones, not when she could hear the sound of a body collapsing to the floor. With each slow second she waited for the smoke to clear, Del found herself inhaling that familiar scent, the rusty smell of blood mixing with gun polish.
Only when she saw Bruce Wayne's blood speckled face, did she sink to the floor, leaving herself eye level with a dying man. No! No! No! "Tommy!" Laying there with her cheek pressed into the marble, she could see Elliot's lips moving half expecting him to utter something, and yet there was only blood oozing from him. Del let her eyes slip from the crimson pool that was slowly building itsway toward her before looking to her father who had worked himself to his knees, but no sooner had he moved did he find himself staring down the barrel of the still warm gun.
"Ah! Ah! Ah!" The Joker chided, putting his foot into the man's chest. "Wait your turn!"
Laying there on the floor, Del could only hear the sound of a heartbeat hammering in her ears. It was enough to make the girl's head ache, but as she listened to the sound of The Joker's shoes squeak across the floor, the girl could see a shadow growing across the skylight. By the time she was rolling to take cover, the jester of Gotham was tilting his head up with a curse.
In a breath the skylight was gone, chipped into thousands of biting shards. No sooner had the sound of booted feet hitting the ground greet her ears, did the girl hear the familiar hiss of smoke bombs. As the toxic clouds filled the room, Del found herself struggling to open her lungs. Feeling someone lift her from the ground there was a delusional moment where she was almost grateful. That was until reality smacked her in the face. It wasn't Dick. It was that fucking clown! "Let the games begin."
Thrown over his shoulder, Del would've liked to nail him in the chest with her tapped feet, and yet something else caught her attention. A new smell, a familiar smell. Gasoline.
"Gotta hand it to ya, Toots. Your party's the hottest on the block!" Watching the flames climb up the drapes in deep twisting shades of orange and gold, Del could only hear that maniacal laugh as the sound of chaos billowed through the halls like smoke.
Don't freak, don't freak, don't freak. No freaking out, Sam! Perhaps the words in her head would have provided the right amount of solace if she wasn't running through barely familiar halls with the sound of bullets whizzing by her ears. Of course their spreading through the house! What? Did you honestly think they'd stay put? With the sound of a chase scaring her heart up into her throat, Sam slid for the key pad, falling out of her shoes and stepping on the ends of her dress to get to the thing. "C'mon, c'mon you bitch!" She cried, fumbling to enter the correct code. Now that first shaky attempt had her pressing on the wrong buttons, the cronies were closing in, that or the bullet holes in the door before her just materialized out of thin air. No sooner had that heavy ass door pop open did Sam turn her head, just in time to see the flash of a bullet scraping it's way from the barrel. The girl dove for the door, wincing at the sound of the bullet landing in the wood façade as she shoved it closed.
"Lock it?! How do I lock it?!" She cried, scrambling up from her hands and knees as she spied the soft glow of buttons on a second key code panel, among them a large red button. Reaching up, she hit it with the side of her fist, listening to the sound of metal locks clinking together inside the door. Jesus…it is Fort Knox. She thought, letting her eyes adjust to the dimness of the recess lighting that lit up the hall as metal plates started to rise from panels in the windowsills.
With the sound of rounds thudding into the steel of the door behind her, Sam jerked herself up. It's okay, it's going to be okay. But as the girl wandered through the dim light scanning the barely light hall, a new sound greeted her ears, a sound that made the fine hair on her arms stand to attention.
Frozen in the hall, she could only see a shadow protruding from the darkness, emitting a growl fit for a creature from hell. "Jax?" The name sounded like a squeak. No! You don't want to sound like a chew toy! She would have liked to whimper, maybe fall to her knees and prepare herself to feel his teeth digging into her skin…but she just stood there watching the faint light gleam off of his teeth as he bared his teeth at her. He knows…he knows there's something wrong. You don't have time to panic.
Letting her body slump down to her knees she stared at the dog, watching his rust pointed paws take a stance. "Jax, down!" The words seemed thick as they achingly ripped from her throat into a command. The Doberman's teeth were still clenched, and yet he halted, still just as uncertain and unsure as the girl sitting before him.
Sam could feel a bit of relief trying to edge its way into her as the dog's teeth were hidden behind his lips once more. The relief however, was quickly forgotten as the creature cautiously stepped forward. Even with that cold nose sniffing around her, Sam could still see that fine line of hair bristling across his back. "G-Good boy." The words almost sounded like a whimper as she sat there letting the dog sniff around her. Of all the dogs, why did it have to be a scary ass Doberman?
Placing her hand on his back, she could feel the muscles tightening under the pads of her fingers. "Good boy." She murmured again, forcing herself to scratch through his short hair before she tried to collect herself to her feet, more than aware that the dog was still inches away from her.
As she hurried through the hall, feeling her bare feet stick to the cold marble floor, Sam became highly aware of the sound of claws tapping on the floor behind her. Even as she entered the study, that shadow was still there, watching her as she slid into the closet. "She said left." The girl whispered, knowing full well that only the dog was listening as she felt around the wooden panels with her hands. When she felt the cool touch of a tiny metal latch, the breath she was holding came gushing out. The panel slid away easily, revealing nothing more than a new darkness.
Feeling the grit of dust under her feet, the girl slid inside, inhaling the musty smell of age and cedar spreading through the small hall. With Jax trailing behind her sniffing and snorting, the girl let her hand travel along the walls as she worked herself closer and closer to the light that was trying to stretch out to them in the darkness.
Stumbling down an instep beneath the dim yellow glow, the girl found walls covered with the soft gleam of metal. Guns. No sooner had she started to peer into the collection did the feel of a heavy hand touching her shoulder force a yelp right out of her.
"Miss."
"Jesus Christ, Alfred!"
"And what pray tell are you doing here?"
The girl's hands were still pressed into her collar bone as she looked up at him. "Del sent me here." She managed, fighting not to tilt her head at him. Here in this light he seemed so…menacing. Just who was Alfred Pennyworth anyway? What butler kept a stash of guns hidden in secret halls?
The man only blinked his dark eyes at her, resigning with a sigh. "I see. Markswomen are you?"
The floor felt warm beneath her, but maybe that was her own body…or maybe that that was the heat of the flames reaching out from the walls. But the knife? The knife that was resting under the tulle of her tutu? That still felt cold. Anabel Collins had no choice but to make it to her feet, wading through the frightened whimpers and plumes; she positioned herself behind the weapon, letting her small fingers feel for the object until she could pull it into her bound hands.
The blade dug into her skin, flailing as she tried to push the blade into the tape. With slick fingers, Sissy went to work, feeling her binds giving a little at a time until she could finally pull her arms apart. But the moment the girl looked up, she found herself rolling to her side, as Robin slung one of the gunmen in her direction. With the glass digging into her side she watched the man smack right into the wall. Thankfully he stayed there in a heap. "Give me that." Before the child could even right herself, Robin's shadow was looming over her, his gloved fingers snatching the knife from her as he ripped it through the tape that was still around her ankles.
"Robin, watch your six!" No sooner had Batman shouted, did the boy leap up and twist into a roundhouse kick, making the man's head snap back before he sank to the floor. She could see the boys fingers twitching around the blade, tightening and untightening. Did he…want to stab this man? Not sure she even took her next breath; the girl snatched the knife from him as she hopped to her feet. The glass only crunched under her slippers as she made a dash through the smoke, skidding to her knees behind a blood spattered Bruce Wayne.
Seeing the dead man lay not even inches away, Sissy could feel the bile crawling up her throat. No sooner had the child cut through the tape, did Bruce lean over the body. I know what he's doing. They did that with my dad… "Is he-" But he only let his fingers fall from the man's neck, shaking his head as Sissy moved to the woman who was sitting beside him. This woman was so calm; her eyes were big, but still…why wasn't she as bewildered?
"No…he's-" The man shook his head again, as if he were trying to shake off a bad dream but in a split second that slack stoic face was back again. Without a word the girl could see him plucking a large sliver of glass off the floor. Between watching Bruce cut people free and glancing up to see Robin lay someone flat, the girl began to realize that she couldn't find Batman. "Keep cutting, Anabel!" With the room quickly becoming consumed by the flames, the girl had no choice but to continue trying to ignore the itch in the back of her throat and the feel of glass beneath her feet. So this is chaos. With sweat stinging her eyes, she kneeled down to the closest person, slashing through the tape as s quick as she could muster. "Thanks, Kid. Saves me a lot of work." Sissy squatted down behind the next person, glancing up when she heard something clatter to the floor. The man was gone; it was if the smoke had swallowed him up, leaving nothing behind but a two-toned mask.
Robin can do it; I know the kid can get the rest of them to safety. Maybe if Bruce were filling these boots, he'd be doing the same. Maybe the guy expected him to put the others in this burning place first. Isn't that what Del would have expected him to do too? Fuck it, maybe he didn't know what the right thing to do was at this point, but he did know that if he didn't get to Del things were not going to end well. It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, but it's the chaos and death that make the jester of Gotham laugh. Death. Jesus H. Christ. If they thought Bruce almost lost it with Jason…if he lost his daughter…fuck that couldn't happen. He couldn't let that happen.
Feeling the heat of the flames warming him through the suit, he had no choice but wrap himself in that damned heavy ass cape, trying to ward of the fire as he burst through the door that the clown had disappeared into. With the flames flickering behind him, he could see nothing more than smoke curling through the empty halls. Of course he'd been taught better than to assume that the hall was anything but empty. Night vision always told another tale. Spying a body lingering in the shadows, he became a part of the shade himself. By the time the man realized that someone had him in a chokehold it was too late, he was already falling to the floor.
No sooner had the sound of cuff linking together reach his ears did the sound of boots force him to tumble back from his haunches to miss the sudden explosion of gun fire. What the gunmen hadn't expected was for Batman to come running straight for him, narrowly missing the small hunks of metal that were hurling their way toward him. Veering off toward the wall, Dick forced his momentum from his run to help him twist his body in the air. Fucking heavy ass Kevlar.
Hearing the sound of a heavy body landing behind him, the gunman seemed to pause as if for that split second, fear had come to roost. It was all Batman needed to reach out and grab the ends of the gun in the man's hands, forcing it against his throat. Even though he could feel the heat of bullets sliding out of the barrel under his gloved fingers, he held still, pulling until the struggler went completely limp.
Dick was in the midst of letting the body slide to the floor when the sound of applause began to echo through the smoky hall. In the hazy glow he could only see the outline of someone making their way through the gaping hole he'd created. "I see where she gets it." Jason.
"Someone had to teach her." He grunted, as he tightened a zip tie around the man's wrists and ankles.
"You should've warned her."
"About what?" No sooner had he lifted his head to look up at the Red Hood, did he feel something hard and heavy striking him across the head.
"About me."
Try as he may to fight it, Dick felt himself crumbling to the floor. "What are you—"
"I've waited a long time for this; I'm not letting you take it from me." He said, crouching down before him. "Now, I'm going to do what you won't." He added, smacking him on the top of his head. "Sorry, Dickey, but I'm not sorry."
Through the growing blur around his own vision, he could see the man climbing to his feet letting the crowbar in his hand dangle at his side as he moved closer to the body beside him. The still breathing body. "J…don't." But it was too late; the sound of a shot was ringing through his ears, dulling the next to a sound he could only hope was so far away. He could only feel Jason's shadow as the man stepped over him, more than aware of that tell-tale laugh bouncing through the halls. Without another sound, the Red Hood slipped deeper into the shadows letting that maniacal laugh pull him deeper into the darkness until Batman couldn't make out a trace of him. Either that or his eyes had finally given up the fight to stay open. Oh, but he could still hear those words echoing through the hall.
"It takes a monster to catch a monster."
Her breastbone felt like a bruise. Maybe it was from the ache in her lungs, lungs that had been so unwilling to breathe or maybe it was just the man's shoulder blade jabbing her in the chest again and again. I swear, if I get the chance…I'm coming at you with everything I've got you son of a-
"What do you think, Toots? Shall we see if Batsy can find us?" Without warning the floor was rushing toward her, or she was racing for it, but despite the tingling in her bones, Del felt nothing but the grooves of the tile indenting into her skin.
The pool. All it took was a chest full of chlorine soaked air and the girl knew exactly where they were. Leave it to the clown to run to the one place that had copious amounts of water while the rest of it burned. In the soft hum of the pool pump, she watched the man pull out a bag from under one of the lounge chairs. He's been in here before. He's been in our house! The performers were here hours before…this…is all a part of his plan.
Watching him grin at the object he unsheathed from the bag, the nauseating clench of violation was slowly hardening into horror. Bombs. "Oh, you didn't think you were the only one who was gonna receive a present on your birthday, now did ya?" The words seemed to slither out of his mouth like a croon as he set up the devices. Why? Oh, the teen knew the answer. The Joker wanted chaos, death and Batman. Start the other two, and Batman was sure to come. There wasn't a person alive in Gotham who hadn't heard of this party. Gotham's upper crust, charities and children were all in the same place. Oh…it was the perfect event to get a laugh out of his handiwork and he had all that time to plan it. Fuck, it was nauseating.
As the clown pulled her off the floor by her tapped wrists, Del could feel the sweat beginning to bead down her back. "Batsy's not gonna know what hit 'em!" he crowed, spinning her around, not caring that the girl was all but fumbling out of her shoes or that he was nearly dragging her on the floor.
"Oh, trust me he knows what hit him." Jason! Even as the room blurred together from blue to black she knew he was there, even if she couldn't see him. All of a sudden everything stopped and the Joker's arm was cutting across her throat, pinning her to his body.
"You know…when I wore that number it was classy." The words cut through the air with such bitterness that Del could feel it jabbing her. No, wait…that was a gun. Aw, fuck sticks.
"Classy? Or old?"
"You know what? You're not that amusing."
The sound of a bullet blasting from the barrel almost sounded like a flash-bang going off by her head. It was in that shrill ringing she could see the flashes of fire flicker through the dimness like lightning. And yet, somehow the Red Hood managed to dodge every shot as he came barreling from the doorway, hopping over lounge chairs and spiraling through the air to miss the bullets. You may not get another chance. He's preoccupied.
Without warning, the girl swung her head back as hard as she could, wincing when she felt the back of her skull colliding into the bottom of the clown's mouth. "You little bitch!" The words felt like a growl as he shoved her, spitting blood and fragments of his yellowed teeth at her feet. In that split second the gun wasn't on the man in the mask. No. It was pointed at her. The floor was saturated; small blue tiles were now running red. It's too much for a couple of teeth. In the haze of Jason's return fire Del couldn't even feel the clown's oversized shoe crushing into her chest, or the feel of her body smacking through the surface of the water—but she could feel it crushing her as she sank to the bottom like a stone.
Everything was burning, her nose, her lungs and her eyes. And yet, the girl could only peer up through the water as bullets continued to rain down. Trying to avoid the stray bullets that were piercing the pool floor Del shoved herself along the bottom, letting gravity drag her deeper into the water as the floor gave away.
The brilliant shade of blue was slowly turning that old familiar color of a purplish- black, and while her heart hammered away in her ears, Del found herself fighting not to struggle, struggling would just make her drown faster. Feeling her knuckles brush against metal, the girl found herself craning her neck to peer through the murky light. The drain! Maybe if I… Pressing her wrists into the beveled edge, the girl could feel the metal cutting into her skin, but at least the binds were loosening bit by bit. Duct tape was no match for water and a rough edge. But just As Del could feel the tape coming free, her lungs caved under the strain, sending the last of her air out into the water in one hapless breath. The darkness had finally won.
She could feel the smoke scorching her throat long before she could see the flames. "Just a moment, Miss Cleary." Feeling Alfred's thing fingers digging into her arm, Sam stopped, pressing the heavy weight of the shotgun into her side. Watching the man rip a heap of towels out of the closet only to carry them into the bathroom, the girl began to understand. To keep the flames at bay. As one of those soaked towels was tossed over her, the girl had to fight not shudder as the water began to make its way down her back. But it wasn't the water or the crack of flames that made her stomach knot itself. It was the guttural scream coming out of that ten year old child in a cape. "Do try not to hit the bird." She heard Alfred murmur, as he rushed down the stairs with an arm full of dripping towels.
"Not a problem." She said, heavy up the heavy gun and steadying it on the banister. It took a few breaths but she focused the scope, trying not to rush for the trigger as she watched Robin become over taken by a mob. Steady, Sammy, Steady. Not wanting the rise and fall of her chest to move the gun, the girl took a deep scorching breath and squeezed the trigger. The body fell to the floor faster than the blast could echo through the room. Before any of them could turn their heads, Sam was already racking another round into the chamber, aiming and firing.
She could only hold her breath as Robin hit the ground, slinging his staff across the floor. With her fingers fumbling for more rounds, Sam could feel her lungs aching to breathe until something caught her eye—something that was small, frilly and quick.
The sound of another gun made her heart beat faster, and yet the girl could only stare as Robin was brought to the floor. No. No! They were almost free! They almost had the entire room emptied!Making it quick like a rabbit the child darted for the still spinning staff, snatching it before a clown could snap it up. "Give it here, Kiddy." Not sure of what else to do, Anabel slid her hands down the staff trying to weigh it in her small hands before she whacked the man right in the crown jewels. With the guy crumbling to the floor cupping his pride the girl made a break for Robin. No sooner did his gloved fingers wrap around the edge, did the girl feel the weight of a wet towel and the grip of an arm ripping her from the floor. Another shot cracked through the foyer letting another body collapse behind them in a heap.
The sudden feel of the cold made her skin feel raw, and yet, pressed almost painfully into Bruce Wayne's side, the girl could smell nothing but smoke. "That's nearly everyone, Master Bruce." Even in the wash of sirens and swirling lights, the child could still see the specks of blood that had dried to the man's face. Oh, the way he was looking at that house. She could only tug on Bruce's limp fingers and try not to squirm when he finally looked down. Del? The man's hands felt rough as they clasped over her fingers, stalling her signing as he kneeled down in the wet grass.
"Don't go back inside, you understand?"
Hearing the sound of a cough the girl didn't even bother to nod, but rather found herself craning to look around him. For a split second he seemed hopeful as he twisted about to see who was coming out of the smoke. He immediately got to his feet, helping Sam get to a safe spot on the lawn as the fire crews began to worm around her.
"A gun?" Sam gave a small half smile, letting the man practically drag her down the stairs.
"12 gage Ballistic bean bag rounds. They got enough kick to make a person see the back of their eyelids." That's right, Batman didn't do guns. But his butler sure as hell did. The words only seemed to make the man frown. "Del?"
"Not yet."
Oh, she could tell, she could tell he wanted to go inside and look for her himself. But even as Bruce set her free and made a motion for the door once more, the teen snagged them by the sleeve of his tux. "They'll find her; you getting in the way is not going to help."
Even in this dimness she could see that incredulous look souring his face, a look she would've been afraid of a few weeks back. "I'm-"
"Not tonight you aren't." But he certainly was a worried parent. His children were still inside. "They can do it, I know it."
"Who are you? Alfred 2.0?"
Sam thought to retort when a worried voice cut over the murmur. "Bruce!" It was enough to make them both turn to the man who was hobbling toward them on his cane. "Have you seen Tim? I can't find him."
Dick! With his dress shoes sliding through the blood on the floor, Tim found himself hopping over the bodies to get to the fallen bat. Sure the smoke was burning the back of this throat, and maybe something was soaking through the knees of his pants, but what did it matter? Digging through his pockets he let his fingers fist around the small tube of smelling salts as he pushed the groaning man over. "C'mon Bats." No sooner did he catch the flicker of the man's eyelids, did Tim pull himself from his haunches. "What the hell happened?"
"Hood."
"WHAT?! That-" But as Tim started for the darkness ahead of them, Batman's gloved fingers curled into the back of his coat.
"Nuh-uh. His ass is mine."
"And the Joker?"
"Leave him for the real Robin." Even with Batman's fingers fisted around the collar of his coat, Tim managed to turn, narrowing his eyes at the blood spattered Boy Wonder.
"You little-"
"We don't have time for that." With Dick's heavy hand bearing down on his shoulder, Tim had no choice but to bite back the words as he watched that smugness roll across Robin's face. "We all have a job to do. The second you can get to Del, take it."
"Already planning on it. Why do you think I'm still here?" He hissed, shrugging him off as they trudged through the darkness, letting the sound of gunfire and madness lead the way. "I'm not leaving without her."
He didn't know what he expected to see moving in the dimness of the pool's reflection, but it wasn't this. In the last flash of gunfire, he found the Red Hood advancing on the clown, batting the gun from his pale fingers with a sound that he wasn't sure was human. The gun flew from the clown's fingers, clattering to the pool of blood at the clown's feet. But even as Batman and Robin cut around him, Tim could only search the dimness. Del, where the hell was Del?! "By the end of the night you're going to remember who I am, you scum sucking pile of shit!"
The room only seemed to echo with the sound of metal breaking bone, and yet here he was ripping off his coat, eyes on the water as if it were holding secrets. He couldn't see her there and yet every part of him was propelling him forward. Without any provocation other than an ache to know, he dove. There she was, bobbing just above the floor of the pool. With a chest full of air, relief and panic, he scooped up and broke for the surface, where the sound of turmoil was waiting. "How does that feel?! You remember me now?!
"C'mon, Del, C'mon." Under the shadow of a crowbar, Tim shoved the girl out of the pool, feeling the bite of panic as her head lolled to the side. She's not breathing. Shit! Shit! Shit! Scrambling to free himself from the water, the boy sank to his knees beside her trying to ignore the tremor in his hands as he tilted her head back. This wasn't how it was it was supposed to be. This wasn't what he imagined when he would finally place his mouth on hers, forcing her chest to rise with the force of his breath. With the thoughts still teasing him, he had no choice but to lace his fingers over his fist and watch her body jolt under his hands as he counted chest compressions.
"Red, this isn't going to solve-"
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the Red Hood drawing his gun with his free hand to point it at the bat. He wasn't going to let go of that crowbar. "What the fuck do you know? Huh, Batman?" Glancing up Tim could only watch as Dick dropped down and swept the legs out from under the masked man. No sooner did he crash to the floor did the Joker see the chance to flee. Or he did until Robin broke his path, expectantly smacking that staff into his hand. But Tim couldn't keep his eyes on them, he only pressed his lips to Del's once more, trying not to taste regret with every breath he shoved into her lungs.
"Oh, COME ON! You're too stubborn to be taken out by a fucking clown!" There's no way, there's no way the Joker could be the end of her! "BREATHE DAMN IT!" Midway through his count and the sound of his rising panic, her body jumped beneath his hands giving to the sound of choking gasps.
"I resent that."
Tim didn't even lift his head to the man as he turned Del to her, side, feeling her shake under his hands as she coughed up water. "Oh yeah? I'll give you something to resent." Huh, what'd ya you know, Demon Spawn and I can finally agree on something. So much so that when the child's raging cry echoed over Dick's threats, he pretended he couldn't hear the sound of a muscles and bones giving in under the weight of a blunt object. The kid could try and pretend he hated Del's guts all he wanted, but in the end, it only boiled down to one thing. The clown had taken the wrong hostage.
"You almost let her die! Are you so blinded by your hatred that you can't see that?! Is that the price you wanted to pay?!" Watching Dick rip the crowbar from Jason's hands, Tim could feel his breath catching in his lungs as the thing came down on the man's side. It was almost as if he could hear the sound of his ribs breaking. And just like that Batman tossed the crowbar into the pool. "Kingdom Come, remember?" Feeling Del's fingers digging into his leg, Tim ripped his gaze from them letting his head tilt toward the girl's soft gurgling. Even as he tried to still her, she was still fighting to stand.
"Bomb." The word was nothing more than a hoarse whisper, and yet it was enough to make his blood run cold.
"What?"
"BOMB!" At the sound of the word tearing from her, the room went silent…say for the manic echoes of a madman.
"And time's almost up! In 3…2…" The stillness that had creeped in had turned into nothing but frenzied motion. In the space of those words, the water was broken again with the weight of Jason's body as he was heaved into the water. Del could only glance up long enough to see Dick rushing in to grab Damian before she was rolled right back into the pool, pressed into Tim's chest as a brilliant flash of flames and smoke rippled out just over their heads.
Clawing for the surface, Del found nothing but flames, smoke and the crowing of a clown. Struggling to keep her head above water the girl clung to the side of the pool, feeling her hands rifle through the tacky pools of blood for the gun as the battered clown jogged for exit.
"Playtime is over when I say it's over!"
"Del, no!" But the girl squeezed the trigger, watching the man fold at the knee as a bullet ripped through the back of his kneecap. Just as the water rose over her head again, she could feel Jason twisting the gun out of her hands while Tim was hoisting her back up, letting her shaking body fall to the floor. God why couldn't she stand up? Fighting to get to her hands and knees, she could feel Jason's shadow looming over her as he pulled himself out of the pool. But Tim reached her first, stopping him from advancing any further.
"You've done enough don't you think?"
"Del…"
Clinging to Tim to keep herself upright, Delilah let him pull her arm around his shoulder. "Not…now…Jase… not…now." The words felt like they were just tumbling out of her mouth. Jesus, all she wanted was for the room to stop spinning. But as Tim helped her to the door she could see Batman's cape splaying out across the floor next to that thing in the purple suit.
"I didn't kill him..." She uttered.
"Why couldn't you aim for something practical? Like his head?"
Tilting her head back to look at the red masked man felt like a bad idea. It just made all the blood rush to her ears. "Because…death's just an easy way out for him." She murmured, half watching Damian as he shoved Jason to the side to take up her other slack arm and half watching Batman as he hoisted the clown up by a pair of handcuffs.
"Party Pooper."
Delilah wasn't sure when she lost the sound of Jason's boots; she only realized he wasn't there following them anymore. With her arms awkwardly stretched out between Tim and Robin, she hobbled slowly through the charred remains of the first floor. The fire hadn't reached every corner, but it had certainly left its mark. Cutting through the fire crews and the still glowing embers, Del's lungs greedily took in the winter air as she staggered out into a world of lights and blanketed survivors.
"There they are!" The girl could barely hobble down the stairs before she felt her body slam into a wall, a wall that was layered in stiff cloth and smelled of fire and blood. Half aware of his sigh of relief and the mournful murmur of what was left of the turmoil, Del collapsed into the hold of her father's arms.
"I really…really…hate clowns." She muttered, trying to ignore how weak she felt, clinging to him like a child who was just about to weep, and yet she only watched the uniforms build around the bat as they collected the clown.
"There's still quite a few still waiting inside. Zip-tied and ready to go." But just on the fringe of her blurring vision she could see that tuff of a tutu bouncing up the steps. I don't even have the strength to lift my head…
Feeling someone snatch up his hand, Damian felt a jolt shuddering through his body. His first instinct was to rip his hand away and yet here Ana was pulling on him. Didn't she know who he was? What he was capable of? When he didn't budge, her hands went to the air. Come with me! Please!
The boy immediately rolled his eyes. Why? But as his own fingers stilled, the girl paused, glaring up at him as she tapped her arm. The same spot he knew to be scarred with the unfinished mark of circles. Damian only pried her fingers off and hopped down the stair, twisting his head to glance at the confused girl. "Well then?!" It was all he needed to say to have her scampering down the stairs and weaving him through the crowd that had taken up the front lawn of Wayne Manor.
He thought to ask her where the hell she was taking him as she paused at the back end of ambulance, but the voices reached him first. "And you don't know who did this to you?"
"No! It was all happening so fast. It was some guy in a clown mask!"
Pushing around the uniforms, Damian eyed the sobbing ballerina and the bubbling red burns protruding from her arm. Circles…nine of them.
"When?!" The young woman only seemed blindsided by Robin's snapping voice. Flinching under the gloved fingers of the paramedics, she smeared her tears on her cheek.
"I-I don't know. It was before they rounded us up...I-" But the boy was shoving his way back through the small group of officers only to have Grayson fall to his side.
"We have a problem."
"No kidding. Or does it take a bunch of clowns and shiny lights for you to make that deduction?"
"Someone let him out. He didn't break out." Grayson wasn't walking beside him anymore; it was enough to make him stop in his tracks.
"Who?"
"You already know the answer to that, don't you? Gordon just showed me the surveillance footage." Standing there in the damp grass, Damian could feel his fingers gripping into fists. "They think the league has a hand in this somehow. "
"Go ahead, ask me…ask me if I knew! I'm sure you're already assuming that I-"
Batman's shadow seemed to shorten with a sigh. "Did you?"
"NO!" He roared, half aware of the pintsized ballerina that was standing so cautiously off to his side. With a deep breath Damian clenched his fists and untangled them again. Mother. "We have another problem, he said suddenly, his words much calmer than before. "One of the ballerinas was branded with the nine circles in the midst of the panic. They were here, right under our noses." In the flicker of lights changing from blue to red and back again, he could see Grayson clenching his jaw, but a certain voice had stolen his attention.
"Del, what's wrong?" But across the courtyard, the boy could only see his sister folding limply to the ground bringing their father to the grass with her. "Del!" The closer he got he realized that his father's hands were slick with blood. His eyes immediately went to his side, the same side his sister's body was resting against just moments ago. It too was blood soaked. The realization felt heavy on his chest, heavier than he ever conceived it would be. Del had been bleeding out from a gunshot wound all that time. His mother might just get what she wanted. Strange, in that second, watching their father press his hands over the gaping hole as he called for help he realized…it wasn't what he wanted.
A/N: And there you have it! I'm gonna admit, there's quite a bit in this chapter that plays a role in the things that take place in the sequel. I also wanted to put out there, that I'm looking for a beta reader to double check the updated chapters when the time comes. I know my chapters are quite long. I'm hoping that once I complete the whole thing I can shorten it down some. So if anyone's interested, please feel free to message me. Next Chapter: A price too steep - Gee, I wonder who that's going to be centered around? Be prepared, Talia has some things to answer for. Any questions or concerns, please feel free to share them!
