The Manor was unusually quiet without boy's laughter to fill the vacant emptiness. Barbara was a bit stunned to find that as she moved through the empty halls. Everything was too clean. There were no large hand prints on the mirrors on the walls, no dirty sneaker prints on the floors, no mess in the kitchen, and no pervy comments. Wayne Manor was truly deserted of human life.

"Alfred?" Barbara called, looking in all corners of the kitchen, before moving back out towards the main hall. "Alfred, are you here?" she pushed her chair along, stopping at the foot of the stairs.

The elderly man in question poked his head around the corner of the hall up the stairs. He look pleased to see her, but the pleasure only lessened the weight on his shoulders a bit. "Ah, Miss Barbara." Alfred said calmly as he strode down the stairs. His face was tired, the wrinkles sagging more so than usual. In fact, his entire being seemed to drag along despite his perfect Englishman posture. "I was wondering when I could expect a visit from you."

Barbara didn't say anything, merely bit her lip and glanced towards the T.V. room. His favorite room…

"How's Bruce?" she asked. She moved backwards as the old man finally reached her at the bottom and they both moved towards the kitchen.

Alfred sighed. "Not well." He responded. "If he is not out at night, he is down there searching. I keep telling him he must rest and he must eat, but he will not listen."

Barbara looked away. She herself didn't want to believe it. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she'd always known that this was a dangerous job. It was hard not to know when Bruce was there reminding her day after day. She knew that the people they dealt with were dangerous (hence her paralysis) and she knew that people like them basically wore a giant target on their chests. Barbara knew all of that subconsciously. But this was completely different. She was unprepared for this to say the least.

And it hurt more than she knew how to deal with.

But right now she wanted Bruce to be okay, and she wanted Alfred to be okay. And God knows how Dick is. Barbara didn't even have the nerve to pick up the phone and call him to ask…

"I could try talking to him if you want to take a break, Alfred." Barbara said, looking up at him. It was true that Bruce had a soft spot for Barbara, especially since the loss of her legs. And maybe that soft spot would help him see that he needed a break, but she sincerely doubted it. And Alfred did too, if his chuckle meant anything.

"Oh, Miss Barbara," he said, slinging an arm around her shoulder. "He won't listen. He's grieving, as we all are." Alfred looked up towards the stairs, as though seeing the ghost of a boy with pitch black hair jumping from the banister and swinging from the chandelier. "How are you, madam?" he asked, turning his sad gaze downwards again. He looked into Barbara's eyes, and she knew she couldn't lie to him. But she would anyway, if only for her own sake.

She bit her lip and averted her gaze. She found herself looking back towards the T.V. room and lost in a memory…

"Finish him!"

Barbara walked into the room, a dark-haired head poking over. She crossed her arms across her chest, smirking and leaning against the door frame. The air conditioner in the Manor had broken a few days ago, and everyone was dressing down accordingly. Barbara, who had been thoroughly unaware of this, showed up to the Manor to study with Jason wearing a purple tank top and black skinny jeans. She had tied her bright red hair in a pony tail.

Jason was furiously hitting buttons on the Play Station remote, his tongue hanging goofily out the side of his mouth and his brow creased in concentration. He was wearing nothing but a pair of Batman themed boxers.

Barbara walked into the room and leaned over the couch behind him, completely unbeknownst to Jason. "You know we have to study, right?" she whispered sensually in his ear, getting a sufficient jump and a small shriek of terror from him. She laughed as she circled the couch and stood in front of him, despite his protests about wanting to finish the game.

"Come on, Barbie!" he cried as he moved his head in every direction possible so he could see around Barbara. However, when she popped a hip out and placed her hand on it, he stopped these actions in favor of moving his aqua eyes up and down her curves. "It is the middle of July. Do we really need to study right now?" he asked after the video game announced his death in its deep voice.

Barbara laughed, offering her hand to the shirtless Boy Wonder (which she couldn't help but notice that, for a 14 year old, Jason had quite a pack of abs on him). "If you want to skip that grade and go to high school a year early we do." She said.

He grabbed her hand, but instead of letting her pull him up, he yanked on her arm until she was seated on the couch next to her and he was offering her the spare remote. "How about, if I win we go to the cave and fight like men, and if you win, we'll go and study?"He wiggled his eye brows suggestively at her, as though willing her to take the bet.

Barbara smirked and took the controller. "Deal," she said. "But none of that 'two out of three' bull shit you and Dick pull whenever you lose."

"Fine." He smiled.

"Fine." And the game began.

Barbara sighed, the memory fading away. She could still remember the look of defeat on Jason's face when she had completely kicked his ass in the first round. "I'm surviving." She said softly, looking back at Alfred. "It's weird knowing that he won't come and visit me anymore."

Alfred gently squeezed her shoulder and sighed. "He would've been proud to know you are out and about now, though, Miss Barbara."

"Yeah, well I don't want to be." Barbara said. She hadn't left the house since her accident. Not once. Straight home from the hospital and her dad brought her groceries every now and then. It had been a lonely three weeks. Sure, people had come to visit but Barbara had turned them away. She wasn't sure why, but she hadn't wanted to see any one. But then the call from Alfred had come, and suddenly the only person she hadn't turned away was dead and Barbara was pushing her dead legs into a black dress for a funeral.

A single tear rolled down her cheek, and she though she saw one escape from Alfred's eye as well. He bent down and hugged her. "I miss him, Alfred." She said shakily. He lightly patted her on the back as she returned the hug.

"We will all miss him, Miss Barbara." Alfred murmured.

********************************LINE BREAKER!********************************

So there. That right there killed my feels I don't know about yours. I figured since the rest of these chapters will probably either be hot or fluffy, I should make a few that are really sad and gloomy.

Honestly, this chapter started happy and fluffy. But then I thought, why bother having head canons if you can't incorporate them into your stories. So I put my 'Barbara doesn't leave the house until Jason's funeral' head canon here. By the way, if you're upset about the last chapter not updating yesterday, it's because I honestly thought it had updated when it hadn't. That would be my bad. So I apologize, it is up now.

Anyways, I have a beta now so I actually might be a few days late from now on due to writing and then beta-ing and then editing and stuff. It is worth it for better stories though.