XLV
The Familiar Dance
"Barbara, I wanted to thank you for all your help. It's been a very difficult couple of days… And this oatmeal is amazing." Bruce Wayne had witnessed a side of Barbara he had never seen before… the domestic side. She had taken over meals and counseled poor Alfred through his time of grief. As he ate his curried, savory oatmeal with apples and caramelized onions, he couldn't help but admire this tenacious woman - who made the most unique breakfasts he had ever had. Barbara Gordon could really cook.
Wayne had spent most of his time with his comatose wife, speaking with his mother-in-law, learning of Azarath and the terror that was Trigon. Had Raven shut herself off from the world to prevent her father from gaining access to it? Arella questioned their relationship and warned him of the consequences. The bright and unique meals had provided a nice change from the sadness, helplessness and anger he felt for his wife.
"You're welcome, Bruce. How is Raven doing?"
"The same, I'm afraid. Still comatose. Alfred managed to put in an IV drip to keep her hydrated, but he says that if she doesn't get better soon, we'll have to bring in professional help."
If there's anything I can do to…" Barbara had to cut short as the image of her father popped in front of her with the word 'incoming' on the wi-screen. She had explained the situation to the Commissioner yesterday about staying with the Waynes so that he wouldn't worry.
"Sorry, I should take this." Bruce smiled at her and continued devouring the curry dish. "Accept… Hi Dad, what's up?"
"Sorry to bother you sweetheart. Were you alone?" It looked like her father was calling from his office.
"Bruce is here with me. I'm inflicting another of my breakfasts on him."
"I see. Well, I suppose this pertains to him as well. I wanted to let you know that Edward Nigma was found dead in his cell last night. The story will break after the president's speech. It was a very elaborate assassination, and luckily it looks like none of mine were involved."
"I'm sorry to hear about Nigma. For all his eccentricities and moral failings, he didn't deserve that."
"Yes… The coroner found a very strange tattoo on him as well. Perhaps a riddle? I was wondering if this phrase meant anything to you:
"The varied star,
Montanari saw,
It all begins,
With the Hebrew R"
Barbara drummed her fingers on the dining table in deep thought for five seconds. "Montanari's star… that's one of the stars in the Perseus constellation… an eclipsing binary, Algol. Supposed to represent Medusa's head. Let me bring up a screen… the Hebrew R is the twentieth letter in the Hebrew alphabet… Resh. It says it may be used as an abbreviation for Rabbi or teacher."
"…And what do you make of that?" inquired her father.
"Algol Resh... Beats me, Dad." Barbara was taking off her apron.
"I'll have the IT department cross reference, then."
"Have your detectives look at any dealings or meetings Nigma may have had with LexCorp as well."
"You never did trust the government. But you're still my favorite daughter, you know that right?"
"And you're my favorite Dad. The president is going to start her speech in a minute. It's kind of work. Was there anything else?"
"Nope. Thanks, Babs." The call ended and Barbara watched Bruce nearly spew curry sauce across the table.
"Babs?" Her boss seemed amused, grinning from ear-to-ear.
"Yes, Bruce. And just for that, you're cleaning up. Washing dishes would do you a world of good you know."
"Yes, Babs." He was actually giggling like a schoolboy.
"That's Miss Gordon to you, buster... Would you mind if I watched the president's speech in here while you clean up?" Barbara couldn't help but be inspired by Lois Lane. A tough-as-nails journalist who had gone onto become the first female president of the United States. Her running mate was a heartless jerk, but the conflict-of-interest provisions with LexCorp had benefited Wayne Industries immensely.
"I'd like to hear it as well." There was a chill to Bruce's voice.
Barbara noticed that Bruce had taken on a hostile tone when he talked of the president and Vice President. It was evident he held a grudge against them for Richard, who had been swept under the rug like some dirty, American secret. She knew it pained Bruce that Dick had died serving his country, only to have Captain Grayson's service struck from the records. She doubted he would ever truly heal from that.
They watched Lois give her speech about their place in the stars and the need for peace. Of course, President Lane was unable to acknowledge that it was Richard who had been present when the device went off. That would have meant war. Still, her words brought hope for the shared future of humanity.
As the President fielded questions from the gallery, Barbara relented and helped Bruce with the dishes. When General Mason began to talk of the latest information in Kahndaq, both Bruce and Barbara took a seat. He mentioned Geiger readings regarding unconventional radiation that was less dangerous to humans but still warranted a worldwide effort to contain the spread.
When one of the secret service agents by the president suddenly flew off like a rocket into the sky, Barbara's jaw almost hit the floor. She turned to Bruce and heard him utter 'Big Blue' as they watched him fly into the clouds and bring down someone in an elaborate flight suit only seconds later.
And then they watched the unthinkable.
Big Blue fell from the sky like a discarded god. The man drew a rifle from his suit and then… The president was shot by this man suspended in midair. That's when the crowd went wild. Cameras were jostled and flipped to different angles. Generals and politicians scattered or flattened while agents took up defensive positions and started shooting at the sky.
Voices on the broadcast kept repeating 'The president's been shot! The president's been shot!' while the sky-assassin was being gunned down, suddenly free falling. Barbara and Clark watched as he fell and then caught sight of another flying person, in yellow, green and red, scooping up someone from the fleeing crowd.
"Mister Miracle?…" uttered a surprised Bruce. They watched as he flew straight up holding a bald man who could have been the Vice President. The reporter was exclaiming her utter disbelief of this surreal scene when the screen suddenly went bright white.
And then there was no signal.
Barbara and Bruce both stood in disbelief. For a full minute they stared at the blank screen floating above the kitchen table. Finally, she wrapped her arms around him, because she needed to hold someone right now. It caught Bruce by surprise how good she felt against him. Certainly not right, but strangely welcoming. After muttering expletives and gently thumping her forehead into his chest… Barbara looked up into his deep, sad blue eyes. Chemical reactions lit the air like invisible fireworks between that gaze…
"I've got work to do…" They spoke at the same time and turned away from one another - as though this act of parting were choreographed.
This thing could never be.
Author's Note:
75 FanFic points to Hawthornbranch who guessed the "Riddle of Algol" in record time.
Algol is referred to as the 'demon star' (in the constellation of Perseus). In 1667 the Italian astronomer Geminiano Montanari was the first to record that Algol varied in brightness, thus 'Montanari saw'.
The 'Hebrew R' refers to Resh which is pronounced as Raysh. If it all starts with the Hebrew R, you have "Resh Algol" or pronounced properly:
Ra's al Ghul.
Dunh dunh daaaa…