Change is coming.

Sometimes a little distraction is exactly what the grieving need. For Harley, putting aside her own heartache to take care of Damian was that distraction. For Dick- trying to stay alive. The Wayne Tower explosions challenged that a little more than he'd have liked.

In the wake of last night's events, Dick and Bruce are left in the dark about the Joker's motives. His actions are escalating and what's worse- Selina's missing. Too much change begins happening all at once, and the batfamily struggles to catch up.

Harley left Damian sound asleep in bed, voices downstairs drawing her out. She walked quietly in the early morning dark down the stairs, a light from the parlor shining across the smooth, gleaming marble floor at the foot of the staircase. No one spoke. It was eerily still, the garbled sounds of a television cutting through the silence like a silver blade.

Dick sat on the couch, his face in his hands and his back to the door as Bruce leaned against the mantelpiece. A reserved, crushing silence hung over the two of them.

"Seven dead," Bruce said quietly. "Two city blocks ruined. And he-" his voice became quiet, his entire body rigid. He suddenly cried out in fury, his hand shooting out and sweeping the photographs off of the mantelpiece. Dick didn't move. Bruce breathed hard, returning his elbow to the mantel and covering his mouth.

Neither of them noticed Harley in the doorway, and she could sense the devastation that had caused the overcast tone in the room; she was terrified to know what had happened.

"And she… If she…" Bruce's voice trembled, his face hidden in his hand. Dick watched him quietly, his throat tight.

"I- I'm sorry. I shouldn't have- I should have been able to do that without help, you should have looked for her…"

Forget her.

Dick closed his eyes. His words.

"Look for who?" Harley asked, stepping into the room. She looked at both of them, a feeling of dread in her gut. Dick looked over his shoulder; his left eye and his forehead under his hair was mottled with bruises and there was a cut at his hairline, taped shut. He looked away again, running his hand through his hair.

"Selina," he said quietly. "She- well…" Dick walked toward Harley, catching her arm and guiding her out into the hall. He stopped. "Joker. He wired every floor on Wayne Tower to blow. The top five did, and we stopped the rest, but not in time. One of the bottom floors blew out and the whole building collapsed- The Joker told Bruce that Selina was there. He asked him if he was bluffing or not, so she may not have been, but… A lot of people died, Harley. Good people." Dick looked down.

"No." Harley stepped back. "No." She shook her head. "She... No. He can't have." She looked at Dick, reaching out and gently touching his cheek. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Just a fall. Batman caught me, but we got pretty banged up." He scratched at the bandaging over his shoulder under his t-shirt, and then he took her hand and led her back into the parlor, sinking back onto the couch. She sat close to him, her hand still held tightly in his.

"You haven't been able to reach Selina?" Harley asked Bruce. "Did you try her phone? The tracker in her suit?" He didn't answer, still staring at the fire blankly. Dick bit his lip, watching his father.

"No," he finally said, glancing at them. He did a double take over Harley's shoulder, going white.

"Are you both okay?" Selina asked as she came into the room in a hurry. "I was… well I saw… what happened!?" She stopped when she saw Bruce's expression. "What's wrong?"

"You," he gasped, advancing across the room to her. Selina backed up in shock. He grabbed her shoulders. "Don't ever do that," he snapped before kissing her furiously. "Don't ever disappear like that again." He kissed her again. "Don't ever do that."

"What- Bruce-" Selina caught his face and pushed him back a bit. "What the hell was that? What happened? Tell me," she watched him in alarm, tracing his lips with her finger. "It's okay. I'm fine."

"The Joker. He bombed Wayne Enterprises. We thought you were in the building. I..." He took a deep breath, running his hand through his hair.

"I just went out, I needed to breathe-" she covered her mouth. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry, Bruce. I didn't know."

"Just please let me know next time." He cupped her chin. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, Bruce," she scrutinized his face, a hand on his chest. "But I need to talk to you-"

"-What the hell is he doing?!" Dick stood, pacing the floor. "There's no discernible connection between any of the Joker's actions- it's all chaos, and not in the way it usually is."

"Pain," Harley said quietly. "He want's to cause pain. His goal is to see how far he can push you until you snap. He wants to break the Batman, destroy more completely than any physical wound ever could. And now he knows how to do it." She glanced up at them.

"He's always gone after the people I love, this is nothing new," Bruce pointed out.

"You didn't have Selina then. And he's not targeting you." Harley took a deep breath, sitting up. "He wants to drive Dick past the point of insanity while you're forced to watch his demise." She winced.

"What- me!?" Dick cried, staring at her incredulously. Bruce watched her.

"What did he tell you?"

Harley bit her lip, looking down.

"I'd rather not," she said weakly.

"If he gave you any information at all that could stop something like this from happening again, I need you to tell me." Bruce sat down beside her on the sofa, looking at her earnestly.

"I think it would hurt more than it would help." Harley continued to stare at her lap. Bruce cupped a hand under her chin and lifted her face to look at him.

"Please." Harley turned her head away.

"Well he... talked a lot, and at first my mouth was duct taped, so I couldn't really... but it didn't really matter what I said or did, anyway, he didn't want to be swayed from his goal." She took a deep breath, her foot tapping against the ground. "He told me that... that story about how his wife died, and..." she trailed off, hiding behind her hair. She couldn't meet Dick's eyes, and her face felt hot. "I guess what he wanted... he wanted revenge on you for stealing me away, so he- um- he wanted to do the same thing to you." She pinched her eyes closed, unable to continue. She decided to pretend Dick wasn't there, that he wasn't about to hear something that would crush him. "He wanted Dick to go through the same thing, to know the guilt of not being able to save his wife and daughter, he wanted him to find me dead there, to be consumed with the feeling that he couldn't save us," she said in a rush. "He- he wanted Haly because he knew I would never love him again, and he wanted Batman to live with the pain of his son losing everything and being broken by it. And he wanted Nightwing or Batman to kill him because then he wins. He destroys one of them so thoroughly that one of them finally corrupts themselves, and eventually, the other, and for me to to die alone there thinking no one was-" she choked off, unable to continue. She brought her knees up into her chest, wrapping her arms around them as she hid her face.

Bruce was silent for a bit, and Dick sat down slowly in a chair. "He told you his motive. That's good. I mean-" Bruce glanced at Selina, who gave him a glare. He cleared his throat. "Thank you, Harley. I'll be… Thank you." He smoothed her hair back with the air of a loving father, and then walked across the room to the door. Selina glanced between them and then followed.

Dick felt ill. He didn't know what to say, so he moved over to the couch and put his arms around Harley, holding her to his chest as he pressed his lips against the top of her head.

"I guess it's a good thing he didn't succeed then," he said quietly, his voice shaky. Dick bit his lip. If this is what the Joker wants, then I'm not going to give it to him, he thought, steeling himself.

"He asked me if I thought you were coming, and I said yes, but I didn't know," she breathed. She stared into her lap, trying not to cry as her hands tightened around her legs. Those words hurt more than hearing that the Joker was trying to kill his family for him.

"Of course I was coming," Dick breathed, his voice cracking. Had she really lost faith in him?

"I thought you thought that I didn't love you, and that you were mad at me. And you'd gone to the circus, so I didn't know if you even knew I was gone," she started babbling, "and I didn't know if you had a way to find me even, and-" Her arms tightened around her legs as she sniffled. "I was just scared."

"Harley." Dick waited until she looked at him of her own accord. "I will always find you. I'll always be there."

Selina watched Bruce pace the floor in the Batcave, lost in thought. The cave was a bit damp, and cold- she pulled her jacket tighter around her arms. She was content sitting on his desk, watching him, but something nagged at the back of her mind. Her thin brows knit worriedly, and she looked at him, twirling her wedding ring on her finger.

"Bruce," she said quietly. He didn't answer, still lost in thought. Her eyes roamed the cavernous 'room', two empty glass uniform cases beside Dick, Jason, and Tim's old Robin costumes, mounted behind the glass. She could see the trophy room just around a corner of rock. Dick's blue Nightwing uniform, bloodied and singed, was crumpled beside the medical table. Batman's cape and cowl was draped over a chair.

"Bruce," Selina said a little louder. When he turned, she spoke quickly. "I know you need to think to solve this problem but-" she stopped herself. He does need to think. He can't be distracted. And with Haly's funeral tomorrow… "Never mind," she smiled smoothly, getting effortlessly off of the desk and walking towards the elevator.

"No Selina," Bruce called. He walked over to her, catching her hand. "I do need to solve this problem because I thought I lost you today." He tilted her chin up. "But I don't want to lose you by not being here for you either. What is it?"

"It's nothing," she insisted. "It can wait. You know I'll wait for you." She squeezed his hand in hers, smiling gently.

"I know it's not nothing," he countered. "I can tell when you're lying. You don't always have to wait." He kissed her nose. Selina laughed.

"You can't always tell when I'm lying," she purred, a hand sliding up his shoulder to the back of his neck, where her fingers sifted through his dark hair. "If I recall, I got away with it plenty before we were together."

"That was before we were together," he countered, "now stop trying to distract me."

"Oh please, Batman," she smiled, watching him. "Were you really that frightened tonight?" Selina asked him quietly.

"Of losing Dick? Yes. Of losing you?" He squeezed her hand. "Absolutely."

"I'm sorry," she breathed, her lips brushing his. Her pale green eyes flicked up to look at him from under sleepy dark lashes. Selina looked back down to his lips, pressing herself against him. "Let me make it up to you."

"Now I know you're trying to distract me," he chuckled. "What are you so reluctant to tell me?"

"Why do I have to be distracting you?" she asked in frustration, her brow knitting. "We did lose our honeymoon. Maybe I'm just… excited," she shrugged, her hands creeping over his chest. He grabbed her hands.

"What don't you want to tell me?"

Selina's jaw tightened. "What don't you understand about what I just said?" she asked, trying to pull her hands away from his. She instead turned them around in his palms, lacing their fingers together as she kissed the corner of his lips. He sighed.

"Is it something you feel like you can't tell me? Bruce asked, sounding almost hurt.

"I told you, damn it, I don't want to. It's not the right time. You keep secrets from me, what's one from you? As per usual, you can't handle not knowing," she pulled away from him a bit, but her hands remained in his.

"I really can't," he grinned, "so you might as well tell me."

"No, hypocrite," she turned away from him, crossing her arms and cocking a hip. "If you're going to be difficult, then so am I."

"Fine," he sighed, "but don't leave." He pulled her back to the computer and sat her on the desk. "So if you weren't getting blown up, where were you tonight?" he asked conversationally, sitting down in his chair.

"Around," she looked down at the desk, pushing buttons on the keyboard. Bruce looked up at her.

"Does it have anything to do with what you aren't telling me?" he guessed.

"It has everything to do with…" she narrowed her eyes, looking at him. "We could have been on a beach, right now," she sighed. "I had the best bikini." Bruce groaned.

"We'll still go," he assured her. "It'll just be a little delayed."

"No we won't." She cocked her head at him. "Oh well. I got the wedding didn't I? That went unscathed for a while. What was I expecting, marrying the Batman and not having any trouble come with it?"

"I thought you were the trouble," Bruce defended.

"Oh please." She caught his hand and pulled him by the shirt towards her, his chair rolling across the stone. "I cause trouble if and when I want to. You attract it." He tried to back up, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, sliding onto his lap with her legs through the arms of the chair.

"Exactly." He grinned, brushing her bangs to the side. "That's why you're trouble."

"And what are you?" she asked, smiling as she hooked a thumb under his belt buckle.

"Lucky."

"I'm…" she trailed off, the words on the tip of her tongue. Selina looked up at him and then kissed him slowly, one hand at his belt and pulling him closer, the other grasping his face tightly. His hand cupped the back of her neck while the other pulled at her back, situating her on his lap. Selina kissed him more fervently, relieved to have dropped the subject. He didn't need one more thing to worry about. Bruce felt her nails dig into his cheek a bit. He broke away with a gasp.

"Now what were you about to tell me?" He smirked. Selina's jaw tightened, her teeth bared as she slipped her fingers into his jeans and dove forward, kissing him hungrily again. She wasn't strong enough to overpower him, but her other hand at the back of his head held his lips to hers with all her strength. Bruce moaned, his hand clutching at her back. He broke the kiss off, leaning his head back as he panted. "Damn it," he swore.

Selina grinned triumphantly against his lips and then left a trail of bite marks down his neck. She kissed his ear. "I told you. You just attract trouble." Pressing herself against him, she kissed where she'd bit him, closing her eyes.

"No," he shook his head, "I love trouble." He kissed her gently. "Now what is so important to you that you won't tell me?" Selina stared at him, and then she looked down, shaking her head.

"I don't want this to add to your stress," she breathed, cupping his face with both of her hands. She stared into his eyes worriedly. "Promise me that you won't make a big deal out of it. And we can't tell anyone. Not now." Her lips met his again.

"Selina?" He watched her carefully. She exhaled against his lips gently.

"I know you said- I know we talked about- I mean four sons and a daughter is a lot already- Bruce, I'm pregnant." Selina's eyes widened a bit, and she covered her mouth as if it finally sank in when the words were said out loud. Bruce stared at her, his mouth hanging open.

"Okay so I left Ivy up in the library," Jason called as soon as he stepped out of the elevator. "I didn't think you'd like her being down here. Harley Quinn and Catwoman have, so we could make a tango out of it, but maybe later. Did you know your building blew up?" he asked, looking at Bruce while his thumb pointed over his shoulder. "It's gone. So I did a patrol past Dick and Harley's house. They're not there. Is everything okay?" He blinked at Bruce and Selina. "Is this a bad time?"

"Yes," Bruce choked.

"No," Selina said, not looking at Jason as she stroked Bruce's cheek. She stood and walked past him towards the elevator. "Go ahead, Jason. I've missed you," she smiled over her shoulder at him. "The house isn't the same. Don't bother Damian when you come back upstairs, he's not feeling well. Don't stay out too long crime fighting."

The elevator doors closed, and Bruce still stared at the wall in silence. Jason snapped in front of his face.

"Hey, are you going to answer me? Primarily about the everything being okay thing, but a little about the tango thing, and I'm still a bit confused as to whether this is a bad time."

"Everything is fine, no, and yes," Bruce stood, looking more tightly wound than usual. "The evening was… well it wasn't exactly good. Minimal casualties, and only one that was…" he trailed off. "Dick will fill you in."

"Well fine then," Jason muttered. "I won't even make a crack about the 'Dick will fill you in thing'." He mock saluted before heading back to the elevator.