For a moment, there is bliss.
It was a calm night, followed by a calm morning. Dick is focused and ready to work; he wants to work. He doesn't want to be weak anymore. No one blames him but himself, however, and his family continues to keep an eye on him in the event of another panic attack.
Bruce, however, has more pressing matters to think of. Harley Quinn was working with someone last night. Little does he know, that someone stands beside him. Is there another traitorous siren in their midst? He has to focus on the Joker's plan, and with another disturbance, he may just get a clue.
I can't move.
Dick tried to pry his arm out from under Damian where the boy was curled up against his side, but he didn't want to wake him. He tried to roll over, only to nearly land on Tim. "When did you crawl in here?!" Dick muttered, relaxing in between them. He sighed, the light blocked out by the curtains. Damian mumbled in his sleep and rubbed his nose against Dick's shirt. Tim snored loudly. Dick smiled and closed his eyes happily. He slowly began to tug his arm out from under Damian, lifting himself up on his elbow. He carefully stood up on the bed, trying to figure out how to get down, when he finally just jumped, doing a graceful flip and landing silently on the floor. Dick looked over his shoulder. Damian and Tim still slept soundly on the bed, and he smiled and stood, walking to the door.
Humming as he walked down the hallway, Dick's socked feet padded along the carpet. He'd slept a lot better than he'd thought he would. He tapped on Bruce's door and then pushed it open.
"Bruce?" he asked softly.
"-Dick-?!" Bruce cried, and a batarang hit the wall by his head. He ducked back out of the room and slammed the door behind him, hearing Selina laugh from the other side of the closed door.
"I'm sorry!" Dick shouted, feeling his cheeks flush. "You're just never in there in the mornings- what in the hell are you doing with your utility belt- screw it, I don't want to know!" he covered his ears and walked down the hallway again, going to find Alfred. He wandered down to the kitchen.
"Alfred? Are you down here?" Dick asked, running a hand through his hair.
"Over here Master Dick," Alfred called. Dick crossed to the pantry and poked his head around the corner.
"What's for breakfast?" He smiled. He looked much better than he had before, more color in his cheeks and the dark circles under his eyes had faded. The sleep had helped.
"There is a plate of fresh chocolate chip pancakes on the counter," Alfred told him as he emerged with more cooking supplies. Dick's grin broadened.
"You're perfect, Alfred. You're the best." He said as he took the entire plate with him to the kitchen table. "How did you sleep?"
"Just fine once everyone stopped wandering the halls." Alfred started mixing together more pancake batter. Dick groaned.
"It's impossible to get everyone here to settle down at the same time, sorry Al. At least I got Damian out of your hair." He smiled, shoving half a pancake in his mouth.
"And Master Tim as well I saw."
"Yeah it's gonna be…" Dick's smile faded. He looked up at Alfred. "Well, shit. When they wake up they'll kill each other-" He got up, and then hesitated. He pointed at the pancakes. "Don't take these. I'll be back for them-" Dick ran off up the stairs, running back toward his room to check on them. When he threw open the door, Damian turned to look and Tim threw Damian off of him. He tumbled off of the bed.
"Damian what the hell!?" Dick snapped. Tim coughed, rubbing his neck where Damian's hands had been around it. The boy's head popped up from the other side of the bed.
"What is he doing here?!" Damian demanded. Tim inhaled shakily and then coughed uncontrollably again.
"He's my brother too, Damian," Dick said calmly, and then looked at Tim. "You okay?"
"I'm okay."
"He was hugging me!" Damian snapped in disgust.
"I thought you were Dick!" Tim cried. "I was half asleep!"
"Guys," Dick pointed out. "We've got work to do. And chocolate chip pancakes are downstairs. Can you get over your problems?"
"The only way to get over my problem is to kill Drake," Damian muttered.
"Well if you kill him, Bruce and I will hate you forever, and you can pretend that wouldn't hurt you as much as you like, but it would. Now come on. Pancakes. Everyone make sure to pound on Bruce's door as we run past." Dick retorted, smiling as Tim hauled himself out of bed.
"Why?" Tim yawned as Damian elbowed his way past.
"To piss him off," Dick laughed. "But he'll be really pissed, so we should probably run." Damian wandered out into the hallway before the two of them and stopped outside his father's door. He pounded it with his little fist before bolting, leaving Dick and Tim standing there. They looked at each other in terror as Bruce shouted in anger from the other side of the door. They sprinted down the hall, slamming on the door one after each other and then sprinting down the hallway, their laughter trailing behind them as they launched into the open foyer. Tim leapt up onto the banister and slid down it, and Dick vaulted over the railing, flipping and then landing on the carpet beside Tim. The wound in his side pinching painfully. They heard Bruce's door slam open behind them.
"Shit-" Tim laughed, and they sprinted toward the kitchen after Damian. Dick and Tim stumbled into the kitchen, and Alfred raised an eyebrow at them. Silently he pointed to the pantry where Damian was hiding. Dick and Tim stumbled after him, crouching in the dark pantry.
"He's going to be so pissed…" Tim whispered, and Dick wrapped a hand around his mouth.
"Shh. Bats hear well, remember?" The two of them collapsed into suppressed giggles.
"Alfred!" Bruce yelled as he stormed into the kitchen.
"Good morning Master Wayne. I trust you slept well."
"As well as a cat in front of a fireplace," Tim muttered.
"With a cat's more like it," Dick snorted. The three of them trembled with laugher.
"Where are they?" Bruce demanded.
"I haven't the faintest idea what you mean," Alfred replied cooly.
"Where are the boys, Alfred?" he pressed angily.
"I'm afraid the only things in here are eggs," Alfred told him pouring some pancake batter into a skillet. "But if you are hungry, perhaps you would like to take some breakfast back for you and Miss Kyle."
Bruce hesitated. "That would be nice, Alfred. Thank you." He said, and they heard his footsteps coming toward the pantry. He flicked the lights on and saw the three of them crouching there.
"Oh look. The eggs hatched into a trio of Robins."
Dick stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter. Tim did the same, and even Damian smiled, trying to hide his giggles.
"I'm sorry," Tim choked through his laughter.
"Uh huh," Bruce grunted, grabbing some bagels. "By the way, Alfred moved the cookies to the top shelf." He turned the light out and left. Dick looked at Damian, and then boosted him up without another word.
"So lovely to see you all like this," Alfred said happily, putting more pancakes on the already dangerously tall pile beside him. Bruce chuckled a little as he popped some bagels into the toaster. He glanced up as Selina walked in. A crash sounded from the pantry and Tim and Damian started shouting. Dick shoved them both out, picking up the cans that they'd pulled down, and followed them.
"Morning, Selina," Dick smiled, his cheeks flushed. She smiled and rested a hand on Bruce's.
"Morning, boys. Up to no good in the pantry?"
As if on cue, the cans toppled over from where they'd been precariously set on the shelves. Dick jumped.
"Master Damian, Master Tim; eat." Alfred smiled, putting the plate of pancakes on the table, where five place settings were set. Dick slid back into his chair, taking a bite of his pancakes.
"Orange juice, Pennyworth," Damian commanded Alfred as he slid into the spot beside Dick. Alfred happily got it for him as Selina pushed Bruce into a chair, helping Alfred with the drinks. Tim slid into the chair next to Damian distastefully.
"Mind if I join?" Barbara asked, peeking into the room.
"No!" Tim jumped up. "Please take this spot!" He wandered to the other side of the table as Alfred got out another place setting. Barbara sat down beside Damian.
"What's up, kid?" she asked. Damian growled angrily and Dick closed his eyes for a moment at her words.
"That hurt," he muttered.
"What?" Barbara asked.
"Nothing," Dick smiled. "How did last night go?"
"Not well." She glanced at Bruce.
"What do you mean?" Dick asked slowly, looking between them. "If this is about me, I swear, I'm fine now. I've been-"
"-it's fine, Dick, and it's not about you." Barbara looked down.
"Man-Bat and Harley Quinn got away last night," Bruce said drily.
"Well what happened?" Damian looked at him incredulously. "It was only the two of them!"
"There were three," Bruce corrected with a sort of grimace.
"Who was the third?" Dick asked curiously.
"I don't know!" Bruce hit the table in frustration. Everyone went quiet. Selina reached out tentatively for Bruce's arm. He tried to pull it away, and she grabbed his hand anyway, standing and massaging his shoulders. Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose. No one dared speak. "Neither Batgirl or I saw who it was," he muttered, calming himself. Selina stroked his hair gently.
"What happened last night? Take us through it, maybe we can help," Dick urged. Bruce didn't say anything so Barbara chimed in.
"When we got there, Harley Quinn and Man-Bat were having some sort of meeting."
Dick nodded, taking a deep breath and pushing the knot in his stomach down. She was a distraction, and he was on a case. He didn't want to be weak anymore. "Okay."
"Man-Bat tried to escape while she talked to us," Barbara spat. Dick looked at her in surprise, mildly irritated at her attitude.
"Alright, so you fought and what, she got the upper hand? How did they escape?"
"I went after Man-Bat," Bruce explained, "and left Barbara to detain Harley." He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his palms. "I couldn't track him, and when I got back, Harley had… gotten the upper hand." Dick glanced at Barbara.
"So she did beat you."
"Shut up," Barbara snapped. "I won the fight. She fought dirty."
"Oh, I know she fights dirty," Dick replied, raising an eyebrow. Bruce continued.
"I got to Harley when Robin called in your..." Bruce trailed off looking at Dick. "I was going to take her in when someone surprised me. Whoever it was attacked from behind, so I couldn't see who it was."
"And they knocked you unconscious." Dick nodded slowly. Selina stroked the back of Bruce's head gently, a faraway look in her eyes.
"By the time either of us woke up, Harley and whoever it was were gone," he muttered.
"So what now?" Tim asked. "I can go on patrol with you and Barb tonight."
"But what are we looking for?" Barbara demanded.
"We need to know why she went to see Man-Bat," Bruce mused. "What does the Joker want with him?"
"More importantly, why would he let them all out in the first place?" Tim leaned forward, his elbows on the table. "If we answer that, we may be able to answer what he wants with them, too. Kill two birds with one-" Tim glanced at Damian and Dick. "-sorry."
"Being tactful was never one of your strengths was it Master Tim?" Alfred asked as he picked up his plate.
"Well I didn't mean to- fine. What do we do, Bruce?" Tim sighed.
"Do any of you answer your phones!" Jason yelled as he ran into the room. Bruce shot out of his chair as Tim cried out in surprise, and Alfred dropped the dishes he was holding.
"Master Todd! Lower your voice!" Alfred snapped.
"What is it, Jason, what's wrong?!" Bruce demanded, and they looked at him expectantly.
"There's no point in me telling you. Check the news. It's on all the channels."
They all rushed up to the living room, and Bruce turned the television on. Barbara sat down beside Dick on the sofa.
"... the scene is continuing to deteriorate at the Gotham Museum where Scarecrow is holding his hostages," a news reporter was saying. "The GCPD are on scene and trying to negotiate with the criminal, but Scarecrow is refusing to respond. His only goal seems to be chaos." The screen changed to a shot of the museum where a police barricade was set up. Dick glanced at Bruce.
"We handling this?"
"Yes we are," Bruce muttered as he stormed out of the room.