Hey everyone! Welcome back to another installment of YJ: Legends are Made! Ya'll...I never imagined being able to make it to 800 plus followers! Ya'll are amazing! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking an interest in my story! I don't wanna bore you all so I'll let you jump right into it. Remember to check the end for a longer note!

GOTHAM CITY- CITY HALL

APRIL 27TH 2008 (10:45 AM) EST

Harvey Dent's POV:

Harvey found himself sat inside the reception area right outside of Mayor Garcia's office, rubbing his temples wearily while he waited. The sound of rain and a slight wind rattled the windows, a low rumble of thunder causing the building to shudder ever so slightly as it would pass through a bit heavier on occasion.

Harvey had been awake since four in the morning just like his wife, and subsequently since then had had very little time to even adjust to the vastly shifted landscape the city found itself in since the earlier morning and last evenings spectacles.

His phone going off that early in the morning was always a herald of bad things, so he'd quickly showered and thrown on one of his nicer charcoal gray suits; and then sped into work to greet the massive workload that would most probably be drowning him for many weeks or longer to come as he came to find out.

Without even taking into account the massive fight that had occurred in the upper west side of the city, a cornucopia of issues had popped up from the previous day that had then proceeded to bleed into today.

The entire prior day had been riddled with over a dozen different violent crimes, all of them seemingly being connected to either the Falcone crime family; or unfortunately the illustrious crime families target- Roman Sionis.

'Because of course that's just what this city needs. Him being involved.'

Harvey did his best to bite back the snarl that almost broke out on his face, as thinking about the scarred gangster filled him with impotent rage.

Harvey had been working for months, and still couldn't find anyone to help turn states evidence to bring the shadowy crime boss into the light for all of his heinous deeds.

The most glaring of the things to have occurred out of the entire fiasco that they were looking at wasn't even the massive battle that had taken place right outside Sionis's building; but the death of Carmine "The Roman" Falcone's heir Mario, Sionis's biggest current competition in the city.

The man had been tossed out of one of the windows of the penthouse floor of the family-owned building…

It had made gathering his remains not only a heavily disturbing scene for all involved, but it had also made initial identification a chore for the coroner.

'Though clearly as hard as it was for us, it wasn't nearly as difficult for the new Lady Falcone.' Harvey thought as he brought his thoughts to the arrival of Sofia Falcone.

Sofia had swept into the coroner's exam room quickly after the cleanup had been finished in the early hours of the morning, and had immediately gone on to identify her brother as the deceased. She then quickly (as Harvey had to begrudgingly admit was her right) had everyone vacate the room outside of herself and the coroner on duty so that they could discuss options.

'Is it possible that she's the one who killed him? Could she have wanted control of the family assets that badly? Or are we missing something intrinsically important here?'

That whole sequence of events had occurred around six am, and things had only ramped up from that point forward for everyone involved.

Harvey's phone was constantly ringing off the hook with inquiries, demands, and a myriad of other things all relating to the incident from multiple angles.

On top of all of that, Harvey had his own personal worries. Black Mask and the Falcone's were the bigger and more glaringly noticeable among the criminal element of Gotham.

But that didn't mean they were the only ones.

Harvey found himself having the distinct feeling that this wouldn't be the only gang related dust up that would be happening. Pretty soon the Maroni crime family might make their own play, as a bid to put themselves back on top in the city proper.

'And that's not considering all the other small time gang's… or all the other psychos this city has to worry about.' Harvey thought morosely.

Harvey had just a moment ago finally gotten off the phone with his wife Rachel Dent, having had to cancel their plans for lunch. Harvey had no idea how long the following meeting with the Mayor would go, as they had a lot of ground to cover; too much if Harvey was the one that was asked.

On top of it Rachel herself was now seemingly swamped with work, as she herself would be having to gather information to oppose the many perpetrators that would now be facing criminal charges due to the sequence of events that had played out.

'More and more we're only seeing each other at work…'

Harvey rubbed his temples a smidge harder with his thumbs as his mind drifted to just how difficult things had become, and not just for him and his wife.

'Not only do we have the mess here to deal with, but we also have to deal with the fallout of Joker's attack on Central City.' Harvey thought as he sat up to his full height, proceeding to rest his arms on the brown leather cushioned rests of the mahogany chair he sat in.

The Mayor's secretary (and cousin) Denise, sat only a few feet across from him behind a dark lacquer colored desk. She much like everyone else had been obscenely busy since all of the madness had started, and was currently on the phone speaking in a hushed tone.

Denise sat with her jet black hair pulled into a tight bun, a light gold pair of reading glasses on her face. Her wintergreen colored pants suit was quite eye catching to Harvey, as it was not only a pretty big contrast to her slightly brown skin; but to the gloomy weather that had settled outside and over the city. Harvey could see that Denise's light brown eyes while clearly tired from having been pulled in for all the hubbub, shone with emotion as she held her hushed conversation on the phone.

Harvey had been waiting for about fifteen minutes already, and was doing his best to not allow his slightly mounting anxiety to build into true frustration.

'…but all this waiting is starting to grate on my nerves. We need to find a way to get ahead of all of this!' Harvey thought as he considered reaching down to his briefcase to grab a pen and a notepad, ready to jot down some of his notes on possible strategies and plea deals against the small company of men that had been arrested in relation to the earlier mornings fiasco.

Fortunately for Harvey however, he was pulled out of his funk by the doors to Mayor Garcia's office opening allowing said man to stick his head slightly out and nod to him.

"Come in Harvey. I'm sorry for the wait." Mayor Garcia said with a small and tight smile.

Harvey gave off a tentative grin of his own and stood while attempting to wave off Anthony's apology.

He made to step forward before both men found their attention drawn to Denise as she spoke up while covering the bottom half of her phone.

"Anthony, Marissa wants to know if you're going to be home for lunch?"

Harvey watched as the Mayor let out a small wince, while also trying and failing to stop a small sigh from escaping before he responded.

"No Denise. Tell her I'll definitely be home for dinner, but that lunch is out of the question." Mayor Garcia said as he turned and walked all the way back into his office, a small hand wave beckoning Harvey forth.

Harvey stepped through and after the Mayor shut the door and walked around his desk, Harvey took his own seat in one of the chairs opposite to the Mayors after he sat down.

Harvey waited for the Mayor to speak, as the man had brought both hands up to cover the front of his face after sitting; a clear sign of the exhaustion and frustration he had to be feeling from all that had and possibly could come.

'Is it terrible to be happy that I'm not the only one that is this concerned?' Harvey thought to himself right before the Mayor broke his silence.

"A mess. An absolute, and insurmountable mess. Thankfully… All Might, even though he and his little unknown helper have seemingly disappeared; seem to have taken Grundy with them in their little vanishing act. No reports of hide nor hair of either set. Normally this would be a minor cause for celebration Harvey, it really would. But I've been sitting on the precipice of a breakdown from the moment I got word about all of this…and the silence that's seemingly set in isn't helping. We need to beef up the patrols. I want something, anything found. Grundy reportedly can't die, at least not permanently. I want a body, something. Something that's tangible to tell me that I'm not going to have to worry about another impromptu zombie attack on the city." Anthony said as he brought both of his hands down to his lap, leaning back in his chair ever so slightly.

Harvey too dearly wished that he had the same answers that the Mayor was hoping for, but unfortunately his friend was absolutely correct in stating that not a single person since the earlier hours of the morning had seen anything regarding their city's newest hero's; or the raging monster that had helped cause tens of thousands of dollars' worth of property damage.

Harvey hoped that some of the information he was about to put forward would help ease Anthony's mind, though he knew it was a long shot.

'Finding it out didn't make me feel any better, that's for damn sure.'

"I got a chance to make a round with the GCPD forces that were present for everything. Apparently…and this is me regurgitating what I was told…apparently, Grundy wasn't even the Grundy that we're used to having plague the city. Apparently Mario Falcone's son Tony Falcone, was possessing Grundy's body, and was hoping to get revenge on Black Mask for the hit that had been carried out against him a few years ago." Harvey said

The whole time upon delivering that information Harvey had watched Anthony's eyebrows slowly rise closer towards his hairline, his eyes holding equal parts disbelief And skepticism.

'If he thinks That's bad, just wait until he finds out the rest of it.'

Not giving the Mayor a chance to cut across him, Harvey continued with what he already knew was a heap of bad news that they just didn't need as servants of Gotham City.

"I'm afraid it only gets worse from there. (Queue Anthony's face paling a shade.) Considering the fact that Garfield Lynn's is apparently still alive, we can obviously infer that someone inside Arkham is taking under the table payouts. We have little recourse to fall back on, as it could be anyone that's working there, and it's not like we can just fire everyone at the facility and start again. Then, there's also Mario Falcone's death to consider and what all comes with that. Sofia Falcone has apparently already finished setting arrangements up for her brother, and has already gone ahead and filed a petition to allow Carmine out of prison to attend his son's funeral. The last important bit being that with all the men we took in from this debacle… the lock-ups at GCPD are almost fit to bursting. We're gonna need some serious help Anthony…fast."

By the time Harvey finished the briefing he felt as exhausted as Anthony looked, and when one considered just how early they'd been operating, and the current time of day, the news really only compounded and made things harder to handle.

'It's not even Lunch time yet and we're up to our necks in the thick of it.' Harvey thought.

Though if he was being honest with anyone, it was even worse than it looked or sounded.

Two days prior Anthony had already informed him that the state had refused their request for funds to expand both the Blackgate and Arkham facilities. Tax payer's dollars weren't nearly enough to even cover the coming remodel that both facilities were in desperate need of, let alone the brand new additions that would need to be made if they were hoping to keep up with the rising influx of criminals.

Harvey was pulled from perusing his own thoughts by Anthony's voice.

"Jesus Christ. As if things weren't already bad. …Sigh. Possession?! Like… ghosts and goblins kind of thing Harvey? Really?!"

"Considering we live in a world that has men and women that fly in the sky wearing brightly colored costumes… I'd ask you to try and suspend your disbelief just a little bit more there Mr. Mayor."

Harvey's immediate rebuttal received in quick succession a very dry faced look, followed by a minute shake of the Mayor's head before he gestured at Harvey again to continue.

"I've reached out to a couple contacts I have in a few of the bigger agencies to see if they know anything about Joker's attack…and unfortunately everyone is coming up with the same exact answer. Large barrels of goose eggs for everyone. Not a single person I've talked too knows how he could have gotten out of Arkham; let alone how long he's actually been out or how he could have crossed state lines to perpetrate this attack. And that's not even taking into account how anyone that's watching could have missed him reaching out to Leonard Snart to even coordinate the whole damn thing."

That statement saw Anthony putting his face back into his hands, and Harvey was very close to doing the same.

'The bastard's attack leads to over three dozen deaths, with another dozen hospitalized thanks to that so called 'Joker Gas', and we still can't get him saddled to Blackgate on the list for death row.' Harvey thought.

Joker had for whatever reason teamed up with Central City's Captain Cold, and together they had attempted to rob Central City's Met Gala. The main sponsors for this year being Swarovski and Tiffany's jewelers, with the theme being the 'Iceland Extravaganza'.

Almost fifty million dollars alone in crystal statues had been on display, though a great deal of it had wound up destroyed in the attack that lit off when The Flash and his apparent new sidekick had come to investigate the distress the assault had caused. Things only escalated after that, as Batman and Robin soon joined the fray shortly after.

The Joker had brought explosives, and a seemingly endless supply of his personal made toxin grenades.

Many were siting across multiple news stations that they were thankful that Batman and Robin had gone to Central City to aid the scarlet speedster and his young partner, though there were many that were not so positive about the whole thing.

Harvey had caught clips of the attack, and the entire thing made his skin crawl. He'd never met the Joker in person, but his exploits and acts of cruelty were legendary. At the first sign of trouble the Joker seemingly flew off the rails, laughing like the madman he was as he threw his noxious chemical weapons into the scattering crowds while simultaneously setting off pre-set explosives all over the large arena that had been made as the Gala's premiere venue.

Some were openly attacking the Mayor's office and his own reliability, saying that the man should have been put down years ago.

'Not that you'd catch me disagreeing, that and 'Ace Chemicals' needs to disappear already.'

The Flash and Batman had helped first responders as best as they could after having driven the two villains off…though that in itself was a problem. While neither had seemed to get away with any sort of material prize, the loss of life was beyond tragic.

'Thankfully the casualties weren't any higher. Those poor souls.' Harvey thought, his frustration slowly mounting. He had to focus hard to keep himself from showing his temper at the whole ordeal for Anthony to see.

'Last thing he needs is to see me ready to murder that clown.'

Anthony brought both of his hands back down to his desk the noise of it startling Harvey slightly, giving his voice the chance to focus Harvey back into their discussion and away from his disturbed inner monologue.

"I'm going to have to have a conference call with the Mayor of Central City later in the evening, and worse yet I've gotta sit down with Jim and Amadeus Arkham before that. This may come as a shock to you but believe it or not; not all is lost. Bruce Wayne… has generously decided to once again donate to the city. Two-hundred and fifty million dollars for the re-outfitting of Arkham Asylum, And Blackgate prison. The meeting with Jim and Amadeus will hopefully make it so that we can coordinate a proper schedule so that we can get Arkham's half of the project finished expediently. After that, there's just Blackgate. With enough stretching here or there, instead of a full remodel, we may be able to simply get a small new addition onto the grounds. At the rate we're gaining new inmates…we're gonna need it." Anthony said with a torn expression, causing Harvey to feel bad.

To Harvey Anthony was, a truly good man. He was resolute, hardworking, and he clearly cared. Having to cut corners and fight off a system that was working against them at every turn was weighing on the man.

'Which is far more than can be said for most of the more affluent people of our fair city, that's for sure. Hell, I bet Wayne only does what he does every now and then because he needs the good press. This can work though. Whether it's getting the remodel's done, or getting smaller additions made, it will be a big step towards getting the city in order. Let's just hope the Batman can bring that clown in sooner rather than later.'

Before Harvey could fall into thinking any more negative thoughts along that train, both men's attention was drawn to the intercom sitting next to the Mayor's phone on the desk as it crackled to life.

"Mr. Mayor, I have Detectives Yin and Bennett here; and their saying that they have…All Might on the line for you?!"

Harvey's shocked face bled into a happy smile as he watched Anthony trying to parse what Denise had just announced.

Fortunately, the Mayor didn't need too much prodding.

"Send them in!"

The double doors to the office opened briskly allowing both of the detectives to enter the office, and they then closed just as quickly at a gesture from the Mayor to Detective Bennett.

Detective Ellen Yin walked quickly with her phone to her ear before she walked between Harvey's chair and the other empty one in front of the Mayor's desk, before she held her phone out and put it on the desk while putting it on speaker for all of the offices occupants to listen in.

"You're on speaker All Might."

"Hello Mr. Mayor."

Harvey felt himself zone out for a second as he glanced between both detectives and the phone sitting in front of him, finding it hard to believe that the rumors he'd heard about the two detectives having a direct line to Gotham's resident super were actually true.

Harvey quickly brought himself back into focus though, resolute that he could question the two detectives after the current conversation as he'd clearly missed Anthony introducing himself to the hero on the phone.

"- I also have the DA, Harvey Dent here in the office with me as well." The Mayor said giving Harvey his chance to speak up on his own behalf.

"It's good to hear your voice All Might…your disappearing act has left a lot of us with a laundry list of questions." Harvey said, doing his best to keep his inflection light.

The young hero seemed to take all of it in stride though and was quick with his reply.

"I am sorry about that Mr. Dent, and to you as well Mr. Mayor. This morning's circumstances have unfortunately left me in a bit of bad spot, and I just finally came back to the waking world."

The young hero's words seemed to sober everyone in the room, considering each face reflected a level of worry. The most obvious being the one who spoke out first, that being Detective Bennett.

"Might are you alright?! Do you need help?" Bennett asked with what Harvey would almost call familial concern. Apparently the detective had a very good rapport with the young hero.

"Hehe. I'll be alright Detective. Though... unfortunately I have to let you all know that I'm regrettably gonna be out of commission for a short while. My final battle with Grundy in the early hours of the morning came with some… let's just call them consequences. Rest assured, that Solomon Grundy won't be causing a problem in the city again any time in the near future."

The second that statement came through the phone all four of the occupants let out varying sighs, the stress of having to worry about a zombie gangster now firmly being tabled by the one who dealt with the majority of the situation.

'To its conclusion and beyond it seems.' Harvey thought with a slight smile, thankful that the hero was reaching out to them over the issue.

The Mayor seemed inclined to express that same emotion.

"All Might…Thank you. From the bottom of my heart, Thank you. If it isn't already apparent by now this city owes you a pretty significant debt with everything that you've already done. At the expense of sounding like a broken record I have to parrot Detective Bennett's earlier query. Do you need any help? Is there anything we can do for you? Say the word, and I promise you that you'll have the full backing of my office behind you." The Mayor said with an impassioned voice.

"I appreciate the generous offer Mr. Mayor I really do, but unfortunately the only thing to be done about my current condition is to get some rest and let my body heal…as much as I'm loathe to do so."

The way the statement was delivered made it feel as though an ice bath had been dropped on the people in the office; and from the way every person had tensed it was clear to Harvey that they were all worried about the same thing.

Detective Yin was the one to voice that concern aloud.

"All Might just how bad was it? How long are you looking at being down?"

A small silence descended on the office, and it set everyone on edge. When All Might spoke again their fears were confirmed, though if Harvey was being honest he was glad that things weren't worse; as they very much could have been.

"I wound up tearing over a dozen muscles all over my body, and to be quite frank about it I'm in a pretty… decent… amount of pain. I'm looking at being laid up for at the very least the next three weeks, five being the maximum."

The Mayors muffled "Jesus" cut across the office as everyone had gone completely silent to wait for All Might to respond. Detective Bennett cut in again immediately.

"Might there's gotta be something we can do. Who's even seeing to your care?! And what happened to your little friend? Is she okay?"

All Might let out a chuckle before responding.

"Don't you worry about my little helper Detective, she's tough as nails and she's just fine. As for my care, don't worry about that either. I've got a good support system. I don't want any of you worrying about me and my recovery. What we need to focus on now, is coordinating some moves that'll offset my absence."

Harvey found himself balking at the hero's words.

'Looking at being laid up in bed injured for possibly over a month, sounding completely exhausted…and yet still he's worried about the job.' Harvey thought as he raised his own already high opinion of the young hero again.

Not everyone was of the same mindset however.

"All Might if your That badly hurt that should be the last thing on your mind! Let us do our jobs! We can handle things while your gone!" Detective Yin said.

Harvey glanced at the Mayor and saw that he too seemed to be waging a war with his own emotions. Anthony had two young children of his own, and Harvey could see that knowing the young man was hurt was causing him a degree of turmoil.

All Might wouldn't be deterred though.

"Detective if I'm gonna be bedridden, I'm at the very least gonna make myself useful. As I've told you and Bennett before I've set up some intermediate listening devices, and that's given me some intel. I may not be able to be there with you, but at the very least I can give you the intel and you can coordinate some operations to take down some of the pushers that are on the streets while I'm off them."

Harvey felt shock pass over his face, and it was mirrored briefly by the Mayor as the implications set in.

'He won't be active physically, but he's still giving us a leg up; no matter how small it may be.'

The Mayor clearing his throat drew the attention of the other three people in the room before he spoke again directly to All Might.

"All Might, once you give us the intel all I want you to worry about is getting the rest that you need and deserve. You saved a lot of lives out there. Who knows how bad things could have gotten if we hadn't had you here in the city? I know that I made this offer publicly, but I have to ask if you'd- "

Anthony was cut off by All Might interjecting.

"I'm sorry to cut you off Mr. Mayor, but I already know what you're going to ask. There's no need for you to worry. Once I'm back to 100%, I'll call the detectives… and then we can all have a sit down. We're gonna need to start working a little closer together if we're gonna make a real difference for this city."

Harvey felt it happen then.

The same thing he'd felt the day of All Might's debut. The tide was turning, and once again it was thanks to the young hero on the opposite end of the phone.

'Time to go to work.' Harvey thought as he grabbed a pen and pad from his briefcase while listening to All Might outline a few of the different sets of intel that he'd picked up from taking down some of the lieutenants of the larger crime organizations working in their city.

GOTHAM CITY- GRANT'S GYM

APRIL 27TH 2008. 1345 (1:40 PM)

Ted's POV:

Ted found himself sitting at the coffee table with Rich, every once in a while taking the odd sip of his cup as he'd cast glances at Jack's half closed bedroom door.

"There's nothing to worry about my old friend. A few weeks and he'll be back up and moving with no problem."

Ted had heard that almost same exact statement since they'd finally gotten back to the apartment a little after six in the morning.

Jack had been adamant, and refused to move until he was allowed to listen to Grundy's tale in full while they'd been at that church.

After having listened to it himself Ted found that he couldn't be mad at the reanimated zombie.

The JSA had fought quite a few different scumbags back in their heyday, and it just so happened that possession was something that he was somewhat familiar with.

'Granted it didn't happen to me, but to hear the tale from the perspective of the one it happened too…and only after realizing you were literally just done being dead..."

The whole situation was driving him up the wall. He'd been out of the game for a long time…but he hadn't expected to wind up being this rusty.

'Maybe just maybe I'll…nah. I'll wait until the kids better. Then we'll sit down and talk about it. Either way training's about to ramp up, and I'm gonna need to get even more involved then I already have been.' Ted thought as he finally leveled his gaze at Richard again as he tried to put together exactly what he wanted to say.

It was honestly a difficult task.

So much had happened from the moment the fight had ended.

Listening to the giant zombie wailing apologies along with his story about knowing he was dead, to only then almost have freedom again…

Realizing that all the adrenaline was wearing off, and that Jack was in a considerable amount of pain…

Getting their now much larger and eclectic group back to the apartment…

Trying to get a handle on just what to do with Grundy...

Trying to apologize to Jack who had leveled a thunderous look at him for not telling him about his 'Cat totem' necklace that had actually ensured he didn't stay dead…

'I can't believe I forgot to tell him about that! I'm lucky he doesn't have heat vision like Supes, I probably would have died again.' Ted thought with an inward but self-depreciative snort.

And those bits hadn't even been the end of it.

Once back at the apartment, getting everyone settled in had taken a little bit.

Grundy's large size causing Ted's couch to buckle a bit, as he took up residence right in the center of the living room. Thankfully, turning on the TV and giving the zombie a package of muffins and a glass of milk made him comfortable enough to zone out, as it made it easier to get Jack into his room as it took a team effort to get him out of his suit without causing him an even greater deal more pain than he was already in.

And that had almost become a disaster in of itself as the zombie wanted to help…

"Grundy can help take care of Smokey shield boy!"

Ted had been ready to try and forcefully make the zombie stay put, but Jack had simply called out to him and ensured him that he was fine and just needed some rest. Grundy for whatever reason seemed to take Jack's word as gospel, as from the moment he'd been done telling them his story he swore that he'd protect all his new friends.

'Especially small Smokey shield boy. Because in Grundy's words "He hits really good!" Hah.' Ted thought as he recalled the literal hero worship the zombie now seemed to have for Jack.

After that little bit of frustration everything had moved in small bits, every moment seeming to take forever and yet going by quickly all at the same time.

Both Rich and John giving Jack a mystical once over to ensure his state of being…

Helena hovering over Jack like a mother hen while throwing the evil eye at the new girl Eva every once in a while…

Said new girl taking little pot shots at Helena, which caused Ted to wanna laugh and yet strangle them both…

After that it had calmed down some, thankfully.

Everyone had found ways to get comfortable, with Rich and John teleporting in some cots to the living room.

After an hour or so nap it was still early morning and Ted had proceeded to check on Jack since he couldn't sleep any longer, only to come and find him surprisingly still awake.

Rich's prognosis wasn't the best, and the only reason Ted was okay with Grundy even still being around had been Jack's own words over the whole situation.

'Ted it's not his fault. You heard what happened. You'd be scared and angry too if you had been the one in his position. He needs people now. We can change it, change his story. Maybe if he isn't alone, he won't wanna be a villain this time around.' Which looking back on, Ted had to admit was the truth, and had serious possibilites.

After about two hours or so more after that and everyone else who had in fact slept (The only exceptions being Grundy hadn't as he didn't need too, and Jack because he really couldn't due to the discomfort) got cleaned up and changed.

Ted went ahead and made chicken club sandwiches and fries for everyone for lunch when the time came, which quickly led to Helena making herself Jack's personal butler as she delivered his food and then cleaned up for him when they were both done eating.

The entire time Grundy had kept himself parked in front of the television, which in a way was a blessing as he seemed easy to keep preoccupied. The zombie would only get up at times to peek in on Jack, and Jack would continuously assure the undead gangster that he was gonna be fine. Promising him that they'd be able to eventually spend time together.

'Kid's a damn saint. Knows for a fact that he was a bad guy but says that this Grundy isn't the last one so he gets a fresh start. I don't know if I could be so kind about it.'

Once everything had been cleaned up afterwards the living occupants of the apartment all clamored into Jack's room to not only check on him, but to assess what they knew and what they'd do going forward.

John and Eva had actually volunteered to bring Grundy with them, not only giving him a more permanent place to live in the 'House of Mysteries' but also giving him a way to keep himself occupied from time to time.

Jack had decided that he'd make a call to the two detectives he'd since been helping out in the field, and from there they'd helped to put him in contact with the Mayor's office.

While Ted understood and even applauded it for some reasons; it still felt like a pretty serious risk. Politics didn't belong anywhere near heroics in Ted's opinion, with his time as a part of the JSA being the main example of why as such a thing had contirbuted towards the said groups end. The bureaucrats had started to try and stick their noses in during the end of and after the JSA had come home from helping during WW2…and at that point Ted had had enough and decided to retire.

'As long as nobody tries to get their claws in him to try and dictate to him on how to do things we'll be just fine.' Ted thought to himself as he tried to manage his own agitation, wanting to protect Jack from any possible manipulative influences.

Following Richard's declaring that Jack would need a minimum of at least three weeks' rest for his muscles to heal, most probably four completely off his feet to let his muscles heal correctly; Ted knew that he'd be taking a much less active role in the gym then normal for a while just so that he could take care of his young ward.

Jack had wanted Richard to provide him with some kind of mystical healing, any kind that he could think of really as to get himself back into the field. A lot of raised voices had come about over that, but in the end, Richard had gotten everyone to understand.

Richard's response to the request had been a simple one, and while Ted didn't like knowing that Jack was hurt, he could understand Richards stance on his decision, so he didn't press.

"While I could in fact heal you Jackson, we should keep such a thing in reserve for the time being. Mystical healing while seemingly a cure all in most instances does have its own limits, no matter the form. Not only that, but Magic does not always work as you'd expect it too, as I'm sure young Eva and Johnathan can attest to you. If I do heal you with something like what you're asking for, your body may not respond properly if I need to use it on you in a more severe case down the road. It's better for you in the all run to allow your body to heal naturally."

Jack's countenance had soured slightly at that, but he also understood and had said as much. Surprisingly, or maybe not so surprisingly both Eva and Helena had offered to make time to come and help take care of Jack in the interim while he was out of hero work.

"He's my best friend! The least I can do is help him out until he's better."

"He's a lil' bit uptight, but he's a good one. Th' Old Man's always complainin' ah've nae got enough friends anyway. Besides…Bed Bound boy claimed he'd spend time wi' Grundy, so ah'll bring em' by. Murder two birds wi' one stone."

Eva of course being John's apprentice would be around with Grundy far more than Helena since much like Jack she had an abudance of free time (and boy did Ted not know how to feel about That one), and Helena was still going to school. The little resident hellion had attempted to argue, but Jack had helped Ted with that as they had both had a go at her over needing to keep her grades up and needing her own rest.

Ted would however remember Helena's excitement, at Jacks follow up words for a long, long time. As those words were what got her to stand down from the right verbal attack she almost launched at Eva.

"Helena while I'm down I'm gonna be counting on you to have a run of things on the streets for a while when you can spare the time. Wes sent me your upgraded gear, and some extra replacement gear for my typical recon package a little while back. We'll get you a body cam and hook me up through Wi-Fi. I'll still be right beside you each night, But I'll be counting on you to do the bulk of the work for a while. I know you can do this, and that's why I'm asking you to do it this way. So don't worry about me."

Ted was glad that everything seemed like it would work out. Jack's praise had left Helena slightly glowing, and though the planning was still in its rough draft stage knowing Jack it wouldn't be too long until it was polished.

Ted finally spoke as it looked like Rich would open his mouth again to break off the silence that had built up.

"I know he's gonna be fine Rich, I know. There's just…sooo much, ya know? So much going on. It would have been a lot to deal with even for the JSA for Christ sakes, and he isn't even really worried. It's nuts. He's just a kid!" Ted whisper shouted towards the end.

His statement caused Richard to take on a bit of a contemplative face for a moment before he spoke again.

"Well, here's hoping, and maybe with a little bit of luck things won't get too out of hand while our young man is resting. Ted…sigh…we both care for him. Just be careful not to smother him. Remember…he may physically be a young man again, but he is still a man grown."

…

It was always times like this one that Ted would find himself really wanting to slap Occult.

'One of these day's he's gonna bring some extra serious trouble down on us, and I'm gonna sock em' in the jaw. And I know he's not a kid…it's just…sigh.' Ted thought as he fought to not roll his eyes at his old friend's ridiculous yet also necessary statement.

'It's like the man's never heard of Murphy's law I swear. And so, what if I worry about him?! He's like a son to me…' Ted thought as he warred with his emotions, trying not to throw his temper at his longtime friend.

John, Eva, and Grundy had already ported back to the 'House of Mysteries' a little while ago, leaving the apartment far less cramped.

Ted slowly stood and stretched out his back while he took slow and controlled steps over to Jack's door so that he could peer in on his two students, his worry over Jack's condition getting the better of him.

Ted looked and saw Jack sat propped up against the headboard of his bed with a couple pillows behind his back and head, but his eyes were finally closed showing that exhaustion had clearly set in and let the young man finally sleep.

Helena had pulled his desk chair over next to the bed, and her legs were extended out with her feet up on the bed as she sat on Jack's right side; having passed out with a book in her lap and her left hand close to Jack's right one on the bed their fingers almost touching.

He found himself tempted to mess with the young woman, but thought better of it at the last minute and simply walked back over to the coffee table to sit again with Rich.

'I'm gonna have to talk to Jack about that soon…Helena may not realize it but she's really starting to wear her feelings on her sleeve. Jack may need to consider at least explaining that he doesn't really plan to stay to the girl.' Ted thought, the whole thing causing him to feel a bit melancholy.

Ted shook his head a bit to banish those feelings and brought his right hand up to his chin to rub a bit to focus himself before he spoke out loud to Richard again.

"We should go ahead and bring Wes up to speed. Imma need a new suit sooner rather than later, and Jack's probably gonna wanna get some notebooks and everything set up for class's with him while he's confined to bed. I'm sure Wes will love that, since the kids been so busy lately. That's really the only good thing about him being hurt, he can take a little bit of a break. It feels like he's almost always out there now, like he's forgotten everything else." Ted said as he looked at the last dregs of his coffee, wondering if having another cup at this point would be a good idea or if he should just try and go back to bed once Richard left.

Ted had had the conversation with Jack a few times, and each time it had put a small wedge between them that he'd need to let blow over before he could talk to Jack again. Jack would still come in for an hour or so each morning to help set things up at the gym, and sometimes he'd even sporadically come into the gym and clean to keep up the appearance that he still worked there. They'd still have the odd dinner, or movie night here or there. But normally now, everything revolved around Jack being All Might.

But other than those small moments, Jack had no semblance of a normal life. He had almost completely given himself over to his hero work, and Ted worried it had or would eventually become a serious problem.

Ted's gym staff wasn't particularly large, and while Ted was sure that no one was being particularly nosey when it came to Jack; Ted had also noticed that Jenny, his one personal trainer was definitely observing Jack relatively closely. Whether it was why someone so young wasn't in school, why he was getting paid when he clearly wasn't working a full shift, or just maybe what Jack and Ted's connection was in general, Ted couldn't tell. She was his most senior employee, and she sometimes helped do the books, so it only stood to reason that at some point she would have taken a greater interest in Jack.

It had happened already, and while there were excuses to be made and things that could throw Jenny off; the questioning had also worried Ted. Ted had started to pay more attention and realized that he too had deviated from his own plan's and even the 'rules' that he'd laid out for Jack. Most nights Jack was out later than Ted had ever wanted, later than Jack had ever planned to be.

Ted knew that he couldn't necessarily command him, but Ted worried for Jack's overall wellbeing. It proved to be hard to talk to the young hero about anything regarding his personal feelings most days, and as he'd taken a more active role in his training and the state of the city at large it had only gotten increasingly more worrying.

'Hopefully this break, no matter how unwanted it is, will let him learn to live for himself a little. It can't all be about the mission. If he gets the chance to go home, I'm not trying to send a brainwashed workaholic back to loving family.' Ted thought before Richard spoke to him.

"That sounds like a good idea. You can get some new gear for yourself, and we can go over the details of all that happened with Wesley. I'm sure he'd love the update."

Moments later Ted had pulled out his phone, lowered the volume slightly, and put it on speaker after Wes picked up.

"Ted! How are you old friend? Is everything going alright? I caught the news about what happened, not only in Gotham but with the Joker being in Central City?!"

The final part of that statement saw both Ted's and Rich's eyes opening wide as they shared a disturbed look, as neither of them had heard anything about such a news report.

Rich quickly stood and turned on the TV to look for a running news station, while Ted went over some of the small cliff notes of what all had been happening for them personally. He covered John Constantine and Eva's involvement, Tony's possession of Solomon Grundy, Grundy's freedom, Richard taking possession of the amulet that had caused the whole mess, and lastly of course being everyone's rest and recovery.

While that was going on Rich had found the news coverage they were looking for, and Ted set the TV to record so that he could go over that at a later time.

Wes at parts had expressed elation, happy that the gear he'd helped design and create was being used so effectively by Gotham's youngest hero.

The other part of him however showed itself easily when the topic of Jack's injuries came up, and how long he'd be off his feet for because of it. Ted immediately after that asked if Wes would make some time to do some more classes with Jack via video call, and Wes surprised both men that were listening with his comeback.

"I'll be doing you one better. I'll put together some arrangements, and I'll be on the next flight out there. I'll work directly with Jack while he's confined to his bed…hell maybe we can even get that little hellion Helena to sit in on a few of the lessons."

Ted had first immediately tried to tell Wes that him traveling wasn't necessary, but he'd been summarily rebuked.

"He matters to me too Ted, he's my student! I'm coming out to see you all and that's the end of it! Besides, it's been a while since I took the opportunity to see some other parts of the world, or You for that matter!"

Ted found himself apologizing, having forgotten that Wes spent a great deal of time alone now; and that Jack coming along had actually facilitated not only Wes's chance to teach again which he absolutely loved doing…but that it had also given the once upon a time comrades the chance to reconnect.

'Which I honestly couldn't be more grateful for. I should have done it myself a lot sooner.'

When Ted had left the JSA, things had not been good really; between any of them. As it stood now, a few of the original members of the JSA were no longer alive; and the only one that would probably be seeing the next century come would be Diana.

Wonder Woman (Diana) had lost Steve Trevor; the first man she'd ever met or had any kind of interest or contact with during the final days of the war. She had left "Man's World" again right after their involved operations during WW2, and Ted hadn't heard from her again until the early 80's albeit briefly. Being an immortal goddess gave her some serious perks, and though being older than any of the other members she had and would always appear as the youngest of the former superhero team. She had since then obviously come back not only at points, but more recently in a more permanent fashion.

Albert Pratt his friend who had gone by the title of the Atom at that time, had died shortly after the war. He had gained his powers from a dying villain that they'd faced, but there had been side effects that no one could have possibly considered. He became severely ill, and had unfortunately due to the argument that had splintered the group died in the hospital alone to Ted's later shocking discovery.

Alan Scott had been the very first Green Lantern of the Earth, and while Ted had attempted to keep up with Alan as he too had been a Gotham born boy; the man had seemingly disappeared during the 70's never to be heard from again.

Doctor Mid-Nite, or Charles McNider as he went by when in his every-day wear had died from cancer just before the turn into the 60's. The man had been a brilliant surgeon, and a splendid friend.

Ted rarely got the chance to keep up with Jay Garrick, his era's Flash, though it wasn't for lack of trying. The man had fallen in love, and Ted never wanted to be the guy that intruded on his friend's happiness.

The same could be said for Kent Nelson, who had taken up the mantle of Doctor Fate. Though Ted knew for a fact that the man had abandoned the old helmet a long time ago, content to simply travel the world in honor of his deceased wife Inza. The loss of her had changed the man, and Ted wasn't sure if he could or even should reach out.

Red Tornado, the bucket of bolts, would come by once a year on the anniversary of the inception of the JSA. Other than that Ted rarely saw the hero, and if he was honest was okay with it. Tornado's search for purpose and identity often left Ted feeling helpless, since he didn't know what to do for his friend in that regard. It made keeping a relationship up difficult.

The last of the JSA to think on left a bad taste in Ted's mouth all together. Rex Tyler.

They had been staunch friends, and great partners on the battlefield. But Rex had become a loose cannon later on during the going conflict, his 'Miracle Pill Miraclo' being the thing that undid their friendship. Miraclo was the basis for Hourman's existence, as it gave Rex his superpowers that lasted for a literal hour. The enhancements being absolutely incredible.

'Who wouldn't wanna be able to lift over two and half tons, have endless stamina, be immune to small caliber gunfire and knives, have perfect night vision, and for whatever reason be able to survive unaided underwater?' Ted thought bitterly over the words that his previous friend had said to him when speaking of his capabilities.

Come the end of WW2, the government had come to them to try and give them designation numbers; and wanted to try and institute assigned missions. Ted and Rex had wound up coming to literal blows over it. That...and the fact that Rex had changed. Drastically so.

The government had previously tried to make Rex hand over his Miraclo formula, to ensure that the entire country had super human soldiers to send at the Nazi scourge.

Rex at that time had refused, and had had Ted and the rest of the JSA's backing.

But something had happened during the war though. He'd started to consider it, started talking about using it to make himself a fortune.

That and the worse part of it.

Rex had started to become dependent, and he had started to take the drug more often when it was viable. It led to massive mood swings, and times where he'd almost cost other members of the JSA their lives as his own powers could and had suddenly faltered and he'd need to be bailed out.

Ted had been fortunate that he had already come into possession of his 'Cat totem' necklace, even though at the time he'd literally only held onto it because it had fit his theme.

Ted had wound up dying on the front lines of Nazi Germany three times, trying to protect his former friend.

Wesley was the only one that Ted knew of that had kept up with Rex over time, actually becoming the god father to Rex's son Richard.

Ted came back to the present at a question from Wes and seeing Richard's eyes focused on him.

"Ted?"

"What? Geeze… I'm sorry Wes. I got lost in thought. What did you ask?"

"It's alright old friend. It happens to us like that, considering the age. I asked if there's anything other than what I mentioned that I should bring with me?"

Ted shook his head, having missed any kind of list that Wes had said.

'Knowing Wes, he's bringing more than enough on his own without any input from me.'

"Nah Wes your fine, and don't worry about booking a place; I'll sleep on the couch. You can post up in my room."

Wes attempted to argue, but Ted shut it down siting that it would be easier all around to just have him on hand and that he wouldn't see the man spend his money needlessly.

The conversation started winding down, with Wes having almost read his mind in a way as he went ahead and brought up Richard Tyler, his godson. He had apparently recently been pulled in as a 'specialist' for a joint task force for the NSA and the CIA. Within the next two weeks he'd apparently be deployed overseas, though he couldn't tell Wes where he'd be going.

'Kid's a Bonafide spook huh? Well…good for him, I guess. Surprising though, considering he's gotta be what? How old now? Bah, whatever.' Ted thought.

After wrapping up the call with Wes, he got himself and Richard one more cup of coffee, before the Occult detective decided it would be time for him to depart as well.

"Ted if you need anything in the coming weeks and I don't get to come back on my own, simply call me. I have some things I need to be looking into in Egypt." The man said as he stood and adjusted his hat and trench coat.

Ted was still wrapped up in his head, and Occult must have seen it as he said something as he was leaving.

"Ted? Are you sure you're alright?"

Ted nodded a bit before he met the man's gaze as he said goodbye with a wan smile.

"Yeah, I'm alright Rich. Just thinking. Ya know I owe the kid so much. It's been a long time since I've had this many people in my life. It'll be sad when he leaves ya know…I'll have to be better and keep it going on my own." Ted said as he turned to go and put the coffee mugs in the sink.

Ted turning his back was unfortunate, as he missed the guilty look that passed over Rich's face before he teleported out of the apartment.

GOTHAM CITY- DIAMOND DISTRICT: BLACK MASKS OFFICE

April 27th 2008. 1400 (2:00 pm)

Black Mask's POV:

He stood in his traditional white pinstripe suit, gazing out over the cityscape as the sun beat down over it. He'd be lying if he said that he didn't find all the drama that had come up amusing, because he did.

'To think that little Tony Falcone was so bent out over dying that he decided to come back and be a two-time loser…pathetic.' Black Mask thought as he raised his glass to his mouth, savoring the smoky flavor of the bourbon he was enjoying.

His personal thoughts were interrupted as he heard his double doors open to allow entrance for his assistant Ms. Li, her tone legs carrying her over to the front of his desk as she kept her messenger bag secured safely under her right arm.

'Not only is she good in the sack, but she gets shit done… And some fellas say there isn't a perfect woman. Hah.' Roman thought to himself as his gaze drank in Li's form.

If she noticed him eyeing her appreciatively she didn't say, as she opened her bag after setting it on one of the visiting chairs, and placed a couple different folders on his desk before finally meeting his gaze.

"Sir. I went ahead and saw to gathering some more information about everything that happened. The police don't have any clue what happened to Solomon Grundy, but word from within the Mayor's office is that he was in direct contact with the hero All Might. Apparently All Might defeated Grundy in single combat, and he'll no longer be making any kind of trouble in Gotham."

The words were music to his ears even if he already knew most of it, so much so that he walked over to his side table and poured himself and Li both a glass of bourbon each, before walking over to his assistant and toasting.

Clink

"Well Fuck me. All hail the conquering hero. Do me a favor Li, remind me to consider putting together a nice thank you basket for our resident shield slinging scumsucker." Mask said as he quickly downed his own glass before walking back over to get another for himself.

"Is…that a serious request sir? Or are you just making another one of your jokes?" Li asked, a light level of incredulousness coloring her tone.

"No no my dear Li, I'm actually quite serious. Whether he knows or not, or even cares, our resident super just spared me having to spend a great deal of money…so I'm feeling a little charitable. We'll send him a fruit basket, sans the pineapple grenades for once. Haha. He might just get a kick out of getting a gift from little ol' me. One of these days, I think I'd actually like to facilitate an audience with em'. Who knows, maybe just maybe, he's got a price. After all, everybody does." Mask said as he took a much more tentative sip of his newest drink.

Li went on to inform him of the moves of some of his own people, their current earnings off of the street take and their other various investments as well.

'The Falcone's should be just about done, I'll keep an eye on the Maroni's so that they don't make a comeback, and then when the times right…I'll be rid of the Bat and this new blue boy to the King baby.' Mask thought as his smile turned decidedly wicked.

GOTHAM CITY- GOTHAM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT/NORTHERN GOTHAM

April 27th, 2008. 1600 (4:00 PM)

? POV:

The plans had been in the making for years.

She finally found herself ready.

Now all she'd have to do is see the whole thing through.

They were gonna pay…They just didn't know it yet.

Annnnnd FIN! It's been a while again. I apoligize ya'll. I wish I could update more consistently, but life hasn't slowed down and it's getting kind of crazy. I'm on my second round of having Covid, and thankfully it's not as bad as the first time I had it. Just really annoying. I'm gonna let you know now that the next chapter is gonna be a small-time jump, and then we're right back in the thick of it. I really hope that ya'll like what comes next, as I'm working on blending a couple pre-existing stories to build up this next coming "ark". I hope you all have been safe, happy, and healthy! I'll catch ya'll at the next one!