Be a Symbol

To say that the Nine-Nine squad was in panic mode would be an understatement. Losing an entire bus meant losing forty-eight to fifty patients, hospital workers, and other innocent civilians including Captain Holt's husband, Professor Kevin Cozner. Police officers were spread out far and wide across the city looking for the missing bus. Dick grew tired of shaking down random criminals as not a single soul would tell him anything. So, here he was sitting at the computer at Nightwing HQ (no seriously, I don't have a better name than the Nest. Someone please suggest). He didn't really know why he kept the search program running. It had never picked up the 'Joker' in the past few days. Maybe he was just holding onto false hope. Behind him, Zatanna with her legs crossed was levitating in the air trying to jump-start a location spell.

"Any luck, Zee?"

"Not since you asked me five minutes ago."

"Right right. Sorry."

"Sigh, not it's fine, Dick," she sighed gently floating down, "I can't really get a lock on him. He's not magical and we don't have any DNA or totem object to track him with. I'm searching blindly through the city just like you are."

"Yea. This is starting to become impossible."

"Recognized: Penny-One"

Through the Zeta tube arrived Alfred Pennyworth along with a thermos and a picnic basket.

"Master Dick. Miss Zatara, I come bearing gifts in these troubled times," the old butler greeted.

"Hi Alfred," Zee got up to hug to man.

"I figured you and Master Dick would be in the mood for some sustenance. I've got chicken noodle soup and some roast beef sandwiches.

"French dip?" Zatanna asked.

"Of course, milady."

"With Swiss cheese?"

"Absolutely."

"With jammy caramel onions?"

"Yes, madam. And toasted to perfection with the cheese melted as you say 'ooey-gooey'."

"Oh, Alfred you are a godsend!" she kissed the faithful friend on the cheek.

"Geez Zee. It's Alfred's cooking. Did you really have to be so picky?" Dick walked over.

She stuck her tongue out to tease as she unwrapped her sandwich.

"Now now, Master Dick. One mustn't criticize a lady's preferences. Miss Zatara is not picky. She has standards."

"Yea Dick! I'm a lady!" Zatanna said with her mouth full.

Dick and Alfred stared at Zatanna's big puffy cheeks then back at each other then back to Zatanna.

"What?" she asked still chewing on sandwich.

"You're right, Alfred. I shouldn't question her tastes," Dick joked, "She chose me after all!"

"Har har!" she rolled her eyes.

Even Alfred chuckled at little at the self-deprecating humor.

"How's Bruce?" Zatanna asked with her mouth clear of any food.

"Not well I'm afraid. He hasn't left the manor either as Bruce Wayne or as Batman. When he does go out at night in his cowl, he unleashes his anger on the criminal world. Commissioner Gordon, I must say, has done quite the circus act covering for the Batman's latest string of brutality. Miss Diana has come by, but even she couldn't get him to talk about what happened."

"I don't blame him. Jason was a good kid. I-I wasn't fast enough…"

Sensing Dick's distraught, Zatanna immediately dropped her sandwich and practically jumped out of her chair. In the blink of an eye, she held Dick's face hoping to stifle his tears.

"Hey. Hey! Stop that. Stop thinking like that," she whispered softly.

"But Zee, I didn't make it. I couldn't save him. If I was a split second earlier or found a better route to through the city-"

"Then you might have died in that building with him," she interrupted him with a firm tone.

He paused to look in her eyes. They held both hurt and strength somehow. He didn't quite understand how she could be so put together like this. It felt weird since he was supposedly the strong one years ago when her father took up the mantle of Fate. She loved Jason just like a little brother too, but she was the one holding her tears while wiping his. She had been clingy ever since Jason died. No, clingy wasn't the right word. She was attentive and caring. Every time he even thought about feeling sorry for himself, suddenly her arms would wrap around him, and she'd leave little kisses on his face. She was the light to his darkness. Dick still fully believed Jason's death was his fault, but Zee was determined to change his mind bit by bit.

"I should have known Joker would try to mess with me like that. I should have been better. Batman would have known Joker switched up the addresses. Batman would have gotten there."

"Batman was there, you idiot! Stop this right now, Dick! Look, while we were tied up, Jason and I talked through the phone. Jason talked like….like he knew he was going to die. I think he could see a timer counting down. I don't believe there was a lot of time left. Dick, even if you got to him with seconds to spare, the bombs might've still gone off and I would have lost you forever."

"Zee, I-"

"Stop. I'm not saying you should brush off Jason's death or not remember him in any way, but I'm begging you to stop blaming yourself. You did the best you could. That's all anyone could ask for. Moving on takes time, but you can't start if you're trapped in a dark hole of guilt. Remember? You taught me that."

Dick paused again to really let what Zatanna said sink in. A tiny smile cracked just a bit as he realized she was helping him the same way he helped her seven years ago.

"Kinda cheating if you're using my words against me," Dick teased.

"Hey, if it ain't broke…" she retorted back.

Returning her affection, he held her waist and slowly leaned forward for a kiss. She closed her eyes in anticipation of feeling his soft lips.

*FLUSH*

Before their lips could meet, both Dick and Zatanna were taken aback by the phonetic interruption. Looking to the side, they saw Alfred leaving the bathroom.

"Oh, pardon me. I saw that you two were having a moment, so I popped off to the little boys' room. Uhhh do carry on. Pretend I'm not here," Alfred sheepishly apologized.

"Hehe, it's ok Alfred. Moment's passed," Zatanna smiled, "Assuming Dick has learned his lesson?"

"….Maybe," Dick looked away.

"It's a start. But say it with me: this is the Joker's fault."

"Sigh. This is the Joker's fault," he mumbled.

"Speaking of," Alfred piped up, "How goes the search for this supposed imposter?"

"We're kinda dead in the water. No face scans. No witnesses. Even Zee's magic can't pin him down," Dick answered.

"Ah I see. This is no easy task, but I do believe you, sir, will persevere. I am not a religious man, but I do believe that at times, life will present us with difficult challenges. Often times, a person's ingenuity, not his strength, is what helps them overcome these challenges."

"Thanks, Alfred. You get that out of a fortune cookie?" Dick teased.

"I beg your pardon, sir! I take offense to that. My wisdom and my decision to share it with you are all original Pennyworth thoughts…..although admittedly my lucky numbers are seven, eighteen, and sixty-three."

"And there it is! Haha"

"Laugh as you like. I still hold custody of your roast beef sandwich."

"Alright alright! I'm sorry. Out of curiosity, did you ever track down that jewel bandit?"

"Not in the way you'd think. We actually found his associate, someone who had helped him in the robbery. However, said associate was not as careful and lead us straight to the bandit himself. We found the culprit juggling sapphires and emeralds to appease children."

"Heh, what a strange man," Dick shook his head.

For the second time, Zatanna dropped her sandwich. Her eyes widened as the gears started turning in her head.

"Wait, Dick…" she grabbed his shoulder to get his attention

"Yea?"

"We can't track Joker. But we can track someone who's supposed to be with him."

Dick tilted his head but started to pick up what Zatanna was saying.

"Kevin! He's one hostage we know for sure Joker has on him!" he exclaimed.

"Exactly. And we can get some of his DNA so I can use my locator spell!"

"Oh my God, Zee. You're perfect! You beautiful genius," he pulled her into a quick kiss, "Holt is probably still out and about. We can sneak into his house and find something we can use."

"Great! Let's go! Tius Pu!" (Suit Up!).

Now in their 'work clothes' Dick and Zee sprinted towards the Zeta tube and disappeared in a flash. Alfred awkwardly stood around observing the state of Nightwing HQ. Finally, he sat down and opened Dick's sandwich.

"Well, we can't let this go to waste, can't we?"

At City Hall, everyone was working overtime going over mountains of evidence to try and find the missing hostages. Well…..almost everybody.

"Did you two really decide to hog the only microwave available for the next twenty minutes?" Jake asked Detectives Hitchcock and Scully, "And for what? A frozen lasagna!?"

"You ignorant loser," Hitchcock fired back, "First of all, it's not a frozen lasagna. It's a Mama Maglione!"

"Second of all," Scully added, "it's gonna take twenty-one and a half minutes. The box says twenty, but we know better than the box."

"You see," Hitchcock continued, "this microwave is a Kitchen Pro Max. Bit of a lightweight. It's only 1.2 kilowatts."

"It's fine for popcorn," Scully added on, "but we're talking about a Mama Maglione's here. It takes a lot to get Mama hot."

"She's a real size queen," Hitchcock finished the diatribe.

"Well, that wasn't a phrase I needed to hear ever in my life," Jake crossed his arms.

Hitchcock walked over to the nearby fridge and jumped with concern.

"Uh oh. Guys! We have a major problem here! No garlic bread!" Hitchcock started to panic.

"Ok, we need to stay calm," Scully tried to reassure his friend, "Let's think. The garlic bread needs to go into the toaster oven with eight minutes left on the lasagna. Maybe we could run down to the corner store and make it in time."

"That just leaves us with twelve minute to go to a place and come back!"

"….Mama Maglione."

"We have to go now!" Hitchcock ordered.

Jake watched on as the two older detectives scurried quickly out of the break room.

"That was the fastest I've ever seen those two move."

*RING RING*

Jake pulled out his phone only for his eyes to widen like dinner plates.

Nathan Walker: Found Joker. West City Docks. Top of a building under construction.

Jake Peralta: How? With what evidence.

Nathan Walker: It's hard to explain. You're just gonna have to trust me.

Jake rolled his eyes at the last text but quickly brushed his doubt aside. Taking a deep breath to muster his courage, he approached Captain Holt.

"Sir, I have reason to believe Joker is hiding at the West City Docks in a building that's still being constructed."

"And you have proof of this?"

"Uhh yes. One of my leads reported seeing Joker and some men leading the hostages up the building."

"Can this person be trusted?"

"He's never steered me wrong before."

"Alright, Peralta. We'll follow up on this tip solely because it is the first lead we have on finding my husband. But if you're wrong, you will turn in your badge."

With that, Holt walked away to prepare the SWAT team.

"God, I hope Nathan was right…"

"Oh my God, Nathan was right!" Jake mumbled under his breath.

The police had set up a command center of sorts on the rooftop of a building across from where 'Joker' was supposedly hiding. Holt, Peralta, Diaz, Boyle, Santiago, and Jeffords all stood on stand-by wearing bullet-proof vests while snipers scanned the building with thermal imaging scopes. Hurriedly, the door to the roof popped open with Dick Grayson running out.

"Sorry sorry guys. I was all the way over on the east side trying to find leads. God the traffic was intense," 'Dick' apologized.

"Doesn't matter. You're here now, Grayson. Lieutenant what's the situation?" Holt asked one of the snipers.

"We've definitely got hostages in there, sir. They're grouped up on what's looks like the twenty-sixth and twenty-seventh floors. Lotta armed men all around them."

"Copy that. When you have clean shots on the gunmen, fire when ready," Holt ordered.

"It's not that simple. Not with him," Nightwing appeared from the shadows behind.

Immediately every cop on the roof unholstered a gun and pointed it directly at Nightwing.

"I have lost my patience with you, Nightwing!" Holt called out, "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you."

"Blah blah I have a right to an attorney. Look, Captain, this all seems too easy. Gunmen left out in the open like that? Joker's playing us somehow. I just know it."

"No. My husband is in there. I'm not going to risk his life for what amounts to a hunch from a lunatic in a costume."

"Sorry, Captain. You may not have a choice. Honestly, I'm only here to warn you as a common courtesy."

"You take one step forward, I will fire."

To his right, Nightwing grabbed Dick Grayson by the arm, spun around and flung him towards the cops. Everyone pulled their guns away to avoid hurting Dick but gave Nightwing an opening. Seeing the police distracted, Nightwing sprinted forward past all the cops and jumped off the building. Opening his arms, he pulled out his glider wings and flew towards the hostages. Though angered, Holt got up and composed himself.

"Three minutes."

"Captain?" Amy asked.

"We will give him three minutes. Then, we begin our assault," Holt ordered.

Hiding behind a wall on the other side of the roof, a dark-haired, blue-eyed figure smirked under the hood of her cloak. Peeking out just a tad, she noticed that her doppelganger was still solid and holding up despite her boyfriend being a little rough with it. Satisfied with her handiwork, she leaned back against the wall and got comfortable. She was probably going to be here a while.

"Go get 'em, Tiger."

Nightwing gracefully glided through the air and reached the twenty-fifth floor. Ducking his head, he burst through the window and tackled one of the gunmen wearing a clown mask. Oddly, the supposed thug did not fight back at all. Nightwing paused as he heard whimpering. Taking off the mask, Nightwing revealed the face of a terrified hostage gagged with duct tape. Looking down, the hero noticed that the hostage's hand was taped to the gun.

"Shit, gunmen are the hostages," he exclaimed.

Quickly, he cut the tape from the guns and freed up the hostage's hands.

"Stay here. Cops are gonna storm the building soon. When they do, keep your hands up and shout that you are a hostage. Do not run at them or they may shoot. Do you understand?" Nightwing instructed the poor, terrified man.

"Uhhh got it."

"Good. Rest easy. You're going to get out of this."

Meanwhile, at the very top of the building, 'Joker' was casually observing all the events happening around him. Hooked up onto the table were a series of computer screens connected to cameras as well as a radio set. Through the screens he could see the police set up on the building across. He also noticed Nightwing diving through the building window taking down a hostage dressed like a gunman.

"Hmm. He's a little early but that's ok. Punctuality is a good skill to have."

He picked up the microphone and switched on a knob to broadcast across all radio frequencies.

"Hello, Bludhaven," he started, "Welcome to my grand social experiment. I may be an agent of absolute chaos, but sometimes I like to give you people a chance to redeem yourselves as adequate human beings. You people, you ordinary citizens as you proclaim like to think you're good people. You think that you do the right thing. You pick up litter. You open doors for people. You walk Grandma across the street. And yet, you don't bat an eye at the criminals of Bludhaven. Drug dealers, gangbangers, bank robbers, murderers, yada yada. You so-called innocent by-standers lock your doors and avoid eye contact. Well, tonight we're going to see how you react when the criminal underworld holds your lives in their hands. I'm talking to you ya ferries on the river. As we speak, we've got one ferry full of everyday Joes and Janes. They're just taking a leisure ride across the bay. The other ferry is a prison transport for all those criminal mobsters. Again, drug dealers, murderers, jaywalkers, and more! Now, obviously for this experiment to work I have to fill you in on the details. There are oil drums rigged to explode in the storage units of both ferries. But ah, the twist here is that the respective triggers are on the other boats ahahahhha. The criminals have the normal people trigger while the normal people have the criminal trigger. Hahaha it's genius. The time now is 11:30pm. You have till midnight to decide who goes boom. Once the clock strike 12, EVERYBODY GOES BOOM HAHAHAHAHAHA…..oh, and if I so much as see a fucking dinghy even approach either ferry, well then I push the button and kill everybody. I really don't wanna do that. This was a lot to set up!"

Across the building, the police stood in shock at what the 'Joker' just told them. Rosa came up to Holt hoping to snap him out of his shock.

"Sir, what are you orders?" Rosa asked.

"I-I um. We cannot risk approaching either ferry. We have to proceed with our raid and take down the Joker immediately. Lieutenant, send in your men."

"Sir, yes sir!"

"But Captain," Rosa pressed on, "what about the people on the ferries? Do you really believe they won't kill each other?"

Captain Holt paused to give the question some thought. He took a deep breath before finally giving an answer.

"Our only choice is to trust both sides to do the right thing. We're too spread out as it is and we cannot risk Joker using his trigger to blow up both boats.," Holt admitted.

"Sir! We've got a problem. Nightwing is attacking the hostages!"

"WHAT!?"

Everyone grabbed some binoculars and did indeed spot Nightwing tackling and fighting the supposed doctors and patients.

"That PUNK!" Holt yelled out, "He played us! He's there to eliminate the hostages. I knew we never should have trusted him!"

"Hold on sir, look! Something is off!" 'Dick' pointed out.

"Actually, Grayson is right. Why aren't the gunmen shooting at him?" Jake realized.

"Because they're all in cahoots with each other! The gunmen know Nightwing is on their side!"

"I dunno, sir. Nightwing's been a thorn in their side for months now. This would be a really weird time to reveal he's a double agent," Jeffords argued.

"Wait!" 'Dick' exclaimed, "Did that hostage just pull out a gun from his coat pocket?"

All detectives looked up again and now noticed how all the supposed gunmen were looking away or cowering in the corner. Meanwhile the supposed hostages were trying to subdue Nightwing with guns, knives, baseball bats that were hidden inside their coat.

"Oh damn," Holt realized, "He was right. The hostages are the thugs. And the gunmen are the hostages. Lieutenant!"

"Sir!"

"Get your men in there and help Nightwing. He's outnumbered!"

"Sir, yes, sir!"

From behind the wall, Zatanna was sweating, unsure of what to do. She needed to remain close on the roof to maintain the Dick doppelganger and protect Dick's identity. But at the same time, she knew if she could she'd be able to fly down to the boats and make the bombs disappear. She was caught between a rock and a hard place, and she needed to choose fast. The doppelganger was draining a serious amount of her energy.

Inside the twenty-sixth floor, Nightwing was starting to tire as goon after clown just kept piling on him. He had pieced together his escrima sticks into a staff to try and keep some distance. But he was reckless and ended up in the center of a clown circle. One clown snuck past his defenses and jumped on his back. With arms wrapped around the hero's neck, the thug began choking him out. Nightwing dropped his staff and did his best to pry the thug's hands off. Unfortunately, that left him wide open as more and more assailants stepped forward and punched him in the stomach and chest. Luckily the armor plating was holding up, but the blow from the baseball bat really stung. Trying to get an edge, Nightwing stomped on the guy's foot forcing him to release his neck. Now free, he dropped both a flashbang and a smoke pellet and jumped out from the middle of the circle. Now dazed and confused, all the thugs frantically looked around trying to relocate the masked vigilante.

"Ahh"

"Shit"

"Arghh"

One by one, guys were dropping like flies. Using the shadows and lack of sight, Nightwing moved swiftly knocking down as many people as he could. He got to the edge and used his palms to smash the eardrums of one guy before more footsteps rumbled behind him.

"FREEZE!"

Nightwing quickly turned around, but sadly tonight wasn't his lucky night.

*BANG*

A rifle round fired and pierced the right side of his chest plate. The force from the shot knocked Nightwing back and right over the edge. Blinded by the smoke, the SWAT team arrived and was unsure who was who at the moment. Unfortunately, one trigger happy rookie got antsy and shot the first figure he saw.

"Oh shit, kid what did you do?!"

"I dunno. I saw him move."

"Why'd you shoot!?"

"I-I panicked!"

"FUCK! I think that was Nightwing! Mayday mayday, Nightwing might be down. I repeat, Nightwing might be down."

Holt received the radio call and started to worry.

"They shot Nightwing. Those imbeciles!" Holt growled.

Zatanna perked up hearing that. Worriedly, she instructed her doppelganger to leave the roof so she could find her beloved.

"I better go find him. He could be hurt!" 'Dick' stated before immediately leaving the rooftop.

"Hold on, Dick! Wait for me!" Peralta chased after him.

Holt stood around contemplating his next move. From his binoculars, he could see the SWAT team easily cleaning up after Nightwing and freeing the real hostages.

"Lieutenant," he called from the radio, "Have you secured my husband, Kevin, yet?"

"Negative, sir. No signs of him on these floors."

Angered, he squeezed the radio tightly almost breaking it. Closing his eyes, Holt took a deep breath before clearly understanding his next move.

"I'm going in," he stated proudly.

"Sir?" Amy asked.

"I'm going to save my husband."

"We can't let you do that, sir," Jeffords tried to convince him, "You're the commanding officer of this unit. If something happens to you, we're kinda screwed."

"Nonsense, Jeffords. You'd be in command. Now step aside. I have a husband to save."

None of the remaining detectives believed Holt could pull this off. They tried to form a wall between him and the rooftop door. Relenting, he raised his hands and admitted defeat.

"Ok, fine. You convinced me. I shall remain here."

With everyone's guard down, he shoved Charles out of the way and beelined it towards the door. Thanks to the element of surprise, he shut the door behind him and jammed the lock effectively trapping the detectives on the rooftop.

"WHYYYYY!?" Jeffords screamed.

"My husband's life is in jeopardy. I would risk everything to save him. A married man such as yourself, Jeffords must understand," Holt answered, "You all stay up there and continue coordinating the assault. Good luck."

Meanwhile, Zatanna and 'Dick' were scouring the general area where Nightwing supposedly fell. Frustrated at not finding her boyfriend, she levitated herself and 'Dick' upwards to get a better view. From the corner of her eye, she spotted a yellowish hue on a rooftop several stories below where Nightwing was shot. Landing the rooftop, she knelt down to her boyfriend who was writhing in serious pain.

"Argggg" he winced.

"Shhh baby, I got you. I got you."

"Argghh fuck, I thought Lucius's armor plating would hold up better. Since when does BPD have armor piercing rounds?!" he groaned.

"Stay calm. Can you roll over? I need to find an exit wound," she asked.

"I dunno. I'm hurt all over. Something definitely broke."

"You're lucky to be alive! You fell like ten stories!"

"God bless your family's coin!"

"I can't feel an exit wound. The bullet is still in your shoulder," she realized as she examined his back.

"Lovely. I guess Lucius's design did slow down the bullet a little. Ahhhhh."

Continuing to feel around a press upon various points, Zatanna deduced that Dick might have fractured multiple ribs and maybe even broke his collarbone. Once again, considering his fall, he was very lucky.

"FREEZE!"

Shocked, Zatanna turned around and locked eyes with Peralta who joined them on the roof. Caught off guard, she lost concentration, and the 'Dick' doppelganger evaporated into the air.

"Uhhh I can explain!" Zatanna answered, lowering her hood hoping to hide her face.

Peralta kept his gun out while Zatanna froze. Both still awkwardly kept eye contact and tried their best not to twitch.

"Let me explain…" Zatanna said again.

Rolling his eyes, Jake holstered the gun and calmly walked over.

"You can take the hood off, Zatanna. I know it's you," Jake politely said

"Uhhh wh-what are you talking about?! I'm uh Nightwing's partner uhhh ummm Nightingale! Yea! Nightingale! Hehe I don't come out very often. I'm more a Netflix and chill kinda person, but when Nightwing needs help, he knows who to call hehe," Zatanna hurriedly tried to salvage the situation.

"Zatanna. It's fine. I pegged Dick as Nightwing weeks ago," Jake knelt down to assess the damage.

"Haha and you didn't say a damn thing," Dick croaked out.

"Didn't really know how to. More importantly, why are you glowing yellow like a Super Saiyan?"

"Magical girlfriend," Dick groaned.

"Huh?"

"Uhh long story short I have real magical powers. For Christmas a couple of years ago I gave Dick my family's Roman coin. It has a protection spell that for the most part prevents him from being harmed. But it does have its limits. By all accounts that fall he took should have killed him. But the coin blunted the fall and reduced the damage to some fractures and broken bones. Now the coin is trying to heal him," Zatanna explained.

"Dang. You weren't kidding when you said magic was real," Jake looked at Dick.

"Why would I ever lie to you? AHHHHH!"

Immediately, Dick grabbed his right shoulder.

"That might be the bone trying to set itself," Zatanna winced.

"Um as freaking cool as this is, we kinda need to speed this up. I heard over the radio that Holt is trying to solo his way up to the Joker. He's gonna need back-up ASAP."

"Shit! Uh ok, I can use my healing magic to try and accelerate the coin's healing factor. First, let's get that bullet out."

"No!" Dick shouted, "Leave it. Fix my collarbone. I can deal with the fractures."

"But Dick."

Before Zatanna could argue any further, Dick pulled what looked like an EpiPen from his belt. Placing it between the armor plates, he pressed the button and quickly administered a shot.

"Dick! What the fuck was that?!" Zatanna worried.

"Mix of adrenaline and painkillers. We don't have time, Zee. I don't need to be a hundred percent right now. Just fix my collarbone and let me go save Holt," Dick ordered.

"Dick, Joker's up there. He could kill you!"

"Yea, Dick. This is a bad idea," Jake tried to convince the injured hero, "I'll go. Zatanna can you like teleport me or something up to where Joker is?"

"Uhh yea. But I only have enough energy to either heal Dick or port you up there."

"Then there's no decision. Fix my collarbone and I'll grapple up there. That's the fastest way we can save Holt."

"O-ok," she relented, "But so help me Dick Grayson if you die tonight, I'll fucking kill you."

Slowly, Holt exited the elevator to the top floor. His gun was out, and his eyes darted all around the floor. He entered 'Joker's command center. Standing at the window was the mad clown himself with his back turned to Holt.

"Put your hands up you PUNK!" Holt pointed his weapon at 'Joker', "Your schemes and killing spree ends tonight!"

"Oh, I'd be more careful where you point that thing, Captain," 'Joker' slowly turned around revealing that he had Kevin in a headlock and a gun pointing right at Kevin's temple, "We wouldn't want Kevin here to accidentally get hit by a stray would we?"

Terrified, Holt raised both his arms.

"Put the gun down and kick it over," Joker ordered.

Holt gently placed his gun on the ground and slide it over to the 'Joker'

"Very good! Now, tell me Captain, why are we here?"

No answer.

"Oh come now. You're behind the eight-ball. Play along would you?"

"We're here to bring you to justice you insufferable worm!" Holt spat back.

"Now now. Play nice. You're wrong, but at least play nice. You too Nightwing!"

Both men looked to the side as Nightwing clumsily landed on the balcony. He looked tired and was on his knees for a second before struggling to stand up straight.

"Let him go Joker," Nightwing strained to speak, "He's just an innocent man."

"There you go again. You people and your talk of innocence! Let me tell you about innocent men. Innocent men are just bystanders. By definition they don't do anything wrong. That's because by nature, they don't do anything significant. They go about and do their dumb jobs, clock out at five, buy flowers for their wives, eat dinner, go to sleep, and then wake up and repeat. They are bound to their stupid little routines. They are so beholden to what they know, that when they see an anomaly or something that would make them stray from the chosen path, they freeze. They just stare. It's why Bludhaven has festered for so long with criminals. These innocent people turn a blind eye to all these criminals. They hate crimes sure! But they won't do shit about it. Innocent people in my humble opinion don't exist. Their crime is that of inaction. They sit there in their ignorance and frivolity and just let criminals reign supreme. They'll look away when drugs are being sold, or stores are being robbed, or when the mob breaks into someone's apartment, ties a man to a chair, forces him to watch the murder of his wife, and then beats that man within an inch of his life. WHERE WERE THE GOOD PEOPLE OF BLUDHAVEN THEN, HUH NIGHTWING?! HOLT!? WHERE WERE THEY WHEN I HAD TO WATCH SOMEONE SLIT MY WIFE'S THROAT RIGHT IN FRONT OF MY EYES. ALL FOR A FEW THOUSAND DOLLARS!?"

Both Holt and Nightwing had no words. They were speechless. No answer could really comfort a man that was so far gone like 'Joker' was.

"As such, I realized that chaos is the answer. It's like gravity. You give it a little push and then you watch the fireworks. All anyone needs is one bad day. They'll go crazy just like me! I didn't have to do much. I killed little Robin and blue bird over here went on a rampage. Lotta mobsters ended up in the hospital hmm? And you, Raymond Holt, what would happen if I blew the brains out of Professor Kevin here? There's no believing in good. There's no trusting in the system. There is only chaos. You either ride the tornado or you get swept up in it."

"You're wrong," Nightwing spoke up, "I'm sorry for happened to you. Truly I am. But you've forgotten something crucial, something so very human. Hope. Hope can be the little candle that flickers in the darkness. Sometimes it's small, but it's still a light that refuses to die out. It is a light that can keep people going. Sometimes things look bleak, and the people look like they've given up. But that's because they don't believe they can make a difference. They become scared. If you give them hope, if you show them that every little thing can create change, people will believe again. That's why I believe in this city. That's why I trust the people of this city. As you said, it's like gravity. Give a push and enjoy the show. But what matters is what direction you in which push."

"Hope is a double-edged sword, Nightwing. You and your flowery words and preaching could set people up for failure. And then we go back to sadness, gloominess, and chaos."

"That may be. But the battle is already lost if we don't even try."

*DONG DONG*

"Ooo hoo hoo midnight! I must say I might've misspoken earlier. The one thing innocent people will do is throw their fellow man under the bus to save their skins. In doing so, they generate more chaos and keep this cycle going! Hahaha! Will the innocent stay innocent? Will the criminals save their skin? Turn your attention to the monitors boys! And here. We. Go!"

Everyone was captivated by the boats shown on the camera screens. Holt and Nightwing held their breaths preparing for an explosion. But none came. Nothing happened. The clock clicked over to 12:01 and neither ferry had exploded.

"Ha! Looks like you miscalculated this one, Joker!" Holt gloated, "Evidently the people of Bludhaven have shown you that they are not all rotten to the core as you say."

"Well, that's why I always have a back-up. Kevin, dearie. Reach into my jacket's pocket and pull out the trigger for me, please?"

"No," Kevin stated firmly.

'Joker' cocked the gun and pressed it against Kevin's head.

"Take the trigger out of my pocket!"

"No. I refuse. You have no leverage anymore. You kill me, Raymond and Nightwing will charge at you. Face it, you cretin, it's over."

"Hmm well when you put it that way…"

Suddenly, 'Joker' turned the gun to Holt and shot him in the chest.

"RAYMOND!" Kevin screamed.

Not one to waste a chance, Nightwing immediately threw a wing-ding at 'Joker's hand slicing it open and causing the gun to drop.

"Ahhhhh what the hell?!" Joker shrieked in pain.

Now freed, Kevin immediately scurried away giving Nightwing the chance to tackle Joker to the ground. However, still not fully healed, he wasn't able to hold 'Joker' down adequately. Sensing this, 'Joker' punched Nightwing right in the ribs and flipped him over. One hand grasped the hero's throat and squeezed tightly while the other pulled a knife out. He leaned closer to stare right into the whites of Nightwing's mask.

"You look like you're in pain…..Dick," 'Joker' whispered quietly, "Did ya have a great fall? Hmm?"

Weakly, Nightwing struggled to pull 'Joker's hand off his neck. Not many words came out as he grasped for air.

"What? Clown got your throat? Hahahahha. C'mon that was a good one. Why so serious? You need to smile more. Look at me! I'm always smiling! Say, you know how I got these, scars?"

"Not really," Nightwing strained to speak, "But I know how you got that bruise on your head."

"Huh?"

*WHAM*

From behind, Captain Holt picked up a metal pipe laying on the ground and swung with all his might at 'Joker's head. That knocked 'Joker' right off Nightwing as he rolled into the corner.

"Ahhhh what did I say about going for the head!" he slurred his words before passing completely out.

Looking down, Holt extended a hand and helped Nightwing stand up.

"Helluva swing you got there, Captain," Nightwing groaned.

"You are injured. You need immediate medical attention."

"Nah. I'll be fine. It's just a flesh wound."

Holt looked over to the unconscious 'Joker' and then back to Nightwing who was leaning against the wall for support.

"You can barely stand," Holt noticed.

"Heh. Normally at this point I'd say that I've been through worse. But uh I can't think of a time that was worse than this right now."

"I was wrong about you. You saved my husband tonight."

"I'm just an ordinary citizen, Captain. Just trying to do good."

"No. You are more than that. That speech you gave about hope made me realize that you are bigger than I can even comprehend. Joker in a way was right. People in this city ignored criminals and let them have their way. Some even traded their fellow man for personal survival. But you changed things. You showed people that fear can be overcome. You as one man brought hope to this city. I'm certain that if you had never come to the city of Bludhaven, one or maybe both of those ferries would be nothing but charred ruins in the bay. I see that now."

"Well, I can't fight this war alone. You do good work, Captain," Nightwing strained still but at least stood straight up, "This city needs more than a masked hero running around in the shadows. It needs heroes with faces. You, the people of the Nine-Nine. You all can start change around here. You can inspire. You are the heroes this city needs."

"Maybe. But I believe, you are the hero this city deserves."

They duo shook hands on last time before Holt turned around to tend to his husband.

"Kevin, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Raymond. Thank you for coming to my aid."

"Of course. I would do anything for you. Oh! I almost forgot. Nightwing, how will I contact you…" he turned back around only to see 'Joker' in handcuffs and no Nightwing to be seen, "…in the future. Kevin, did you see him leave?"

"No, I was focused on you."

Looking around again, Captain Holt was astounded at how Nightwing snuck off so silently even in his injured state.

"Don't worry Raymond. I have a feeling when you need him, he will be there."

"Hold still, ok? This may hurt a little," Zatanna warned.

"Just make it quick, Zee. Gotta rip the band-aid off."

"I'm gonna pretend you did not just compare removing a bullet to ripping a band-aid off."

"Sorry haha. I hide my pain through humor."

"Mmm hmm. Ok, one. Two. Three! Tellub, raeppa ni ym dnah!" (Bullet, appear in my hand!")

Back in their apartment, Zatanna continued the rest of the healing process bring Dick back up to around ninety percent of his full strength. The last little tidbit was to remove the armor piercing round still lodged in his shoulder. Despite clenching and closing his eyes to brace for the pain of a bullet magically being removed from his shoulder, Dick felt nothing. When he opened his eyes, Zatanna held the bullet in front of him smirking.

"What was all that clenching and prepping for then?" he asked.

"Call it a minor punishment for making me worry."

"I'm sorry. You're right though. I need to be better and stop relying on your coin to keep me alive. In fact, you should probably take it back. I don't want to use it as a crutch."

"No. Keep it. I feel a lot better when you wear it. Like I said, peace of mind. Just, I guess, forget that you have it and be extra extra cautious."

"Ok. Sounds good."

With that settled, Dick and Zee changed into some comfy loungewear and plopped right on the bed. Dick laid on his left side to avoid adding too much pressure to his injured right shoulder, and Zatanna spooned him from behind to steady him.

"Y'know. It kinda seems unfair that my opportunity to be big spoon comes when you're injured," she commented.

"What are you talking about? You can be big spoon whenever you want. You just never ask."

"That is so not true!"

"C'mon, Zee! You either lay on your side with your back towards me or you cuddle into my chest. I mean it. If you wanna be big spoon, you can just ask."

"Pft, why are you always so considerate?"

"Because I love you."

"….ugh you're too sickly sweet. Lay on your back."

Dick rolled onto his back as she climbed over to lay on his good shoulder.

"What happened to wanting to be big spoon?" he asked.

"It got tiring. Your shoulders are a little too broad."

Dick's breathing softened a little as he was slowly drifting off to sleep. Zatanna however still had a few concerns. She tried to distract herself by drawing circles on his chest, but all that did was wake him back up again.

"What's on your mind?" he asked.

"Are you ok with Jake knowing who you are?"

"Yea. He's a good guy. Plus, now he can have my back in the precinct. It'll be nice to have a work buddy I can talk to a bit more honestly."

"And Joker?"

"We're not sure just yet, but Holt's blow to his head might have damaged his memory a little. Honestly, when Joker came to, he was really loopy. Definitely has a concussion. I'll have to check in every now and then to see what he really remembers."

"Hmm."

"Can I say something?" Dick asked shyly.

"Baby, you can tell me anything."

"I just-I just want to say I really appreciate how supportive you've been to me through this whole ordeal. You've kept me on the right path. You've called me out on my dumb decisions. You help in every way you can. You see right through my anger and misjudgment, and you stand by me. I wish…..I wish I could be better for you. I put you in danger, caused you to miss time at work so you could help me on my mission, I even lied to you so that you'd run away. I haven't been a good boyfriend for you. Sometimes I think you could do better."

"Dick, baby, you are perfect for me. I know you are a good person with a strong heart. We all lose our way every now and then. But I'll always be right there to bring you back because I love you and I know you would do the same for me. Remember that stuff with the dreamstone? I knew you were upset that I didn't tell you about Greta's warnings, but you still came through for me in the big fight. And that stuff about Mystik U? I said terrible things to you, but you still called Dr. Fate to come to my rescue."

"Yea, but he was late, and you kicked ass all by yourself."

"Point is, supporting each other and helping each other grow is what relationships are all about. It's what love is all about. You inspired me to get into showbusiness. I encouraged you to become a cop. You got me this big apartment so we could live comfortably and even gave us Pocus so that I wouldn't be alone when you went to MIT. I gave you a protection coin to make sure death wouldn't take you too soon. Most importantly, you drive me wild when we have sex, and not because you fuck good. But because you're so tender and sweet. You make sure every part of me feels good, and I love doing the same for you. I'd say there is a good healthy amount of give and take between us."

"I still don't think I deserve you."

"Maybe. Maybe not. One thing is for sure though, you need me just like I so desperately need you. You may not be perfect. I may not be perfect. But we are perfect for each other. We work beautifully together, and we stand proudly side-by-side. There will be some bad times. We will fight. But I love you too much to let you go just like you love me so much you'll fight for me. It's why we make such a good husband and wife."

Suddenly, Dick's eyes widened. For a moment, it felt like he stopped breathing. Did she really say that? Did she mean it? Realizing her slip-up, Zatanna immediately shot up from bed.

"Uhhh I mean uh y'know cuz we're a perfect pairing! And um like uh it may be something to consider. But but not right now. I-If you're not ready we could table it for another time. I don't want to pressure you or anything. I just uh it was the moment and oh dammit I ruined the moment and MMPH."

Happily, he pulled her down and pressed his lips to hers. She was shocked at first, be easily melted into his kiss. Hugging her waist, he pulled her on top of him so that she straddled him. Tilting his head, he deepened their kiss. She hugged his neck but used her elbows to try and keep her weight off him which frustrated him a bit. Trying to get her closer, he hugged her tighter causing her to lose balance and collapse on top of him. It didn't matter as her thighs closed tightly on his sides. Finally, breaking for air, she rested her forehead on his and looked into his eyes. They shined the brilliant blue she loved so much. It was as if she could see his soul glowing with such emotion.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, "I didn't mean to blurt out something like marriage."

"I want to marry you," he said with conviction.

"…..Really?" she stuttered as tears welled up in her eyes.

"But after everything thus far, it doesn't feel right. Don't take this the wrong way. I love you. I love you so so much. But with Jason's death, this whole Joker fiasco, it just wouldn't feel genuine asking you to marry me. I don't want to propose to you because we feel like life is short and we're about to die or something like that. I want to propose to you when the moment is right, when we both are certain we want to spend the rest of our lives together because we're in love. So, I promise, when the time is right and when we both feel ready, I will propose to you in spectacular fashion. Deal?"

"Ok," she answered smiling, "I agree. We can table the wedding bells for another time."

She laid back down on his chest and he continued holding her. Just as he was about to close his eyes and try to sleep, she decided to interrupt him once again.

"Although…" she grinned cheekily, "not everything has to wait until marriage."

"Huh?"

"Be right back!"

She got out of bed and scurried over to her closet. She pulled out a package wrapped in plastic and made her way to the bathroom and shut the door behind her. Confused but intrigued, Dick sat up and leaned against the headboard. He picked up his phone by the end table to read a few texts.

Jake Peralta: Hey man. Just checkin in hope ur doing ok. Lucky Holt gave us the week off to rest after all that's happened. Hopefully Zatanna can work her magic and get you back in tip top shape. And don't worry, we got a bro code. I got your back and won't tell a single soul. Best.

"Well lookie here. Looks like we've got a patient in critical condition," Zatanna purred from the doorway.

Looking up Dick dropped his phone onto the floor. Somehow his throat dried up, but he was drooling from his mouth. Zatanna decided to dig out an old present from Artemis. Dick had no idea what part of her to keep his eyes on. The short skirt that did nothing to cover her ass? The tight blouse with buttons that couldn't close all the way due to her breasts? The fishnet stockings? The goddamn fishnet stockings! Even her little hat with the tiny red cross had blood rushing to his groin. Slowly, she sashayed over to the side of the bed purposely adding hypnotic sways to her hips.

"Oh dearie me, you've got some intense swelling in this particular area," she teased as she rubbed the tent that appeared on his shorts, "We're gonna have to administer special treatment to reduce the swelling. May I, Mr. Grayson?"

"Uhhhh ummm yes ma'am."

"Aw shucks, no need for ma'ams here, Mr. Grayson. Just call me Nurse Zee. M'kay?"

"Yes, Nurse Zee."

She climbed into bed and pulled his shorts down to get a better look at the swelling.

"Oh my. This looks more serious than I thought. I'll have to administer this treatment orally. Don't you worry, Mr. Grayson. I'm the best at what I do," she winked as she kissed his head.

"Ohhhhh GOD you really are!"

Meanwhile…

"Well, Witch Boy, it seems your attempt to dispose of Nightwing was a complete flop."

"Screw you, Lex! It almost worked! He fell from like fifty stories up!"

"Meow."

"Shut up Teekl! Fifty, ten, whatever! It's cuz of that stupid baby magic. I was proud of this one too! I didn't even have to do much. Literally minimal amount of my energy to kill the guy's wife, drive him insane, and poof agent of chaos baby!"

"Was modeling him after the Joker also part of your plan?"

"Hey that was his own flavoring in the soup. Can't control everything."

"Even so, results are results. Nightwing still walks. No matter. Our grander scheme is beginning to bear fruits anyway. I heard that our….extraterrestrial friends have made contact on Earth."

"You heard correctly, Savage. The next phase of our plan can begin."

"I am wary of this partnership. Are we sure they won't cross us?"

"No. But not to worry, Ra's. We have contingencies for that. In the meantime, I suggest we allow our new friend, Black Manta, a chance to eliminate the Team starting with Aqualad I presume."

"It will be my pleasure. For the Light."

"FOR THE LIGHT!"

AN: Hey everyone! Phoo finally finished with this arc hahaha. These are the longest chapters I've written for this series, and I'm all tuckered out haha. I hope you've enjoyed my twist on the Dark Knight with Dick and Zatanna. I'm sorry if things felt crammed or rushed. I didn't want to string this along for too long so hopefully this was a good enough size arc for you all. Now admittedly, I need to fit in one tiny mini-arc before we can actually get to season 2 hahha. Cuz uh…someone needs to die and uh…..I need to introduce one new character. I think you can guess who's who lol. But then, once we get that out of the way, SEASON 2! And uh, more bad news: I'm gonna be traveling so I may not be able to post for a couple of weeks. BUTT (smacks Dick's ass) never fear! THIS STORY IS NOT DEAD! I know like every fic writer says this, but I promise I'm not lying. Writing this story has become a really fun hobby and even if I do wanna end it, I would write a nice wrap up ending that ties everything together. So, please bear with me on the shoddy posting schedule. Thank you to all who've stuck around and enjoyed reading this fic. You guys are amazing! If you get antsy, you're welcome to join the Chalant Discord and check in on my progress/get updates! Come hang and chat with me and other Chalant fans! (Link in bio) Till then, Happy 2023 to all!