We Are Shadows In The Alley

Who: EVERYONE!
Where: Wayne Manor
When: Evening, before Halloween
What: PAR-TAY!

"The lanterns are lit along the drive, sir," Alfred reported, lingering in the doorway, "and the guests, I've no doubt will be arriving soon. and leaving late, as always." He stayed there for a moment as Bruce was adjusting his costume, until he turned to Alfred, an eyebrow raised quizzically. "If I may be so bold to observe, sir, you seem to have taken extra care and interest in the preparation this year."

"Good people give generously to the Wayne Foundation for an invitation," Bruce responded. "My mother would want me to give them a good show."

Alfred's mouth was a tight, wry little purse. "Indeed, I'm sure that's all it is. And, in past years, when you've questioned the motivation of their generosity..." He shrugged innocently, Bruce glaring at him innocently. "Well, as I've said, it's the past. I'll inform you when Ms. Kyle arrives."

"That would be appreciated," Bruce replied quickly, by way of a dismissal.

***

Barbara adjusted her plastic breastplate, tightening the shoulder straps. "And do you know what you are going as yet?" she asked the headset.

"The box just arrived. It says 'props and costumes department' on it, is that a good sign?" Helena informed her over the phone, and Babs could hear the rustle of tissue paper and the Helena's low, impressed whistle.

"That nice, huh?"

"Oh, I can do something with this," Helena confirmed, surprising Babs with what was a rather raunchy chuckle.

"Come with flowers?"

Helena's cheeks reddened as she put the bouquet that the courier had handed her with the box to her nose. "Oh, yeah," she said, already planning on how she could arrange her hair to weave the flowers in. "Dick?"

"Hasn't shown up yet and, truth be told, I'm a little terrified, from what he's told me. 'Big, furry werewolf,' I believe were the words he used. And awesome. And whenever Dick thinks anything's awesome.... See you at the party with your Hollywood arm candy?"

"You better believe it!"

Who: Cass, Talia and Tim
Where: The Narrows
When: Night
What: Cassandra stalks her former boss and has her first encounter with a Robin

( Cut for length )

Who: Vicki, tag for Selina
Where: Vicki's apartment
When: Night
What: Vicki debates her latest story

She had the research set out on her desk, next to her laptop. It was research she wasn't exactly supposed to be doing, into the finances of Raymond's company, the Wayne Enterprises take over. Something was definitely wrong, Vicki just couldn't place her finger on it, though her nose was itching like crazy that there was a story in there somewhere, more than what Raymond was saying, and her grand expose was at a standstill. Her new editor wanted to let that dog lie while she continued to do research on the woman, this Selina Kyle; he told her that was where the real story was. Maybe it was true. She couldn't tell anymore.

She rubbed her tired eyes and wrapped her silk robe tighter around her body, switching the desk lamp off and sighing as she stumbled off to bed. She was hardly unbiased, and God it was bothering her. She slipped between the sheets thinking of Bruce, staring up at the ceiling of the penthouse as she thought about all of this, her eyelids closing slowly. She could drag the woman's name through the mud, but what would that get her? She'd be petty, and Bruce would hate her for it. But what if she really was taking advantage? But that wasn't why she was doing it, was it? Too many questions and it was too late to think them all. She drifted into sleep.

Who: Gilda and Sal Maroni; Gordon and Batman; Scarecrow and Talia
Where: By the harbor
When: Night, after the Narrows bridge riot
What: A clandestine meeting

( Cut for Length )

EDITED

Who: OPEN
Where: Starts at the GCPD HQ
When: Night
What: The villains' plan begins to unfold

( Cut for length )

Who: Helena, OPEN
Where: Helena's loft, Old Town
When: After being released
What: Helena adjusts to her new limitations

Helena was grateful to Barbara. She was feeling much better, now that she was at home, even if she got frustrated at the pain shooting up from her belly when she moved, or the fact that she got winded just walking from the bedroom to the kitchen. Babs had had all sorts of equipment moved in, including a nasty therapeutic bed that Helena slept on nevertheless. She was working her arms and legs whenever she could; the sit ups would have to wait until she was more healed and it didn't make her shriek to bend over.

She refused to let her daily routine be interrupted however, and made herself lunch and dinner every day, even if it took a little longer and tired her out. Her job was still up in the air. Officially, she was on paid leave, but if parents got wind of the whole mob angle, she'd be out on her ass on a second and she knew it. Every day, working at it like the stubborn mule she was, she got better and better. She'd been shot before, but never in a place so tender, so delicate that... It might have killed me. A fraction of an inch to the left or right, and I wouldn't be here. Or I'd be like Barbara.

That kept her going. She'd always have the scar. She was proud of it; would have been prouder if it had been a more noble situation. She thought of Sal Maroni and wondered how much she could learn from him, and how Batman would fight her on that. She sat on her couch, glancing down at her costume, a body suit with built in armor. She lifted a pair of scissors and cut the stomach out of it. so everyone could see, and they'd know. I survive.

Who: Barbara, OPEN
Where: Clock Tower
When: Some time after the shooting
What: Babs releases Helena from the hospital early, causes strife and conflict, as anything having to do with Helena does

Barbara sighed and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose as she pinched herself there, shaking her head slightly. She could understand her father's point of view, but she understood Helena's better. "She was going stir crazy," Babs reiterated. "Trust me, I know what it's like, and I'm not half as difficult as Helena is." Her father's silence said it all. "I'm not!" she insisted into the phone. "She's more comfortable at home, and if she needs rehab equipment, she can just come here!" She'd made sure Helena was settled in before leaving her, and planned to recruit at least Dick to look in on her when she couldn't.

"And... how exactly do you know this woman again?" Jim asked, and she could practically hear him bristle. "Is she... a special friend?"

"Ew, Dad!" Babs whined. "You make it sound obscene. And you know I told you we weren't going to talk about that."

"It's just... the kind of ties she has...."

"I think this proves she doesn't have them anymore," Babs pointed out. "Just... can you trust me on this? You can still question her. Remember, she's still... grieving, too. She needs a little time to herself without people hovering, some time to heal the wounds they can't sew up." Jim was silent. Both of them were wondering if they were still talking about Helena. "Listen, I'll call you later, okay? Love you, bye!" She kissed the mouthpiece and hung up, sighing tiredly.

Who: Ivy, Harley, Harvey and others
Where: Arkham City HQ, the Narrows
When: A few days after Batman's foray into the Narrows
What: Ivy confronts Harvey
Note: Hope you don't mind that I modded Harley a little through sex!

Ivy kissed her way down Harley's willing body, tickling her with her lips, making her lover giggle in that adorably inane and insane way she had. She ran her slender fingers along the damp silk of the insides of Harley's thighs as she guided them over her shoulders and buried her face between her legs, her bright red hair falling like satin petals against Harley's pale flesh. Harley moaned, her head falling back and her feet wriggling in the covers, the heels digging in as if desperately trying to find purchase. "Ooh, yeah, Red! Yeah, right there!"

Ivy dove in deeper, Harley squealing as Ivy's bright eyes peering up along her body, watching the blissful expression on her lover's face as she tasted her, feasted on her, like a bee savoring that pollen inside the delicate petals of a pink rose. Harley was loud, though afterward, Ivy would still rage at herself for not hearing it, not catching any of the signs. It wasn't until they accidentally flicked the light on the camera that Ivy realized they were being watched by a giggling, giddy gaggle of horny men.

"Son of a fucking bitch!" Ivy shouted, wiping her mouth and chin with the back of her hand and reaching for a blanket. She threw it at Harley, telling her to cover herself up as she wiggled into her little green dress. The men had scattered, but she'd recognized a few faces before they'd disappeared. "You'd better run!" she cried after them. To Harley, she said, "We're talking to Harvey. He has at least a little control over these idiots, and I'm sick and tired of being on display for them to yank on their stamens to!"

Who: Helena and OPEN
Where: The Docks
When: After her Clock Tower confrontation with Dick and Babs
What: Helena bargains, and it goes terribly wrong

Well, this wasn't what she had expected. She supposed it was something of a best case scenario, in a way. They hadn't even suspected her alter ego, or those she was affiliated with. Her only regret was Vic. She hadn't seen exactly what had happened to him but she'd heard the gun go off a second before the Russian pulled a piece on her and fired. She hadn't thought they'd have the balls for it, not on the Docks during the afternoon when the warehouses were in use. Of course, the mob used most of them, whether they were cooking meth or filming a movie, so she supposed they didn't really care.

The first bullet had hit her square in the chest, where the thin kevlar had been protecting her heart beneath her dress. She wasn't as lucky with the next three. Number two went through her side, missing anything major but making her bleed bad; numbers three and four came closer to her belly. One clipped the edge of the kevlar and lodged there; the other ripped through her.

She had to breathe eventually, she knew it, though it was starting to feel more and more enticing, to just close her eyes and drift to the bottom of harbor. She was trailing blood in the dark, muddy waters, her lungs wanting the air. If Vic were alive, he'd have come for her now. Maybe it was better if she did just let herself die. then she wouldn't have to deal with those threatened 'I told you so's.

Who: Bruce and various other characters
Where: Various
When: After everything
What: Bruce wraps up some loose ends, and hatches new plots

( Cut for length )

Who: Babs and Dick
Where: The Clocktower
When: After Dick's talk with Bruce
What: Comfort

Barbara had insisted Helena go home. It was late, she was sore and doubtless she wanted to just get into her own apartment, shower and crash. Helena agreed, finally, only reluctantly. It was a relief. Barbara never did like hovering, even when it was friends. And the truth was, she wasn't sure just what she was feeling at the moment. Scared, to be sure; angry at herself for that. If she closed her eyes, she could still recall his laugh, and the cold, blank eye of the camera looking down on her.

She changed into her sweats and used the elevator to get down to the work out area. She practiced her eskrima, her fighting sticks furiously thwaping the dummy again and again, loudly, her little, savage grunts getting lost in the rapid sound. She worked them with one hand, manipulating her wheelchair with the other, dodging in and out. As if the Joker would be so kind as to stay still while she knocked the shit out of him. I'm not helpless, she kept reminding herself. I'm not, I'm not, I'm not.

Who: Gilda, Harvey and OPEN
Where: The Narrows, aka Arkham City
When: Two days after the Arkham breakout
What: Gilda is asked by the GPD to negotiate

Gilda was jumpy, anxious; Jim could see it. And it made him feel guiltier that he was asking this of her. "You don't have to," he told her for the hundredth time. "Gilda, we can find another way." She gave him one of her timid, brave smiles and his heart broke all over again.

"I'm okay," she assured him, clutching her purse in both hands. The Narrows were crawling with more danger than before; hell, she could get mugged and killed before she ever saw any signs of the Arkham escapees. But it was the only chance they had. She started forward, aware of the cop cars at her back, watching her, aware of the click of her heels echoing in near silence, as she at first hesitantly made her way across the bridge. Traffic had been stopped. It was like walking in an empty city. It seemed to take her forever to reach the other side; she looked back once, smiled at the small figure of Jim Gordon on the other side and moved forward into the dark, decaying streets.

Who: Helena and OPEN
Where: All Saints Cathedral, Old Town, Gotham
When: The day after this
What: Helena repents, and is sorry for it a moment later

( Cut for length )

Who: Helena with some Babs, tag for Dick
Where: The streets of Old Town, Gotham
When: After this
What: On patrol

Huntress' sleek motorbike throbbed a reassuring and exhilarating thrum between her legs as she roared out of the tunnel that led to the subbasement beneath the Clock Tower, busting out into the cool air of the falling night, her hair blowing loosely about her shoulders, her mask keeping it out of her face. "I have you on GPS," Barbara informed her coolly and Helena could tell that she'd already snapped into professional mode. "Heading south, bearing ten degrees; my intel says you should run into trouble about three blocks away from Arkham."

"Got it," answered Helena, leaning on the accelerator. She was going so fast that the city was one dark blur around her, streaked with glowing light, neon in every color. She wondered what Dick was to Barbara, or vice versa as she had a pretty good idea that Barbara had, at least at one point in her life, had a huge crush on Nightwing. She wondered if she would ever be let in on the secret of Batman's identity, if he would ever accept her or if the person who had changed her life, whom she had fashioned herself upon, would always be looking down his cowl at her. She wondered if that made him a hypocrite.

With a sudden start, she pulled her bike up and spun to a halt. She was in the Narrows, always a hotbed for crime, but this was far more organized than what she was used to. This looked to her like a rave, which was innocent enough save for the fact that seemingly everyone participating was dressed as their favorite Gotham criminal mastermind. "Oh, Oracle," she said under her breath, "I wish you could see how fucked up all this is."

Who: Selina, Her boss (Open)
Where: Wayne Enterprises
When: Early afternoon
What: Selina's boss has business with Wayne Enterprises

"He's late! The audacity! I know he owns half this town, but must he remind us with this 'fashionably late' crap!?"

"Indeed, sir," Selina said. It was all the man would hear when he was in a mood like this.

"This is an important meeting," he grunted. "I didn't want one of his lackeys. I wanted him, and I got him, and he can't even be here on time!?"

If she didn't know better, she'd say he was being stood up for a date, and it took a generous amount of self control not to laugh. "I understand, sir. Should I tell his secretary we're leaving? Reschedule?"

"Took me three months, THREE MONTHS, to get this appointment." He paused, smoldering and wilting. "No. We'll wait."

"Yes, sir." That's what she'd thought. She hated tact, yet it served her well all the same. "Even still, just in case he proves to be indisposed? Let me speak with her."

"Whatever," he grunted, waving her off.

Selina wrinkled her nose distastefully at his back as she moved out of the waiting area and toward the secretary's desk. For as much as Selina was certain Mr. Wayne's schedule was daunting, the woman didn't appear overwhelmed or harried. Neither was she bored and unprofessional. Maybe this was a kindred spirit, a woman putting up with an impossible man with elegance and poise. Then again, considering her nighttime activities, Selina knew no woman could really be a kindred spirit to her in this position. She must certainly still be one of a kind.

"I apologize for Mr. Wayne's absence," the woman said at once.

"Don't bother," Selina chuckled, dropping the pretense. "I simply... wanted to know a little more about the man himself. What we should be prepared for since we are afforded the time to prepare."

The woman smiled. "He's professional to a fault, I promise. This isn't typical of him. He is a busy man."

And rich. But Selina kept that obvious statement to herself. "Anything else?"

"Can I be blunt, Ms. Kyle?" the woman asked her softly, leaning forward across her desk.

"I welcome it," Selina smiled slyly in return.

"One cannot prepare themselves for Bruce Wayne," she snorted softly.

"Mmm," Selina replied, her voice almost a purr. "Forgive me for liking the sound of that. So... any minute now?"

"So I've been assured," the woman said with a slightly sheepish smile.

Who: Barbara, Bruce, Helena (OPEN)
Where: The Gotham Clocktower
When: Early afternoon
What: Settling into the new HQ at the Clocktower

Barbara started at the sound of the voice, so engrossed in her work she hadn't heard Bruce approach. She shook her head, laughing as he grinned at her. "You're getting better at that," she said, her ponytail bouncing across her shoulders.

"I hope so," Bruce responded with a chuckle. "It's kinda my job, remember?" He was looking around, seemingly impressed with the job his workmen had done. "You know, I think they actually earned their ridiculously high salaries this time," he commented casually, receiving a playful punch for his flippant tone from Babs.

"I hope so," she echoed his words with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. "It's my secret base of operations, remember?" She turned back toward her bank of computers, a wall positioned in a semi-circle in the middle of the room; beyond was the back side of the clock face, its large hands ponderously moving time forward. "It's fantastic, Bruce; really, I can't thank you enough."

He waved her thanks away. "You know it was nothing. Plus," he said has he pointed a finger toward the high-def, flatscreen monitors, "you pay me back in ways I couldn't imagine. Having you up here for the intel... it's been an immense help."

Barbara couldn't help but grin openly at the compliment. She'd always wanted to help; in days of old, she could do so physically as Batgirl. She could tell this wasn't just a hollow, idle endorsement; Bruce meant it. And that made her feel fantastic. She was doing, she was showing everyone, the doctor who'd told her she'd never walk again, her father who worried so badly... She was showing them how strong she was. The sounds of Helena's practice drifted up from the gym area in the form of a few savage grunts and an occasional groan accompanied by the blows she was landing on the practice equipment. Barbara could see the change in Bruce's expression; he didn't approve of Huntress or her methods. That was the point, Babs considered, of trying to reform her, to train her to be part of a team.

"And everything's going... well?" he asked, pursing his lips as his face showed obvious distaste. "No... problems?"

"She's working out really well," Babs answered, trying to keep her tone neutral. "She only beat the bad guy to a semi-bloody pulp last night," she added wryly. "Plus, you know, with your reputation as of late, I just thought that maybe... Stone houses and all that." He pulled a face, about to remind her that he hadn't actually done the things he was said to have and she threw up her hands in a defensive gesture. "It's how the city sees you, I can't help that! Just... trust me on this one, Bruce," she said softly, turning her chair so that she faced him fully. After a moment's hesitation, he nodded reluctantly.

He checked his watch. "Shit," he cursed, and Barbara knew he was distracted because he still tried not to swear in front of her like she was still a kid or something, "I had to be in a meeting ten minutes ago." He put his hand on her shoulder, protectively giving it a gentle squeeze. "Take it easy." His eyes wandered to the gym area. "And watch your back," he said before disappearing.

She snorted. "Coulda taken the elevator," she said quietly to herself, blowing a lock of her ginger hair from her face. "Showoff."