A Possibly Stupid Stunt (open)

[Spoiler]

Stephanie had always had a certain skill for slipping into the Batcave unnoticed, and that is where she sat. She leaned deeply back into the large chair facing the main computer. The same chair that Dick, Tim and Barbara had spent many a night working. Steph sat there, in her eggplant colored costume with the hood and mask pulled back to reveal her pretty little face. She had planned on confronting Batman here tonight, but she was quickly losing her nerve.

The blonde sighed and buried herself deeper into the chair. She used to sit here when she was Robin, and Batman would scold her. The Dark Knight had never believed in her. He made her Robin just to make Tim jealous. He fired her and turned his back on her. When she was believed to have died, he never even put up a case for her. She should despise him. And to a certain level, she did. But she could not abandon him at others seemed to have done.

She knew Batman had been out of town and might be out of touch with all that was happening. She didn't know if Nightwing, Oracle, Huntress, Batgirl or Robin had contacted him. And she really doubted it, as he would have taken some kind of action by now. She shook her head and grabbed for a pen and paper, deciding she would not stay and deal with his insults. She pressed the pen to the paper and began to scrawl.

Batman,

The Untouchables are being charged with War Crimes and some pretty bad stuff might be going down. Please make haste to the Justice League watchtower so that we may regroup.

----x

[/color]

She smiled at the slip of paper and placed it carefully on the computer before her.

"And he never has to know who it was!", she said with a tone of relief.

[Bruce Wayne]

Returning home from the Gotham City Masquerade Ball, he sighed to himself. The constant pandering to the masses, glad-handing high-brow members of Gotham, and the usual brown-nosers were but a single stone in the mosaic of Bruce Wayne's mind at the moment. Bruce Wayne, Batman, Bruce Wayne, Batman! he thought to himself as he met Alfred at the front door.

Alfred already knew something was bothering his life-long charge. "Good evening, Master Bruce," Alfred said concerningly."I have taken the liberty of preparing your bed for the night, sir".

Bruce removed his long, flowing overcoat and looked up at the weathered face of his old friend. "Thank you, Alfred, but I do not believe that will be necessary." "I need to work late tonight, dear friend, take the rest of the night off." Bruce said, still pondering deeply. "Goodnight, Alfred".

"Goodnight, sir." Alfred hesitantly replied.

Bruce had been severely conflicted over the past couple of months. It seemed as though his reasons for donning the cape and mask had become clouded with the copious routine of which he had become accustomed to. The past words of his wise, dear friend and the memory of his parents were all that were keeping him going at this point.

It is time once again, he thought as he placed his hand on the elegantly carved grand-father clock. His mind raced as he slowly moved the hands on the clock. "10:47", he whispered as a rush of sadness and a taste for vengeance overcame him. Just like clock-work, the clock slowly moved to the side. Bruce then started down a path he had been so many times before.

Upon entering the batcave, the place seemed lifeless. Not as it once did. The once great fortress of a vigilante master-piece seemed now to be more cave than fortress. Bruce made his way up to the computer on which he had solved some of the greatest cases ever to strive in Gotham City. A piece of paper caught his eye.

Batman,

The Untouchables are being charged with War Crimes and some pretty bad stuff might be going down. Please make haste to the Justice League watchtower so that we may regroup.

----x

He could not believe his eyes. It was not the news in the scribble note he found most intriguing, it was the handwriting on the note. No "x" placed in the signatory could sway the great detective. He knew exactly who had published this piece. Stephanie, he thought to himself.

Bruce then sat in his still warm chair. "Should I continue?" he thought to himself.

[Spoiler]

Stephanie had dashed to a secluded corner when she heard someone entering the dark hideout. She held her breath as best she could as she watched Batman walk in, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders as usual. Steph remembered a time when she felt a little bit sorry for him. He always seemed to haul around so much responsibility. He always seemed so alone. Now with Robin and Batgirl being stuck on Nightwing, he was pretty alone again.

She closed her eyes for stressful moment when he sat down to read the note. She figured now would be the moment she would make her silent get away. She began to creep along the back walls, and step very lightly. She was close to being on her way, when her boot became caught under a thick black wire and she was sent face first to the floor.

"Crap..", she said with a defeated grumble as she sat back up and looked with worried eyes to where Bruce sat.

"Sorry...", she said with a shrug as she lifted herself from the ground. He would give her an intimidating glare and send her from his sight, she knew that much.

[Bruce Wayne]

The hair on the back of Bruce's neck stood up like that of a startled kitten. He did not think that she would actually stay around to confront him after all of this time. He turned to the gloomy shadows from which the voice came and began to speak in a deep, soft, raspy tone.

"You were never one to leave well enough alone. You have risked alot by coming here tonight. Why did you come here? Did you expect, with some glimmer of hope, that I would forgive your past mistakes? Uh? Do you expect redemption?"

"Answer me!" He said, growing more and more impatient with the would-be escapee.

Somewhat of a softness could be seen in Bruce's face. He knew that how ever different their pasts may have been, they had still lost the same. A family.

[Oracle]

There was a static crackling that filled the room and there was the sound of someone clicking their tongue reaproovingly.

"And I thought you were harsh on me." Oracle's voice said sadly through a speeker by the main moniter. The screen buzzed with static and three seconds later Bab's face appered there. She looked worn out, as if she hadn't slept in a long time. The red head had been working hard for the past week to get the watchtower open as a safety. She had barely taken time to eat or sleep.

There was also a saddness in her eyes. She had worked as an informant during the war, and it had taken it's toll on her just as much as any others. Secluded by her wheelchair, she had more than once blamed herself for disasters out of her control, telling herself that if she could move as she once had, she could have helped more.

"Hate to disturb you, but I thought you might want to be told. The watchtower is open. Both of you would want to get up here, fast. Bruce Wayne is on the speculatory list of possible Batman's. They almost found out who Nightwing is, don't underestimate them. The docking bay is open, I'll be expecting both of you soon."

The screen went blank and communication was down. Back in the watchtower, Oracle took a deep breath. Her family, her gothem contacts, were safe. For now.

[Spoiler]

Stephanie winced as the large mans brooding voice stirred in the darkness. She felt her heart beating a mile a minute. Truth be told, she was a bit frightened of Bruce. He had a violent streak that she hoped would never be directed towards her. The young vigilante wiped herself off from the fall, even though there was no dust clinging to her purple cloak.

"I used to want that, Mr. Wayne", she admitted after clearing her throat. He throat was shaky at first, but would eventually grow in clarity and volume. "But I don't anymore. I don't like you Batman, and you don't like me. But I wanted you to be safe..", she nodded to herself as she pulled on her black mask in preparation to leaving. "Just because we don't get along in like...any way at all..doesn't mean that we should throw eachother to the dogs."

Stephanie turned her back on the man when she heard Oracles voice reverberate through the large room. She sighed to herself and looked down at her shiny black boots. She was much more mature now, after her stint in Africa. She wasn't a stupid wreckless push over anymore. She was Spoiler.

[Bruce Wayne]

Bruce replayed the message.

"Wait Stephanie", he said hesitantly, "we have a job to do."

Bruce pushed away from the warm monitor and slowly stood up. Truth be told, he did not feel that Stephanie was as inept to fight crime as she once was. He was not going to let her know that just yet, though. He looked down down at his shiny watch as a sheen of light bounced off of the watch, across the purple fabric that Spoiler had donned.

Bruce slowly picked his head up. "Will you help me?" He said as walked toward the closet where his infamous bat-suit hung.

He paused.

[Spoiler]

Stephanie was already starting towards her makeshift exit when Bruce requested that she wait. She sighed and stood still, back still turned to him. Spoiler did have a secret flame burning within her, still a deeply seeded need to prove herself to Batman. She had failed to do so when she was a young girl, but now she was an experienced vigilante. She had gotten a lot of experience when all the heroes joined the Untouchables.

She nodded without looking back at him, and silently grinned to herself. It would all be different now. "I think you already know the answer to that question..."

[Bruce Wayne]

Bruce nodded as he entered the closet. "Thank you." He said. As he stared at the two suits hanging next to each other in the shadows of the dark closet, he whispered, "It's yours until you choose otherwise, if you want it."

Bruce Wayne entered the darkened closet. Batman exited.

Batman walked across the black cave floor to the computer where he, moments ago, sat. He reached up with gloved hand and pressed a key. All of sudden a light appeared in the distant corner of the batcave. Under the light was none other than the batplane itself. It shined like a black diamond under the glow of the fluorescent lights.

"We fly," he said, as he looked Stephanie's direction.

[Spoiler]

Stephanie found herself glaring a little as Bruce turned his back. He wasn't being an absolute jerk to her, and she didn't understand it entirely. But maybe he had heard about her training with Nightwing, about her being a Teen Titan, about how she stayed and protected Gotham during the war. Maybe. But maybe not.

She drew herself closer to the closet and viewed the suits that hang secluded in the large closet. She cocked her head to the side and looked downwards, thinking to herself as Batman exited in full costume.

"The batplane...", Stephanie whispered to herself as the lights began to glow very brightly. She wasted no time in climbing into the aircraft and securing herself into the Navigators position.

"Ready.."

[Bruce Wayne]

Batman was not good at conversation, so once inside the pilot seat, he drew the top without a word. This is going to be a long flight, he thought to himself.

Batman reached forward. In front of him was a small screen surrounded with, what seemed, a thousand buttons. He sequenced a group of them without so much as a wince or pause for thought. On the screen appeared Alfred.

"Hello again, Master Bruce," Alfred said. "I had a feeling."

"Yes, Alfred," Batman began, "I will be away for an undisclosed amount of time, dear friend. You know how to contact me."

"Good luck, sir," Alfred replied.

"Thank you, Alfred," ended Batman.

Transmission ended. Batman knew that Alfred understood completely what was going on. He always did.

"Set course: JLA Watchtower," said Batman.

The sound of the batplane gearing up like a fighter-jet in flight was amazing. And all at once, they were off.