The other after dinner conversations...

Wednesday night October 29th

Bruce took a seat on a couch and Selina curled up on his lap and then Maven and Holly curled up on either side of them. Holly was on Bruce’s right while Selina and Maven were on the left. Helen was seated in the high-backed chair. Lois and Clark took a seat on a loveseat. Karen had joined Kara, Dick, Barbara, and Jason outside. Alfred came up behind Lois and pointed a device at her and then Clark.

“OH!” Lois shouted.

“That would the hidden recording device in your bra shorting due to directed Electro-Magnetic Pulse,” Alfred pronounced.

“Think they are going to talk about the Justice League?” Holly asked Maven.

“Why would we talk about the Justice League?” Lois asked.

“Oh please,” Maven said before she sang out the tune of John Williams piece “Theme for Superman.”

“Yeah, the reading glasses don’t do that great job of hiding your identity,” Holly said.

Lois held out a hand.

“What?” Clark asked.

“Five bucks,” Lois said.

“Really?” Clark asked.

“Five bucks,” Lois said, “Every time that Theme song from the documentary on the Man of Steel comes back to bite him in the ass, he owes me five bucks.”

“That was the top movie release of the summer,” Bruce noted.

“Better than the Tim Burton Moc-u-drama with the Danny Elfman score,” Helen noted dryly.

“Alfred, is the investigation into the Doctor Sandmark and her family handy?” Bruce asked, “I seem to be covered in Scooby Doos.”

Even Helen chuckled at that; Selina, Holly and Maven had dressed up in rubber Scooby Doo catsuits. Complete with face built into the hood, a tail, a collar and tag. Alfred smiled and went over to a cabinet and returned with a portable hard drive.

“That Worth girl, Rose…” Clark started, “Question freaked out when he found out about her being enrolled in the academy… Well, more so than usual.”

“That’s a shocker,” Helen rolled her eyes.

Clark and Lois both gave quizzical looks at the other dimension daughter of Bruce and Selina.

“She is the daughter of Deathstroke. We are trying to keep an eye on her,” Bruce said.

“That brings us to another point,” Clark said, “Aside from a few of us at the core, no one in the Justice League really understands or appreciates what you do for the League. Some of the new guys think Wayne is just trying to get good press by giving grants with strings that the JL buys from Wayne Enterprises. They don’t even know that the Batman exists.”

“Then there is the fact that Miss Kitty romps around humiliating all of the League members on their home turf and then slinks back to Gotham,” Lois pointed out, “And how much longer before some of these folks get pissed off enough to try and arrest her in Gotham?”

“Send them,” Helen pronounced, “Send them so they can learn that Gotham is off limits not because Bruce Wayne pays money, nor because Batman is a Tyrant… Send them so they can learn that Gotham is a special level of hell that none of them are prepared for. None of them would ever survive without Training from the Bat-Family.”

“Helen,” Selina spoke up, “Dear, Kitten, cool it on the ‘I AM THE NIGHT’ act… It isn’t as effective on Metro-twits. It is most effective at making your wife drop her panties and your wife isn’t around.”

Everyone just looked at Selina.

“What do you propose?” Bruce asked.

“At the very least Bruce Wayne comes and speaks with the Justice League to make it clear why you are doing this…” Clark said, “Tell them about the alley, and how you want to protect other children from the same fate…”

“I will think about it,” Bruce intoned.

Lois wanted to say more, but the way Bruce spoke made her afraid.

“So, what else has been going on?” Selina asked.

“Dinah and Ollie are still pissed at you humiliating them, and Robin for posting stuff to the Justice League network to further the humiliation,” Clark sighed.

“Jason only did the one push,” Bruce noted and then stopped.

“How cliché,” Selina giggled, “The Butler did it.”

“You will never get me to confess anything,” Alfred said flatly.

“Alfred?” Lois asked.

“You have never witnessed the depths of Alfred’s snark,” Selina purred.

“Has Alfred dusted your costume while you were wearing it at the Bat-Computer?” Helen asked Bruce.

“YES,” was the response from everyone but Lois.

Helen’s chuckles were the creepiest thing Lois had heard that night.

*

Harley and Garry were walking around the Halloween store looking for costumes. Harley had picked out a sexy doctor costume for the party Friday night, now they needed something for Garry to wear. As much as Harley just wanted him in a collar and leash, this wasn’t that kind of party. Garry was walking around looking at different ones. Harley stopped at a teen boy’s Scary Scare Crow costume.

“Hay check this out,” Harley said.

“That’s too small for me,” Garry noted.

“I know that,” Harley said, “But the other day Patient J was saying how Crane would make a great Scarecrow, and this is just about his size.”

“Are you going to buy it for him?” Garry asked.

“Fuck no,” Harley let her Brooklyn accent show, “But I will send him a picture.”

“Fair enough,” Garry said.

“What about the cowboy over there?” Harley spotted a costume.

“Too big, plus sized,” Garry noted.

Harley’s phone dinged.

“Let’s see here, ‘thanks, found outfit at army navy, enjoy.’ Is that a space suit?” Harley read the message.

Garry came over and looked at the phone.

“No, it is a military bio-hazard suit,” Garry said, “Like what the Doctors With Out Borders wear when dealing with plague but for use in a shooting war.”

“Is that what he is getting?” Harley asked.

“He has my respect for trying, those suck… more likely he is grabbing the MASH Hawkeye off the mannequin next to it.”

*

It was close to midnight, the pair were not from Gotham. They had figured that they could make some quick money the illegal way here and then move on before any of the mobs came asking for a cut.

“So what was that nonsense about gargoyles,” the Hispanic man asked.

“Just some bullshit to try and scare new comers from taking the Falcone and Stromwell territories…” the woman said, “Let’s just grab a few purses and be out of this shit hole.”

A feint noise came from behind the pair, as they turned to see what it was, they were both slammed into the walls of the alley by black leathery wings. The form flue up into the air.

“Gargoyle…” the woman said as her vision went black.

*

“And that is the quintessential Gargoyle Attack,” Dick said from the roof across the street, ‘Drop in, Wham, Bam, Good night ‘mam.’ Of particular note is the stealth of the approach, then the sudden and overwhelming knockout and the escape.”

“So that is how you guys remain a mystery?” One of the twins asked.

“Basically Menos,” Dick said.

“Professor Nightwing, I am Menos, he is Mas,” the other twin spoke up.

“Are you two playing with me again?” Dick asked, “Because I am pretty sure I put the plus on your back and the minus on his right there.”

“Si Proffesor,” the admitted.

“Now when you go to Metropolis, they are going to expect something flashier. But, remember the flashier, the more people get info on you. There are entire Wikis about projected strengths and weeknesses of the Justice League including some really accurate guesses about limitations,” Dick noted.

“How close Nightwing?” one of the new kids asked.

“They have Starfire’s top speed pegged,” Dick admitted.

Oracle landed on the roof top next to Dick. She put her arm on Dick’s shoulder.

“Hay hot wings,” Oracle smiled, “How was that?”

“Great work as always pretty Bat,” Dick kissed her.

“Any truth to the rumor that you two had a three way with Starfire?” One of the students asked.

“If I answer that I might not get another,” Dick said.

“I don’t know about that Hotwings, after she saw those pictures of you in the rubber booty-shorts she put in for another five ‘Netflix and Chill’ dates with extra latex and lezdom,” Oracle giggled.

*

“No guns,” the thug said, “No guns, no funny business, Friday morning ten o’clock.”

“What does Stromwell want?” Rupert Thorne asked.

“Just to talk,” the thug said, “Stromwell, the Falcone head and you. Friendly talk over early lunch.”

“What do you think he wants to talk about?” Rupert rubbed his chin, “The Falcone Family is in chaos right now and Bird Brain put a seriously handicap on Stromwell’s operations… Think Stromwell is going to throw in the towel?”

“No idea boss,” the thug shrugged, “It is possible.”

“Then what?” one of the Thugs called Rhino asked.

It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.

“I didn’t mean no disrespect Boss,” Rhino apologized, “I was just wondering what would happen next if Stromwell did leave town?”

“No, no… That is a fair question,” Rupert said, “We should consider the possibilities now… I would say for now, that it all depends Rhino. We know that no one will let Stromwell set up shop in another town. So what can he do? Retire in a little house out in some suburb or take his retirement in a federal prison. Of course that is assuming he doesn’t do something Yakuza and leave a nice neat note for Gordon. If Stromwells people fall in line and accept my leadership we will be one big happy family… and if not, I will need you and a few other good men to ‘close problematic store fronts’ that are redundant Rhino.”

That got chuckles from the goons. Rupert let them have their laughs for a minute before continuing.

“It is also possible that Stromwell just wants to team up and put the bird brain out of Gotham,” Rupert shrugged, “Personally I can’t stand the malevolent midget… We will see what Stromwell wants. Tell him I will be there, and I take my coffee black with two sweet and lows.”

Batman put down the binoculars and tapped off the hidden long-range microphone. The members of Rose Family’s inner circle started milling out of the room. Rupert Thorne got up and looked at a painting on the wall. It was of his great-uncle. Thorne ran his fingers over the top of the frame and brushed off the dust before going to bed.

Batman raised his hand to his chin and thought.

*

Thursday Morning October 30

Kara sat on her stool eating breakfast. Bruce was drinking his coffee. Dick and Jason were bickering. Alfred was drinking tea and watching a DVD of Black Adder.

“What should I wear for the event?” Kara asked.

“Something pornographic? That seems to be your trademark,” Jason said.

“No, fetishistic…” Bruce said, “But you must think American fashion is rather prudish in respects compared to Kryptonian.”

“My father would have freaked out if he saw me in ‘normal clothes’ here…” Kara noted, “My mother would have never worn a knee skirt and tee-shirt and that ubiquitous here.”

“No man can help themselves when seeing a sexy calf,” Alfred noted dryly.

“Second skin is fine, but letting your calf get natural sun is bad?” Jason asked.

“Different cultures,” Dick said.

“I was thinking of wearing the pumpkin catsuit,” Kara said.

“An inflatable?” Dick asked, “Oh… you are dead.”

“Nuts get free retaliation,” Bruce noted.

“No it is not inflatable, it is skin tight,” Kara noted.

“That the one with the Jack-o-lantern on the butt?” Bruce asked.

“Yep,” Kara said.