Protect The Batboys

the gala

"Ugh, I can't believe we have to wear this stupid get ups." Artemis hissed to M'gann, tugging at skirt of her flowy forest green ball gown. "How do they expect me to fight in this?"

"Hey, you were the one who bought it." M'gann shrugged, eyes scanning the guests as they entered the extravagantly decorated ballroom. She had to admit, she was impressed that Tim pulled this whole event off in less than ten hours. Tuning out Artemis' whining, M'gann began to reach out telepathically into the guests in general to see if she could sense any ill intent, but so far all she got was a lot of rich people hoping to get in good with the Wayne heirs and some mild gossip about the deaths of their parents, some disdain towards their heritage, and some curiosity about where Damian's mother is.

M'gann sighed, looking around the ballroom once more until she found her charges. Tim was talking to a few of the guests, an easy smile on his face as he charmed them into donating to the charity the event was supporting. Damian was with Cassandra and Stephanie by the refreshments, carefully selecting only vegetarian options for the three of them. And Dick was talking with Barbara and her father, the police commissioner, on the far side of the ballroom. So far, nothing seemed to be wrong in the world of the Young Justice squad and the Wayne heirs.

With a relieved smile, M'gann turned back to Artemis who had stopped talking and was now staring at the entrance. "Miss M, Tim didn't invite a living Scarecrow, did he?"

"I don't think so, why?" M'gann turned to follow her friend's gaze and gasped when she saw the Scarecrow they were briefed on standing in the doorway, seemingly unnoticed by the partygoers. "Artemis, grab the brothers. I'll alert the rest." Artemis nodded, slipping into the crowd to complete her objective.

Team, we have a code red. The Scarecrow is at the entrance.

Copy that. Keep a visual, Miss M.

Artemis reached Tim first, politely pulling him away from the conversation he was having with the socialites. "Timothy, we have an issue." She whispered through a smile, pulling him in the direction of Damian and the girls.

"What is it?" Tim asked, instantly on alert and scanning the room. His eyes widened when he caught sight of Scarecrow scanning the crowd. "Shit."

"Yeah, exactly. I'm taking you and your siblings out of here while my team takes care of him, got it?" Tim went to say that he could handle himself and his siblings before remembering he was supposed to be a helpless rich boy, so he just nodded. "Good."

They reached the other three at the refreshment table, filling them on the situation. Damian's face clouded over as Cass glared at Scarecrow. "Where's Dick?"

Artemis was a little taken aback at first, those being the first words she heard Cassandra speak before today. "Uh, last I saw he was with Barbara and the police commissioner. Let's go get him."

As they turned to go find the final Wayne child, they were met with a horrifying sight. Scarecrow had managed to evade Miss Martian and slip through the crowd undetected, grabbing Dick away from the Gordons. Tim felt his blood run cold when he saw the needle Scarecrow held over his brother's neck.

"Attention scum of Gotham!" Scarecrow called out, drawing everyone's attention and making the crowd gasp when they saw he had Dick in his arms. "I am requesting fifty million dollars and safe passage out of the city or I plunge this needle into ol'Wayne's neck. Got it?"

Damian had to be physically held back by Steph and Cass as they watched Dick struggle against the Scarecrow's hold, a hold they knew he could easily break but not without raising questions and risking lives. Tim stepped forward despite Artemis trying to drag him back. He pushed her off with a surprising amount of force, walking towards Scarecrow with his hands raised in surrender. "Would you like the money wired or in cash?"

"Tim! What are you doing?" Artemis hissed, missing the knowing look exchanged between the oldest two brothers.

Scarecrow laughed. "Wired, of course. Cash would be too easy to trace."

Dick smirked. "I was hoping you would say that." He then grabbed the needle being held over his neck and plunged it into himself, eyes rolling back into his head as the Scarecrow cried out in shock.

"What? No! That is not how this works!"

"Sorry, you lost your bargaining chip, my dude. Gordon, he's all yours." Tim smiled sadly, kneeling next to Dick where Scarecrow had dropped his unconscious form. He pulled the needle out of Dick's neck, holding it up to the light. "Fear toxin, like I thought. This is going to be fun." He looked up to the crowd of on lookers with a sigh. "I'm sorry to cut the evening short, but due to an foreseen development my brother has fallen ill. Thank you all for attending and I hope you have nice rest of your evening."

The rest of the Waynes and the Young Justice squad were hovering over the two floored brothers in a heartbeat as the partygoers were escorted out of the ballroom. "What is fear toxin?"

"You weren't briefed on that?"

"No."

"Oh." Tim sighed loudly, looking to Steph for help.

"It is a chemical that makes those it comes in contact with hallucinate their worst fears. It is one hell of a trip." She looked down at Dick as he began to mumble to himself, his fingers twitching. "One hell of a trip."