Batmom

Part 1

Gotham was never left unprotected. It was an unwritten rule. Even if Batman wasn't in Gotham, he leaves the Calvary at the ready to patrol and cover all the patrol routes. In fact, it was strange that Bruce Wayne leaves his beloved city at all. However this time he had to attend unavoidable important business matters abroad, which meant he had to leave his extended family of vigilantes to take care of the city while he took care of Wayne Enterprises.

Bruce's return to Gotham was programmed for still another two days from tonight, which had him somehow wary of the situation back at home, not because he didn't trust his trainees, but because they have been working on a case that had been giving them mixed signals confusing the team and they got notice that the shipment of fear gas they have been tracking was scheduled to arrive tonight. Knowing that he couldn't supervise firsthand the operation, he called the Batcave to have an update about the mission.

Of course he had called his wife earlier to have their daily conversation; however she denied him all information on the plan for the night, alleging that he should trust their kids to handle the situation and that he had prepared them for these kinds of operations. And she also mentioned that now he knows exactly how she feels every night when they go out. It is to mention that she had been beside Bruce since not long after he took Dick under his care, so his wife had a perfect idea of how he felt. However he promised to be pending of his mobile in case something goes wary and he had to take an emergency trip back to Gotham to assist the boys. But she assured that they would be fine.

Nonetheless, Bruce was uneasy about the mission. It seemed all too convenient that they got a good lead after checking diverting leads there and there for two months. He dreaded that a situation like the one with Jason many years ago could be repeated and he knew that once again he doesn't have time enough to reach the boys before they get injured or worse. He was wise enough not to let his wife to know about this particular fear.

That night the operation was supervised by Agent A, that is Alfred, who was monitoring the trajectories of Nightwing, Red Hood, Red Robin and Robin that took them to the warehouses in the borders of the Narrows and the docks. As they entered the one with the mark they were following according to their lead, they found everything in the darkness and the place was mainly empty, there was no sign of the cargo they were trying to get.

"Hey Agent A, it seems like it was another dead end." Nightwing appointed himself as the leader of the operation due to his longer trajectory as hero.

"Damn it! I am sick of these leads to nowhere... we should/" What Red Hood wanted to suggest was cut abruptly when the light went on around them revealing a set that looks only too familiar and unpleasant for the second robin.

Alfred's voice resonated in the comms of the batboys since they interrupted their phrases. "What is happening? Please report back."

"Well, well, well... what do we have here? Look Harley, I got a flock of birds right into my cage, how about we have a little fun with the trapped birds before we blow up the place Dear". Harley just giggled in amusement at the words from the Joker.

The whole set of fake leads was a trap from the Joker who wanted another epic battle with Batman. He knew that in order to get the Bat's full attention he needed to treat his Robins, and so he did when he noticed that there were fewer reports of sightings of the Batman.

Unbeknown to Alfred, Mrs. Wayne was listening to every word since the boys left to follow the track they were left to. She too was uneasy about the kids going out. Perhaps she too had extreme confidence that Bruce could deal with everything and being without him left a void in Gotham. She wished she was wrong, that they didn't need her husband as much as they truly did, but now her sons were in danger.

Alfred heard the surprised gasp that Mrs. Wayne let out when she figured out the situation. He knew she had suffered deeply the loss of Jason many years ago, but right now they needed to understand the situation so they could all get out from there in one piece. "Madame, do not engage in the situation, I can assure you that the boys are perfectly capable of getting out of the trap of Joker without casualties, after all, they have been trained by Batman". Alfred knew as well as Mr. and Mrs. Wayne that the boys had overcome the direst situations because of their extensive training.

However Mrs. Wayne was first and foremost, the mother of those kids. "Alfred, you know I love you so much and I know your good judgement keeps this place running like clockwork, but I won't let the Joker hurt any of my babies again." And she hurried away from the batcomputer where Alfred was following the action right to the changing room.

There she opened one of the lockers belonging to her. It was strange that they had many lockers just for the six of the regular occupants of the training room; however no one questioned the decisions of Bruce because, after all, he was a billionaire and had permission to be eccentric. In her locker she stored a suit that she hopped to never wear again, it was one of the early versions of the Batsuit her husband wore. It didn't fit perfectly and it was more of a purple tone than a black and gray combination that he had been wearing lately, but it was enough for her.

It took her less than five minutes to change and be ready. She was about to ignite the motorcycle when she heard Alfred. "Madame, the coordinates are already in the motorcycle's GPS, you'll be there in 10 minutes. Once you're out I will synchronize the lights so you don't have to stop and hopefully, you'll find light traffic. And Madame... please... be safe." Alfred's heart was on the line that night. He couldn't risk losing another boy, nor Mrs. Wayne, that would devastate Bruce beyond reason; however he understood that their only chance of survival resided now on Batmom.

"Alfred, you are pure gold!" And she revered as fast as she could to hit the road and reach the warehouse in time to save her sons.