Bruce let out a breath he wasn't aware he had been holding. Now that Dick had gone to his room the usual chill of the Batcave had become more apparent.

The weight of the whole situation had hit him the moment the only noise left in the cave were the quiet rustling of the bats up above.

Just who exactly was it that the team interacted with in Belle Rêve?

Could it really be Danny or was Dick just subconsciously linking an unidentified meta with his brother?

If it really was Danny, just how badly had they failed him? How did he end up there of all places? Were they not a safe place for him?

Who all knew about their relation to him?

But

What if it hadn't been Danny and they spent the last two days on a wild goose chase? Dick was so certain it was his brother. But what if it wasn't and they wasted all that energy on nothing. Would they need to hold a funeral with an empty casket, so his headstone can be next to their parents? Or would Dick insist on personally going to the accident site and go through all the evidence, or whatever is left of it, himself?

What should he even do, as Dick's guardian, should that be the case?

Was it too late to call in Dinah to have a talk with Dick about this?

About everything?

Bruce sighed deeply, sagging further into his chair and letting his head fall back. Two whole days they already worked on this case. Two whole days without taking a proper break and just letting the info sit before looking for other perspectives. Mentally speaking, Bruce was exhausted. A few power naps and an ungodly amount of coffee did enough for physical tiredness but this exhaustion wasn't something he could sleep away.

"Perhaps some tea, sir?" Alfred suggested from a distance away. Of course the man had noticed Bruce's internal struggle with the case long before he was aware of it himself.

Bruce sighed again, it seemed that was the only thing he was capable of doing anymore, as he reached for the most definitely medicated tea cup. The tea was nice and soothing to his throat and he could already feel some tension leave his body. Perhaps some assistance in getting some proper sleep wasn't that bad of an idea.

Much to his dismay, the tension quickly shot back through his tired muscles as Dick came barging back into the cave. "BRUCE!" The boy yelled out. "Bruce you gotta see this!" In no time Dick had crossed the cave and was tugging on his pseudo-father's arm. He wasn't sure if it was whatever drugs Alfred had slipped into his tea but something felt off about his ward. A glance at Alfred let him know the elder man also had no idea what was going on.

Bruce got up and, with Alfred in tow, they followed Dick as the boy rambled on and on.

"I was going up like you told me to, yeah? And then there was this weird feeling and I didn't know what it was and I swear, Bruce I swear, I saw that dog and so I followed it. Did you know we have so many hidden passages here? Who knew, not me that's for sure. That dog did though, the dog knew. What else would it know?"

The two adults shared a concerned look as Dick seemed to do his best imitation of speedster talk. Perhaps he had been spending too much time with Wally and was picking up on the teen's way of speech.

"Oh who cares about that right now. Anyways, I followed it yeah and like we went all over the place? Like, I'm pretty sure I was inside the walls and ceiling at some point. Somehow we got to my room and I swear I was so close to touching it. It was like RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME but then it ran off again and it went through my door. Like, walked straight into it, not open it like we would do. Through! Crazy to think that's probably how it found out about the passages, no?"

Bruce saw Alfred reach into one of his more hidden suit pockets and pull out a syringe. Not liking the idea of sedating the boy as they were moving he held out a hand to stop the butler. For now at least. Best see what Dick was so riled up all of the sudden. Bruce was already making a mental note to check the cameras later after he managed to get some sleep himself.

By now Dick had let them all the way up to his room and practically shoved Bruce into the closet. "So when I followed it there was like nothing, yeah? But then there was this weird noise and I opened the door and BOOM!"

The adults stared in sheer confusion at the totally normal closet. "Boom, young master?" He heard Alfred ask.

Bruce felt himself get pushed out of the way as Dick looked at his closet again. "What- no, no! I promise it was right here! Right under the poster! I-" Dick seemed to become increasingly distraught as the object he had expected to be there was, in fact, nowhere to be seen. "Chum," Bruce spoke softly so the boy wouldn't panic more, "What was there?"

Bleary eyed, Dick looked up to his mentor. "I - my batarang. It was all messed up like the dog chewed on it. Like, like solid teeth marks in there. Bruce I swear, I swear it was really there." His voice was so small even the few cracks made it sound heartbreaking how upset the boy had gotten over this. As tears started to fall, he held his ward close and gave the sign to Alfred. With a swift move, a now sedated Dick fell limp in Bruce's arms. Silently, he carried him to his bed and made sure he was comfortable before leaving the room.

Out in the hallway, he placed a hand on the wall to steady himself as his own medication started kicking in harder. Alfred silently offered an arm which the hero gratefully accepted. Supported on both sides, he stumbled towards his own bed and decided to let sleep happen as long as his body saw fit.

He didn't know how long he was asleep for, but what he did know was that he felt a lot better than he had the past few days. Stumbling around he took his time going through his morning, or well, waking up routine. Once clean and dressed, he walked to the kitchen for some sweet sweet caffeine.

"Good afternoon, sir." Alfred greeted as he handed over a prepared cup. Bruce smiled gratefully as he breathed in the aroma. "Good afternoon, Alfred. Is Dick awake yet?"

The butler sighed. Reaching backwards, he grabbed a tablet and handed it over to Bruce. "No, he is still resting soundly. Perhaps that may be for the best considering what I suspect you will be doing tonight." Bruce frowned at the tablet until he read the message Alfred had left open for him.

Hidden between multiple articles was a hidden message from none other than Amanda Waller. Putting all the circled words or lines together, it appeared to be an invitation for Batman to come to Belle Rêve tonight.

Bruce raised an eyebrow and looked over to the elder gentleman. Alfred shrugged as he prepared a cup of tea for himself. "I do not know what her intentions are. But, considering recent occurrences, it might be connected."

Bruce grunted as he downed his cup. "I suppose it'll be a quick meal then. Should Dick wake up while I'm gone, tell him it's League business and that he can cover Gotham on his own until the brewery. And to be back by 2am at the latest."

"Already prepared for that, Master Bruce."

Bruce, now dressed at Batman, wasn't really sure what he expected. What he definitely didn't expect when he walked into Waller's office, was it being in a state of disarray. Boxes upon boxes covered the floor as what little personal belongings she had, had disappeared.

Batman stood in the middle of the room until Waller decided to acknowledge his presence.

"Ah, so you came." She said nonchalantly. Batman didn't give her much reaction outside of a typical grunt. The warden rolled her eyes as she continued packing. "Figures. Where is your duckling?" Batman's lenses narrowed as he tracked her movement with his eyes. "Indisposed." Waller gave a humorless chuckle as she paused her packing. "Might have been for the best."

"What do you mean by that?"

Waller fully stopped her pacing and packing and sat down in her chair. "As you are well aware, there was a recent jailbreak attempt. During this, there was a...situation with some of your undercover heroes. I suspect you and your team already found out about him being a special case. Don't think I wouldn't notice you sticking your nose in my files." She leaned forward onto interlaced fingers. Looking at the dark knight, she raised an eyebrow at his seeming lack of reaction.

"That attempt however," she continued, "was the golden ticket for the board to find grounds to fire me. While I can trust the running of the prison to somebody else, I can't trust them with the boy." From a hidden pocket with her suit jacket, she pulled out a usb drive and slid it towards the vigilante. "On this you'll find all the files on him, including his own testimony and the adjustments he made to his collars. A list of his special allies, not that you would be needing it. Contact is impossible unless they come to you, best not get worked up over it."

Batman examined the usb drive. From the outside it seemed unsuspecting. No hidden buttons or any oddities. Of course he would likely use it on a burner system in case there's a trojan hidden on the device. Still, he pocketed it. "That's a lot of trouble to go to for a prisoner."

Waller leaned back as a soft and oddly warm smile took over her features. "Oh he isn't just a prisoner. He has the potential to be so much more than that, yet he willingly limits himself to be confined here."

"If he is so important, why not take him with you and add him to Task Force X?"

Waller let out a hollow laugh as she walked to the front of her desk to lean against it. "Ha, that boy would take any chance he can get to blow his own head off rather than do something he doesn't fundamentally agree with. He'd sacrifice himself over the thought of being the cause of someone else's grief. He isn't cut out to work with the likes of them. Bigger chance they try and eliminate him before anything else." She chuckled lightly as she looked to the floor in uncharacteristic solemness.

"He won't accept help if you come at him. You've got to let him realize himself that he needs your help or else he'll just find a new hole to hide in. And maybe the next hole he finds would be somewhere even you wouldn't be able to find him. He has a... thing for knowing how to disappear when he really doesn't want to be found." Amanda openly glared at the dark knight, challenging him to object. Seeing no signs of what she was looking for, the ex-warren pushed herself off the desk and walked towards the door to hold it open. "There isn't much more I can do for you."

Batman took the hint and walked out of the office. As he passed, he could faintly hear her whisper.

"Keep him safe, Bruce."

Rattled by the reveal, he turned but the door had already closed. Guards stationed an ends away gave him odd looks before he decided it would be better to leave it be for now. He gave it half a thought to check out the isolation cells in person but decided against it. He had new leads and other concerns that weighed more on his mind. 

A/N words cannot discribe how hard i struggled to get this one out. my sincerest apologies if this isnt up to standard