"The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it."

Bruce had mulled over Alex's words for quite some time, weighing the pros and cons of the whole scenario. He also went over his meeting with the Mayor and her team, knowing it was true; he needed to make some moves. This led to his hesitant agreement to reopen the Orphanage. Better staffing, god knows people need those jobs. God knows those children need homes.

Bruce felt humbled but also anxious about the whole ordeal. He knows for a fact that his father had grandly fucked up the first time around. "You're not your father." Alex's words rang through his ears day in and day out. He obviously knew this, but hearing someone else say it did help, to some degree.

He left it up to Mayor Bella Reál, the planning, hiring, etc. He just provided the mass of funds, maybe a bit extra. Surely it'd be returned if it all wasn't needed, but he hopes they use every last dollar. He couldn't just sit on the money forever. Doing some good with it would hopefully make him feel a bit more accomplished in this life. In the life of Bruce Wayne, that is. He was doing his part on his night patrol for sure, feeling some sort of a difference was being made.

...

It was a cool November morning when Alex woke up to her alarm ringing, indicating it was her first day back at work. The alarm startled her, not having to hear it in almost a month now. But it was a good kickstart to get her out of bed.

She gathered an outfit and retreated to the guest bathroom, turning on the steaming shower. She hummed as she undressed and stepped into the shower, shutting the door and letting the boiling water drench her hair and skin. Since her fathers death, joker had been quiet, from what she's seen on the news, and heard from Gordon over the phone. He hasn't attempted to kill anyone else, which was a relief but also a worry; Alex fears he may have skipped town, to avoid being caught ever. She's surprised, but thankful he hasn't gone after Gordon in his new role. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to forgive herself, she hadn't after her fathers murder; adding someone else she cared about onto his kill count would be even more devastating.

As she massages the shampoo into her scalp, she couldn't help but feel nervous. She knows what her co-workers think of her. She's not entirely sure if she can face their scrutiny, their judgements. She couldn't save Pike, she couldn't save her own father. She couldn't catch him in time. Her mind was constantly against her.

Stepping out of the shower she tied a towel around her hair, which was honestly getting out of control, and another towel around her body. She quickly dried off and slipped into her work attire; brown slacks, a black button up with an undershirt. She gave herself a look over in the mirror as she struggled to pull on some white socks. The bags under her eyes seemed to be permanent, something she's gotten used to the last month or so.

She grabbed her toothbrush and brushed her teeth, then proceeded to blow dry her hair. She woke up way too early, so she had more than enough time to be ready, and probably wait until she actually had to leave.

As Alex leaves the bathroom, Bruce is slowly making his way down the hall from the elevator, black make-up messy around his eyes, streaking down his cheeks from sweat. She couldn't help but love how he looked like that, knowing he was working hard to keep people safe, Knowing he just got back from nightwatch. He sees her and stops in his tracks.

"Good morning." She says curtly.

"Hi." He sounds like he got caught by surprise. He looked incredibly tired, she felt sorry for him. "You look nice."

"You look tired." Alex retorts, walking over to him. "Tough night?" She reaches forward and grabs his hand that felt like ice. She envelops it in both her hands, in an attempt to warm him.

"Not bad, just cold and long." Bruce shrugs as if it's no big deal. "Winters are a weird time for the night patrols, but they gotta continue on." He explains further. Alex nods, and goes to envelope him in a hug but he backs away. She gives him a confused look.

"You're all clean, I don't wanna get you dirty." He mumbles, admiring her.

She smiles at his words and simply rises on her tippy toes, pressing a kiss to his cold lips. "Okay. Go warm up and shower then."

"I will. I'd go down to the dining room if I was you, Alfred's preparing a whole spread for your first day back." Bruce says lightly, letting out a small chuckle. The thought of Afred doing so makes Alex's heart swell.

"Okay, maybe come join me after your shower, if I'm not gone. You should eat before you sleep." She lectures him, knowing he likes to pass out in his bed after getting home. Then he wakes up starving and grumpy, which isn't a good habit of his.

Alfred had prepared eggs, bacon, and cleaned some fresh fruit. There was a pot of coffee and a jug of orange juice as well. All placed neatly on the dining room table. In the background, the radio was playing some tunes, which carried through the main floor of the manor. Once Alex sat down, Alfred entered, greeting her with a warm smile.

"Alfred, you really didn't have to do all of this." Alex begins to say, meeting his eyes. He waves a hand at her.

"Oh nonsense, you need energy for your first day back. It wasn't a problem, Alexandra, really." He says dismissively. "I'm happy to do so."

"Well.. thank you. Join me? Unless you've already eaten." She replies.

He grins ear to ear, "I have not."

...

Alex's office was filled with cards and flowers, from all the departments of the precinct. She was shocked, above all. She hadn't understood why she was so negative, thinking she would still be greatly horrified by some colleagues since her father had passed. How horrible were they really? It wasn't like they all acted as such either. There were a lot of friendly faces around.

She opened each card, holding in some happy tears from the thoughtfulness of some of the messages. Also some sad tears, as these cards were a repetitive reminder of her fathers passing. But she had come to terms with it, of course. Like she had with her mother all those years ago.

After all that, she grabbed the Joker file and booted up her computer. She began rereading all her reports, analyzing crime scene photos, skimmed her notes revolving the case itself. She wasn't sure what good it would do, but just simply would jog her memory so she could go home and discuss her next move with Bruce. Brainstorm some ways to maybe try to lure Joker, if he's not planning any next attacks anytime soon. She wondered why he had gone silent, but she had a nagging feeling he'd turn up again. This wasn't the end for him, obviously.

She was hesitant, but then opened up an envelope that read Anthony Flores. She pulled up images of the scene of her fathers death: she inhaled deeply, and almost threw them away from her vision, but she flipped through each one. At first, it was mainly images of little evidence cards, blood splatters around the room or misplaced items, then was snapshots of the note and the card Joker left for her to find. Stop hunting me and I'll stop hunting you.

Then, there were images of him dead on his bed, piles of blood everywhere. It was painful to watch, but she compartmentalized. It was another victim. One victim closer to finding Mr. Fleck, as fucked up as that sounds. You gotta separate from the nasty things, or else you can't do this job. She was taught that from day one of training.

Alex silently arranged the photos and shoved them back in the envelope. She planned to bring the file home tonight to Bruce, so they could go back to working the case together. Alex already knows he'll be hesitant but will give in and help. She knows how much Bruce wants to help her find this son of a bitch.

Alex begins overlooking other case notes to take her mind off of her father, and to generally update herself. She had successfully made it to get the first tough hurdle, which was returning to work. Next, was locating the Joker, and returning him where he belongs; Arkham Asylum.