"Those we love never leave us, there are things death cannot touch."

The outside of Gotham City Hall was growing rampant with graffiti, Molotov cocktails. On this particular night, Bat and Alex wanted to believe it was no coincidence. And maybe, Arthur was present. Hell, maybe he organized it himself. There had been some media uproar about the clown followers planning a huge protest at Gotham City Hall. So naturally, this was where the two decided to stake out tonight. Batman had Alfred look into some of the online accounts, but couldn't make any interesting identifications.

"I think I should walk through them. Maybe I can get something." Alex mumbles, staring through her binoculars.

"You're not going down there alone." Bat replies. He stood a bit behind her, watching her crouched down, eyeing the clowns. It was hard to see if any were Arthur. He was a skinny, pale white man, who looked frail. That was 90% of the crowd below. His exception was his mangled face.

"Well, if you're there, I'm sure it'll cause a fuss." She answers simply.

"No moves without me." He reminds her of a conversation they had prior this week.

"Let's go then." Within a second she's up, staring at him. "Please. We can't see a thing from up here."

The two made their way down the edge of the building. Bat didn't have a great feeling, but he was stubborn, as was she, and he didn't want to see her go down alone. Once they're on the ground, Alex decides to scale the edge of the crowd before diving in. Her eyes were quick, scanning the multitudes of people. They clambered on about hating the city, the politics, those in power, etc. It was typical, something that's never changed in Gotham.

Of course, seeing Batman, they get stopped and talk to some of the thugs. Some are almost amazed, others intimidated, some even angry he's around. But they don't dare start an argument. They know who will win.

Through the chaos, one of them slips their dirty fingers into Alex's back pocket and slips her phone out. Unknowing to her, Batman sees it clear as day. He reaches and grabs the man by the throat, throwing him off guard. Alex turns on her heel, seeing the altercation happening. Then she sees her phone in the man's hand. She reaches and grabs his wrist but the phone falls. Then, it's trampled by the crowd. She's quick to reach down and ab the now broken device.

Batman angrily lets the guy go, grabs Alex's wrist and pulls her away from the crowds.

...

"What a fucking creep." Alex mumbles, holding her broken phone. The screen was so cracked, the inside was also damaged as well.

"Good he just grabbed your phone." Batman replies over the low rumble of the car. It wasn't crazy loud and backfiring since he was going a regular speed limit. She glanced up at him, a small smirk tugging at her lips.

"What do you mean by that?" She inquired.

"Better your phone than you, no?" He replies like it's obvious.

She hesitates but then asks. "What would you have done if he grabbed me?"

"You don't want to know." His tone scares her, but brings her relief. Also a rush of butterflies, which she ignores. Or attempts to at least.

They continued on their way, just cruising around the city. They hadn't mentioned a destination, or if he would drop her at home or the station just yet. Maybe they would drive around town a little more together. Sometimes they did that aimlessly. She wonders if he'd rather be out hunting down bad guys than patrolling her with. She wanted to ask, but didn't want to seem annoying, or seem like she cared.

When they enter some low income residential neighborhood, the familiarity hits her like a wall. "My dad lives around here." This piques Bat's interest, but he obviously hides it.

"Which street?"

"On Holmes." She shrugs, then notices he starts heading towards the direction.

"What? Wanna meet my dad?" She jokes. He fights a smile creeping onto his lips.

"You're funny." He simply replies, ignoring her dumb jokes.

She leans back in her seat, her eyes drifting down to the cracked phone away. Small pieces of glass fall out, pricking her finger tips slightly. She doesn't really care though. Her mind feels a bit guilty. She calls her father every few weeks to catch up, but she honestly should take more time out of her schedule to visit. After her mother passed, he never found another partner. She thought about him being a lonely man, sitting alone in that big house of his. He still worked, which kept him busy most of the week, but those lonely after hours can get you. Alex knows that best. Alex and him never had the best relationship, but they still had one of some kind. Her mother mainly kept the family together. So when she was gone, it's like the family kind of went with her.

They turned onto Holmes St, which was illuminated with red and blue flashing lights. Alex sits upright quickly, and the Bat tenses in the driver seat. Maybe a neighbor was hurt, or it was a domestic disturbance.

But unfortunately there was a cluster of paramedics and policemen outside on her fathers porch. "Stop the car now-"

"Alex-" Bat tries to reason

"Stop the fucking car or I'll jump out right now." She shrieked, hand on the door. He's never seen her so panicked. He brings the car to a halt and she wastes no time is rushing out, running as fast as she could. She spots Gordon, of all people there, looking at his phone angrily. "Jim!" She screams, grabbing his attention. Behind her Batman gets out of the car and makes his way over, unsure of what they're walking into.

"Flores! Can't answer your phone, I've been trying to reach you." Gordon says. There's a tinge of anger in his tone, but also something else. She can't quite put her finger on it though.

"M-my phone was destroyed. What happened?" She asks nervously, eyes darting towards her dad's house. A couple cops and medics were on the porch, talking quietly amongst themselves. "Gordon. What happened?" She asks, her tone deathly low.

"Alex." He says, tone full of regret. Suddenly she can feel Batman behind her. The others on the scene spot him, giving him a quizzical look. "Joker got him." The words held sorrow. It didn't register to her though.

"No, seriously." She mumbles, looking at Gordon squarely.

"I'm sorry. That's why I was trying to reach you." He says apologetically. She continues staring up at the house, tears welling up in her eyes. Her cheeks were burning red, hands clammy.

Alex's breathing pattern shifts to low shallow breaths, "Is he still in there?"

"Yes but Alex, I don't think it's a good idea. You and I both know this." Gordon explains, choosing his words carefully. Like he was talking to a child. Like he talks to family members of victims, which is what she is at this moment. Not detective Alex Flores, but Alex Flores, son of Anthony Flores; who was mutilated in his home an hour prior. Gordon steps in her way.

She shakes her head. "I need to see him."

"Alex no." Batman mumbles from behind her. He goes to reach for her but as if she can sense it, she books it to the front of the house. The medics and cops she passed look at her quizzically, she dodged them all. Once she's inside, an eerie silence falls in the air. A few crime scene cleaners and investigators are around the house, discussing their next moves. She checks over her shoulder to see Batman slowly making his way over. She assumed he'd be rushing.

She bounds up the steps, memories from this home flashing through her mind. She always knew her father would die before letting the house go. He stuck to the promise. Alex sprints down the hallway to his bedroom and pushes open the door. Numbered cards are around the room, where evidence or blood lays, a body bag on the ground, still empty.

Anthony lays on the bed. His sheets coated in his blood. Everything in her mind was screaming at her to not get any closer but her legs carry her there anyways. Once she's by his bedside, her body breaks out into uncomfortable goosebumps. His face ripped open into an evil grin. Dried up blood, pouring down his neck into his chest, and sheets beneath him.

A note is on the nightstand, in a clear evidence bag. "Stop hunting me and I'll stop hunting you." Stapled below is a joker playing card.

"Alex." A voice calls distantly. She turns and sees Ban in the doorway, some of the crime scene guys behind him, looking confused. "You shouldn't be seeing this."

"It's too late." Her voice was disconnected. She glanced back at her father. Although tears rushed down her cheeks, her mind drew a blank.

Her father was dead. 'And it's all your fault' her mind tells her.

A sob ebbed through her. Alex reaches down and grabs his limp hand. "I'm- I'm so sorry I, I failed you." Her voice was barely above a whisper. But Bat hears of course. Internally, he breaks for her.

He slowly approaches her, hearing her mumbling apologies to her fathers corpse. It was gut wrenching, to be honest. He knew she was a strong person. Now she was reduced to a shaking mess, blaming herself for not doing more, when in reality there was nothing she could have done to prevent this.

Bat places a gentle gloved hand on her hand, another on her shoulder. She tries to shrug him off, but she would need to do more than that. "We need to leave." He mumbles to her.

"No, you leave." She replies. Stubborn girl she was.

"Alex." His tone grows serious, not light. "We're leaving."

The next little while was a blur. Alex's emotions took over, making her body go limp, other than shaking from how hard she was crying. Moments of disconnection and realization switched every few minutes. Her dad was dead. Wait, was he really? He's dead. Joker got him. You could have caught him already. You could have told your dad over the phone to be careful. But nope! And now? He's dead. Gone forever.

Batman gets her back into the car and they race off towards their usual meeting spot. He knew taking her to her apartment could be a mistake. He didn't want to leave her there. And he knows he can't take her to the cave, for obvious reasons.

The emotions ebbed and flowed like waves. The rise up the elevator was complete silence though which scared Bat slightly.

She stepped off the elevator quickly. By now the rain had started yet again, beating down harshly. The fall air was cold, making for an unpleasant time. It didn't bother Alex though, all her pain was in her heart, nothing else matters at this moment in time.

Her knees give out beneath her, causing her to crumple onto the concrete ground. Sobbing so hard her chest hurts, her breathing was so uncontrollably her lungs felt like they were on fire. Bat kneels behind her and wraps his arm around her, wondering if the added pressure will help her relax. He's completely awful at consoling people. He was used to being stoic with his short, dry sentences. But with her, it was different. She was his partner who he's gotten to know these last two or so months. Although he can't say it out loud, he cares a lot. The thought obviously shakes him to his core with fear some nights. But he can't just stop it.

Alex doesn't fight his hold this time. She knows she needs to relax or else she'll cause herself to have a proper panic attack. Too many thoughts and feelings are rushing through her, she can't even focus on one, or anything. She screws her tear filled eyes shut, and inhales deeply a couple of times.

Alex's arms reach up and latch onto his wrapped around her. She felt his thick armor and focused on him now. Something can feel; him. She breathes in deeply, the smell of petrichor fills her nose. Hearing the heavy rain pour down. She can taste the salty tears each time she licks her lips. Once her shakes stopped, he loosened his hold slightly. "Do you want me to let go?" He wonders.

"No."

They stay in that position for quite some time. She continues to inhale deeply through her nose, and exhales through her mouth. Time seems to slow. She now leans her back against his chest for support, feeling slightly faint. Too much. And she's running on little to no sleep. She should have been tucked into bed hours ago.

"Mind if I speak?" Bat surprised her by asking. He can sense her calmer demeanor. And he honestly wants to fill the silence. Although he was good at existing in quiet, he felt compelled to speak through it with her.

"Go ahead." She whispers, he almost didn't hear her over the rain.

"I.. I know it may seem like the end of the world at the moment. I am sorry for your loss. I know everyone says that." He felt himself stumbling over his words, which he usually never does. He can help but let the vulnerability creep in, when she's in this state. "But I, But you know, you adjust. One day it'll start hurting less and less." He trails off. His voice was becoming softer, jot his usual deep voice as Batman uses obviously. "I know what it's like to have both my parents die on me, as well." He doesn't even realize what he's said until the words leave his lips.

Alex caught his wording, obviously. She tenses in his hold. She pulls away slightly and turns around so now they're face to face. Her cheeks were blotchy from crying, the whites of her eyes bloodshot. The tip of her nose was bright red from rubbing at it. She looks directly into his dark blue eyes. "I never told you about my mother dying. How the hell did you know that?" She asks, completely shaken. "I have never told you that. I have never told Gordon, I- I can't even remember who I told last." Only for a moment, her mind drew a blank.

He chose not to respond, every voice in his mind was shouting different excuses at him, but he was tired of the lies. Keeping his true self from her.

She hits his armored chest. "Answer me for god sake." She grumbled. He does what he does best, just staring down at her. Their eyes meet.

Pike's funeral. "I also haven't stepped into a church since my mothers funeral. It's just a weird feeling being here." After the words leave her mouth, she immediately regrets over sharing. She glances up to Bruce Wayne.

"Answer me." Alex pleads, crawling closer to him.

Bat remains still, not speaking. She's on her knees in front of him now, as is he. They're eye level. Alex's shaky hands reach up and are placed on either side of his cowl; he doesn't try to stop her. He doesn't even flinch when she touches him. He feels an immense amount of relief actually in that moment. It felt so foreign to him. No more holding back. He can't do it for another minute.

Alex ever so slowly pulls off the mask, coming face to face with Bruce Wayne.