Inbetween

Chapter Fifteen: Deep End

I don't know it it's just me but 2022 has been a rough year so far and it's only April.
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Bruce entered what he assumed to be an empty Wayne manor. It was mid day and the boys should be in school and Alfred off running errands. The silence confirmed his theory and he tossed his bags to the side. He shut the door behind himself and he let out a sigh. The trip back was nothing like the trip there and he wasn't sure if it was because of their relationship or because he knew that coming back would bring back all of his usual stressors.

He made his way to the bat cave and made sure to close the clock behind him. It took Bruce a moment to let his eyes adjust to the darkness and the soft drip made him nostalgic for something he wasn't sure of. He could see Alfred sitting in front of the large screens reading files on Scarecrow and Poison Ivy. He knew that meant something had happened while he was away.

Bruce cleared his throat and caused Alfred to jump slightly at the sound. Alfred stood up and a smile spread across his face quickly. He was instantly at Bruce's side practically beaming at the younger man.

"Master Bruce,  a pleasure to see you." Alfred hummed, "how was your trip?"

"Refreshing." Bruce patted Alfred on the shoulder and the other man nodded, "exactly what I needed."

"That's good to hear." Alfred looked over at Bruce and then raised an eyebrow, "anything else you need to tell me?"

Bruce hated that Alfred knew him so well, "no."

Alfred shook his head and chuckled, "of course."

Bruce gave him a pointed look and made his way to the monitor, "what are you looking at?"

"A new duo has occurred while you were away." Alfred noted the subject change but didn't push Bruce, "apparently they've combined Ivy's poison with the Scarecrow's fear toxin."

"Deadly combination." Bruce instantly got back into his hero mindset.

"My thoughts exactly." Alfred agreed, "Ivy was last spotted in central Gotham in disguise. She hasn't made a move yet."

"Yet." Bruce hummed, "luckily for us it's still day light."

Alfred nodded and Bruce opened up Ivy's file. He read through potential secondary locations and who else could be helping the two. Alfred ran off to pick up the boys from school but reassured Bruce he would return to help. Bruce let him go and continued reading her file. As he realized that this would be the only chance he could ambush her without being the bat. He decided he could follow her and see what she has planned.

He stood up and stretched his body before making his way to the entrance. He would take his civilian car and try his best to blend in. Or as much as Bruce Wayne could. He got into his car and made his way to downtown Gotham where he knew Ivy would be. Though she was a villain she frequented the city garden to make sure that the plants were taken proper care of.

He parked in front of the garden and he spotted her over the roses perfecting each petal. Bruce straightened up and made his way into the garden. He kept his distance though her disguise was good he could still tell it was her. If anyone would have given her a second look they would probably be able to tell as well. Bruce understood her intentions but knew that her execution more times than others was overkill. He made his way to the clerk and started to discuss the prospect of donating to the garden.

As they spoke he could see Ivy move onto a smaller patch of flowers that looked almost dead. He could see her extracting a small blue substance from its soil. It glowed against her skin and she tucked it into her pocket. He could see her head tilt at his words and he knew he had caught her attention. He looked back at the clerk who was speaking eagerly about all of the benefits of the garden for the city. He smiled and nodded when he needed to as though to seem engaged but he could see Ivy out the corner of his eye.