𝐁𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐍 ; 𝐉𝐀𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐎𝐃𝐃

【4】

(04) WHAT ARE WE, IF NOT CRIMINALS OR VICTIMS?

Her hands were trembling from the soreness she was feeling in her arms. The tip of her tongue stuck out of her mouth as she tried to concentrate harder and a few beads of sweat rolled down her forehead despite the cool atmosphere of the cave. It was a dark early morning, and the skin of her crossed legs was beginning to stick to the training mat. She let out a sigh of relief when she finally tied down the last stitch. Irene grinned, pulling her hand back so that she could admire her work.

The silicone suture pad was beginning to grow heavy on her lap, so she stood up, walking down the few steps that led to the Batcomputer. Irene walked down just in time for the Batmobile to enter the cave, its blinding lights illuminating the dinosaur she grew to love since the last time she saw it. The car came to a stop with a screech of its tires against the shiny floor before the door propped open revealing the brightly coloured bird and the brooding bat.

"Dick!" She cried out happily when her brother grew nearer. He smiled, letting out a small laugh as his hands moved higher to shuffle her hair.

"Hey pretty bird, weren't you supposed to be in bed?" He said, peeling the domino mask off of his face.

"Can't sleep" Irene shrugged before moving a few steps away from the vigilante.

"You are covered in mud" She scrunched her nose, pointing to his feet and his torso. Dick cursed quietly, stealing a glance at Alfred who shook his head disapprovingly. The butler had swept the floor clean a few hours ago and now his work had all came undone within a few miscalculated steps of the young boy.

"Alfred, I need stitches," The man said, removing his cowl and walking up to the open medical room.

"Now that would be a surprise, Master Bruce" Alfred stated before moving to the stairs and into the bright room which smelled exactly like a hospital corridor. Irene glanced at Dick, holding back her laugh as she pursed her lips at Alfred's sassy comeback. Her brother shook his head, amused before he moved to his station and began discarding his utility belt and removing the top of his suit and his gloves. Irene followed and sat down on the cold floor as Richard started telling her about the rather exciting night he had. She listened intently, stopping him a few times to add her input and some questions she had been dying to ask.

She hummed, looking back at her dad who was struggling to hold back a wince as Alfred threaded the needle in and out of his skin. "Vigilantism is pretty illegal, isn't it?" She asked out of the blue, looking at Dick who had his eyes wide open at her statement. He stuttered, looking back at his mentor for assistance.

"I mean, you guys are criminals fighting criminals. So you are fighting for justice illegally?" Irene mumbled, looking back at Bruce for some answers.

"The loopholes in the written law are in our favour and as long as they are, we will keep doing what's best to protect Gotham City from corruption" He answered, distracting himself from the pain bubbling throughout his upper arm. Irene nodded before her eyes zoomed out of focus and she found herself lost in a cloud of thoughts. Well at least she could stop worrying whether her dad and her brother were criminals, maybe that would help her sleep better now.

The two stood by the couch in the living room, immobile as their eyes remained fixed in front of them. Shards of crystals everywhere, under the sofa, behind the television stand and in the corridor leading to the kitchen. A sharp intake of breath was heard and Irene looked up, her hand clutched tightly around that of Dick's. The coffee table was non-existent, considering it broke down to pieces the moment the chandelier fell onto the floor.

"I think we should leave before Alfred finds us," He said nervously, unable to break his eyes off the floor. He was sweating profusely and the tip of his toes was brushing against something extremely sharp. Dick looked down, before crouching to Irene's level and telling her to climb up so that he could take them both out of here before they were caught red-handed at the crime scene. It was the fifth they had to replace since the start of the year and they both knew Bruce's patience would only last this much. Cleaning the Batdinosaur was not something they enjoyed and their punishments kept getting more tremendous as the number of broken chandeliers increased. They had already been grounded, leaving the house only if it was for school and their extracurricular lessons. Wally was banned from coming over during those few weeks and Irene kept getting her ass kicked in training which her dad had purposely levelled up.