Chapter 1: The News

Yeah! I'm back, well I wasn't gone but details.

I just had this thought. I hope you all like it!

Enjoy!

"Admit it Batman, you need him." Wonder Woman said to the dark crusader. They were in the Watchtower, waiting for the yearly JL meeting to begin. They were deciding on whom to add as new members again.

Soon we are going to have way too many members and it is going to get crowded. Batman thought sulkily.

"What do you mean?" Batman asked Wonder Woman. Superman flew in.

"I believe she is talking about that ward you took in three months ago."

"Clark, why are you butting in?" Batman snapped. He knew he shouldn't have adopted the boy so publically.

"Why did you do it then?"

"It was to repay a favor to the boy's father."

"So you adopted him? Most people would just make sure the kid had a home." Wonder Woman pointed out.

"I didn't adopt him. He isn't American, so I'm just his guardian."

"If you didn't adopt him, then what is he doing in your house."

"He is my ward until I find him an appropriate home." Batman was typing at the computer, his back to the other two founders of JL. He heard Flash and Green Lantern come in.

"That's cruel, Bruce." Flash said.

"You have no respect for identities do you Barry." Hal Jordan said. Barry laughed. Batman scowled, deeper.

"I can't take in a kid. Besides, Alfred is aging; he can't take care of a kid that hangs off my crystal chandeliers when he is stressed." Batman remembered the incident, not fondly.

"Oh, Bruce, just train him. You know, do the whole self-control thing you ninjas do!" Barry piped up. He had chips in his hands; from where, no one knew. The other members thought having an eight year-old hang off of chandeliers would be cute.

"Bruce, why did you take him out of the orphanage then?"

"Have you seen how the kids get treated there? They fired the one nun who actually cared about the kids! Dick was being bullied and actually beat up!"

"So you were watching him?" Hal asked.

"I told you, I'm repaying a favor to his dad."

"Did you just call the kid 'dick'?" Barry asked. Everyone rolled their eyes.

"Your nephew is getting to you; 'Dick' is short for 'Richard." Wonder Woman replied. Barry smiled sheepishly.

"Why are you denying that you need Richard anyway?" Clark asked.

"I don't want him to get hurt. Also, the boy is bright. He almost caught me sneaking back into my manor three days ago." Batman admitted. The dark clad hero turned to his peers. "Also, the boy is already scarred for life."

"How?" Barry asked. The bat-glare he received was twice as terrifying as normal.

"Bruce! Why didn't you tell me immediately!" Oliver, Green Arrow, came into the room, saw the crowd, and stopped. "Is the meeting in here?"

"No, it's just Bruce here was thinking about what to do with his ward." Wonder Woman said. Ollie, as he was called by his friends, smiled.

"Little Dicky? He is a cutey. Saw the news just now. I was shocked that Gotham's main playboy had just adopted a circus orphan!"

"I didn't adopt him. It is illegal until certain papers go through the system."

"Are you going too eventually?"

"I think I'd rather get him into a safe home."

"Idiot!" Ollie said. Batman glared, this one, Barry noted, was just the normal bat-glare.

"Richard should have died too." Barry said. Everyone whipped their heads to give shocked, slack-jawed faces at Barry. Batman's glare was so fierce; everyone near him took a step away. Batman walked slowly towards Barry, and no one stopped him.

"I knew it!" Barry said, unaware of his impending doom, "You're protective of the boy already!" That actually caught Batman by surprise, and he stopped his advancement.

"What do you mean?" Clark said, though he thought he understood. A smile started to spread on Superman's face. The realization spread across the room. Hal and Ollie began to snicker.

"Well, when anything that might be painful or insulting for Dick is said, Batman your whole demeanor changes. Like your normal bat-glare was more like Superman's laser eyes! I almost wet myself!" Barry said, then realizing what he had just said, shut up.

"Ok, too much there, Flash." Hal said. Batman stood in thought. Barry sighed. He had been worried his experiment might have gone over board, and had been worried about his face.

"Barry is right. Ever since Dick came into your house, if anyone talks about the circus news, you give them this painful glare." Clark said, smiling openly now. Batman sighed.

"I don't like Gotham's news to be talked about all the time." The excuse was lame, but Batman made it sound convincing."

"That doesn't explain why your bat-glare is more powerful." Flash said, moving his arms trying to prove his point.

"Bat-glare?" Batman asked. He watched his teammates snicker.

"Oh, Barry here started to call your glares Bat-glares after your various bat-themed named vehicles." Hal exclaimed.

"I don't name my vehicles." Batman said.

"I never said you did."

"What do people call my vehicles?"

"Um, Bat-plane, Bat-car, Bat-copter, Bat-submarine…"

"The last two don't even make since!"

"They call Ace your Bat-dog." Clark said.

"This is what happens when Joker breaks out when you're walking your dog." Batman said in exasperation. He even put his hand to his head. "Public." He muttered. Just then, a red alert went off on the screen. The JL snapped to attention, others ran into the main room to hear what had happened. James Thompson's face, in his police uniform, appeared on the screen.

"What happened?" Batman asked. James opened his mouth, when a hand wrapped around his head and a green mop of hair appeared on the screen, followed by a sickly clown face. Batman clenched his fists so hard, the leather creaked.

"Hi world! Hi Batty! I found your little friend while he was hurting a mugger! Isn't he rude? Anyway, I have a question for you. Do you know that circus brat from the murder two weeks ago? Do you know what happened to him?" Joker's laughter echoed cruelly everywhere. James angled his face away from Joker's. Joker started to pet James.

"Well, I found him!" Joker threw back his head and laughed. James thrashed in the chair he was tied in. Batman felt rage build up inside him. The rest of the JL felt the room grow cold.

Joker threw James' chair to the ground revealing the room behind him. Everyone saw a cage hanging off the floor a couple of feet. On the floor of the cage was a little, black-haired boy. The boy looked unconscious, but then he raised his head. He blinked his eyes sleepily. Joker spun up to the boy.

"Hi-ya boy!" Joker said in a falsely sweet tone.

"B. J?" the boy asked. Joker laughed.

"Oh, do I look like a friendly clown?" The boy reached towards Joker, and Joker grabbed the boy's hand. Batman felt bile in his throat. Joker yanked the boy towards him so hard the boy rammed into the bars of the cage. The boy yelped and tried to pull away. "I'm not a friendly clown." Joker hissed in the boy's face.

"Să mergem clovn rău!" The kid yelled. Batman felt a strange bit of pride at the kid's spunk.

"Well, world, you have two hours to bring me 2 billion dollars, otherwise this cute little, itty-bitty, orphan will die! Oh, the weird bat-fan over there will too! Have fun!" Joker clicked a remote, and the screen went blank. Hawkwoman put her hands to her mouth. She leaned into her husband.

"How could he?" She asked.

"I do not think that Richard and James are in too much trouble yet, Batman, what do you want to do?" Martian Manhunter asked. He looked to his left, and was surprised to not see the caped crusader* next to him.

"It shall always be a mystery to my how I cannot notice his presence with my powers.' J'hn said.

"I want to know how he does that dissappeary thingy." Flash said, waving his arms around. Clark sighed.

"He probably doesn't want our help" Superman said.

"So we are going to find him and help him against his will as usual right?" Hal asked.

"Of course." Wonder Woman said seriously. She led the way out of the Watchtower. Flash, Hal, Superman and J'hn followed her.

"She really knows how to boss you men around doesn't she?" Hawkwoman asked. Her husband smiled and hugged her before going to provide technical support.