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Richard Grayson woke up to the sound of his 5:30am alarm. He slowly sat up, stretching his muscles while rubbing the last bits of sleep out of his tired eyes. He felt dizzy, but nothing worse than what coffee couldn't cure. Moving to start up a pot and getting in to take a quick shower while the coffee was steeping, he got washed and dressed into a pressed blue dress shirt and slacks.

He had recently been promoted to the rank of Detective about a month ago, and he was still working on making the transition. Commissioner Shue had encouraged him to take on different colors other than the Bludhaven's signature police blue, but he wasn't ready to let go.

Besides, he looked good in blue.

He grabbed his biking gear and helmet and left through his appartment door, being sure to lock up tight. He didn't live in a completely run down area, but this was still Bludhaven.

Detective Grayson made it in good time and entered the Pricinct promptly at 8:00 to find the place already bustling with energy. Officers were finishing up their nightly reports and those who worked during the more godly hours of day were just starting their shift, so the Station was not without its crowd. Whether that be a mix of cops or criminals, you take your pick.

"Good morning Rose." He said with a smile as he entered the bullpin.

"Oh Dickie, good you're here. Cheif Redhorn wants to see you in his office." Rose said, smiling back. He nodded and made his way to Redhorn's office.

He knocked four times and waited before the man let him in.

"You wanted to see me, sir?" Dick addressed, as he shut the door behind him.

"Yes, I did." He said as he placed a large file down in front of him. Dick recognized the manila yellow folder, it was the last case he worked on that he finished writing out last night on record. "You did a good job on your last case son, Commissioner Shue is impressed and asked that you take lead in a joint assignment in Gotham." He praised, waving the folder in his hand in front of him. Richard stood up a little more, trying to keep the shock off his face.

"What do you know about the Batman." Redhorn asked right away, getting down to business.

"He's the vigilante of Gotham, also one of the founding members of the Justice League." He replied, wondering where Redhorn was going with this. Everyone knew about the Batman, he was a symbol of fear to the Criminal Underworld and a symbol to those who honored Justice. He himself being somewhat of a fan.

"It is true that he is a full time member of the Justice League and is considered a hero, but Mayor Garcia does not see him as such and has made the order for his arrest." Redhorn stressed. Dick nodded and waited for his boss to continue. "Gotham's forces are spread thin, Arkham breakouts are plaguing the city and Gordon has no one to spare for this assignment. So he asked for you personally." He continued.

"Why?" he found himself asking, wondering how Commissioner Gordon even knew about him.

"You're a child of Gotham are you not? Gordon needs someone who will be smart on the streets, someone who knows the city." Redhorn explained, Dick nodded his head, understanding Gordon's paranoia. Even the more senior officers of Bludhaven would not be equipped to handle the crazy that is Gotham. Bludhaven is the second highest crime ranking city in America, but it had nothing on Gotham.

That place was real Hell on Earth.

"So you will be transfered to Gotham's police department temporarily while you work on the case to make living arrangements easier. Mayor Garcia will take care of everything." He explained.

"So when does Gordon need me?" Grayson asked without a beat.

"You should head over there now to be debreifed, I'll let him know that you're on your way." Redhorn said, picking up his phone while silently communicating for him to take his leave.

_______________________________________________________________

Richard walked into the Gotham Precinct and immediately noticed the difference between the sister cities. Bludhaven was crime infested, but Gotham was consumed by crime. The precinct was busting with officers and detectives struggling with criminals, interrogating witnesses, and he could tell which of them were corrupted by the way they talked with the people in handcuffs. A man in a trench coat with glasses, a mustache, brown hair and olive eyes walked up to him and extended a hand.

"Commissioner Jim Gordon. You must be the detective from Bludahven. We don't have a badge for you yet, but you'll be staying in a hotel a few blocks from here. Everything you need for your time here is being taken care of by the mayor." He introduced, confirming what he had heard from Redhorn.

Richard returned the smile and shook his hand. He had met the police Commissioner once before and he could see the beginning signs of graying hair and wrinkles developing around his eyes. But that did not take away from the man's natural ability of intimidation.

"Detective Richard Grayson." He introduced back, releasing his grip.

"Follow me." Gordon said, leading him to what he presumed to be the mans office.

Gordon's office was crowded with case files with coloration tags. Blue, yellow, green, red and black. Colors he was used to seeing in his own precinct. Blue for standard robberies and weapons charges, yellow for assaults and rapings, green for kidnappings and missing persons, red for murders and black for undetermined. Black was the color to signify the absolute randomness of the crime, usually in connection to big criminals like Blockbuster and Lady Shiva. But Gotham had far more baddies and crazies to deal with, ranging from criminals like the Riddle all the way up to the Joker.

Gordon motioned for him to take a seat and took the liberty of pouring them both steaming cups of coffee. Dick had to stifle a chuckle as he noticed Gordon's coffee machine was a high end Kruger, with a tower of flavored coffees. He watched as Gordon made him a Cinnabon flavored one and set it down in front of him while preparing himself a less exotic flavor. Dick was impressed by Gordon's ability to tell that he liked sweet coffee upon first introductions, but then again it wasn't to suprising. This man had a reputation that excelled any other Police Commishioner in the state, or the country for that matter.

"So Grayson, I take it Redhorn gave you the basic layout to your assignment here?" he asked taking a seat beside him rather than at the head of the desk.

"To capture the Batman..." He said, thinking of the implications of what that intailed.

"I'm sensing a question in that." Gordon said, taking a sip from his steaming cup, then adding. "You don't consider the Batman to be a criminal." He stated evenly.

Dick shifted in his seat, he knew the Batman was one of the good guys. But he knew that the man also had a bad habbit of taking things a little too far. Not only did he produce considerable amounts of property damage, but if he was left unchecked most of the criminals he arrested were left in body casts for months. He hadn't killed anyone, but he did exicute things rather violently. But was he a criminal? Well, he didn't have answers for questions that big.

"Not in that sense sir." was all he could say, unable to take a side.

"I don't think the Batman is a criminal either, if anything; he's God's gift to this place, but he does have to face the consequences of his actions. Which is why your assignment is to discover the true identity of the Batman. It is almost impossible to as you say 'capture the Batman', but if we oust his identity, he'll have to come in." Gordon said, completely serious. Dick took little time to digest what Gordon just said, getting over his shock quickly.

"So what do you have on him so far?" He asked, getting down to business. Gordon sent him a look, pleased by his readiness for the case.

"Well, he's a vigilante who tends to beat the hell out of thugs and the crazies ruling Gotham. Batman's been seen with a kid recently, Red Robin. Another vigilante popped up a few months ago, calls himself Red Hood. We know almost nothing about that one, but we do know Robin has black hair. We know Batman and Robin are Caucasian, and we suspect Batman to be in his early thirties and Robin to be in his teens. Neither of them kill, Red Hood however does and controls the crime in Crime Alley. But he does sometimes cooperate with the police, and we think he works with Batman. Mayor Garcia wants him in custody as well." Gordon layed out thoroughly. "Some of our analyst think Batman is rich due to his gadgets and resources, but the only one with the amount of money to support the Batman is Bruce Wayne." Gordon said.

"The Head of Wayne Interprises?" Grayson asked a bit skeptically, remembering the tabloid articles on the man. He was a bit of a playboy and a ignoramus, but he was a successful businesman. But his successes were mainly due to his President, Lucius Fox. Gordon shared the same look, neither of them suspected the famed playboy to be the genius Dark Night.

"But we were thinking that maybe he supplies Batman or Batman steals from Wayne. We have no evidence that supports that theory, but it would be worth checking in on Wayne." Jim said, opening his desk drawer to pull out a file with photographs. Most of them were blurry and had poor quality, as if pulled off of corner-store security cameras. But all of them were of Batman, a few were of Robin.

Of all the members of the Justice League, Batman was the most secretive. He never appeared in public events like Superman or Green Arrow and he always kept to the shadows during their larger battles. Photographers could get large sums of money if they managed to catch any sign of the famed Dark Knight, even if they were just of a dark silhouette. Most of course were fabricated, but anything was something.

Jim pulled out another file with pictures of the Red Hood, who was less camera shy. But maybe that was the point. In most of the photographs he was staring into the camera, a posture of swagger and confidence. He wanted them to know who he was, whether as a threat or a warning was the question.

He wore a helmet that was obviously highly advanced, he was broad shouldered and muscular. His 'costume' consisted of dark cargo pants and combat boots with a faded brown leather jacket and a gray high collard Kevlar tunic with a crimson bat on the front. The symbol was different than the signature Bat signal, but it could potentially connect him to the Crusader.

Of course it could just be a collective theme that 'Bats' in general were Gotham's protectors . A sort of mascot in a way. He silently wondered what Bludhavens 'animal' would be.

"I'll go check out Wayne, it's the best place to start." Richard said, finishing off his sweet coffee and standing up to leave.

"Do you need one of my people to drive you over?" Gordon asked.

"No, I'll ride my bike over there. I used to live in Gotham, so I'm pretty sure I remember how to get to Wayne Manor." Richard replied. Gordon looked at his clothes; a blue dress shirt, black trousers and black trench coat. He did however, have boots on.

"All my motorcycling gear is with my bike." Richard reasurred, guessing what the commissioner was worried about.

"Good." He said with an easy smile. Richard nodded and turned to leave before Jim grunted to catch his attention.

"Be careful, Gotham's a dangerous city. You may be from here, but things have changed." Gordon warned.

"I know." Richard replied knowingly, leaving Gotham's Precinct.

_______________________________________________________________

Richard slid off his sleek black Harley as he observed Wayne Manor. It was a beautiful place, but rather oversized. The property started just outside of Gotham in Bristol, connecting the house to the city but away from the danger. The gardens were large and the trimmed grass lawn spread far beyond the driveway. The gates leading up to the Manor were opened, probably for gardeners and routine delivery trucks. He had parked in front of the large front doors on the gravel trail, being sure not to leave any noticible trail marks. With a sigh, Richard walked to the front doors and rang the doorbell. A custom chime rang through the house as Dick straightned up his suit as it had been a little windblown. After a moment, an elderly gentleman opened the fancy oak wood door.

"Good afternoon sir, what may I do for you?" he asked.

English accent, prestine suit and manners, must be the butler. He thought as he took out his badge to show the man.

"I'm here to see Mr. Wayne. Sorry, I don't have an appointment." He said congenially, as he knew how these things worked. Besides, rick folk loved suck-ups. The butler (who he could not remember the name of) glanced down at the badge with suspicion, looking up at Richard with a questioning glance. That's when he realized how strange it must be for a Bludhaven Detective to be in Gotham.

"I'm here in Gotham for a case and I don't have my Gotham badge yet. Commissioner Gordon's handling that if you feel the need to call him to confirm." He said, knowing how easy it was for people to intimidate as a false police officer.

"That is not necessary sir." The man said as he stepped aside to allow the officer inside. The front entrance was grand, deep creams and crimsons filled the room with an eligant simplicity. Well, simple compared to what the rest of the Manor must look like.

"I'm am Alfred Pennyworth, Master Wayne's butler." He introduced "Now, allow me to take your coat Detective Grayson." He said, leaving no room for an argument. Dick shrugged out of his trench coat as Pennyworth took it off his shoulders and hung it neatly on a hanger. With the coat off, Dicks handgun was more obvious on his waist and his ecrisma sticks were left to be noticed across his back.

It was not usual for an officer to even use ecrisma sticks, but he preferred them to his gun. However, it made him feel awkward at being so heavily armed in Waynes home. Alfred took notice of the gun, his lip turning down slightly at the sight of it but otherwise didn't say anything. Richard did however unclip the strap of his dual ecrisma sticks and hung the leather strap on the same hanger as his coat. Alfred's eyes gave a subtle approving nod and led him through the house without another word.

He was led to a large parlor that was decorated in the Gothic style, fervent and deep shades of purple coupled with midnight blues covered the walls. The furniture was also dark and the wood was a deep stained oak. Richard guessed that this room had not been changed since the original design of the Manor. He didn't know how far back the Wayne line went in relevance to the house, but it was well back into the late 18th century.

"I shall return with Master Bruce, in the meantime do please take a seat. Do you require any light refreshment sir?" he asked, directing Dick to sit down in a plump black leather armchair.

"No thank you Mr. Pennyworth." He said awkwardly. Alfred tilted his head in response and swiftly left the room.

Richard sat in silence waiting for Pennyworth to return with 'Master Wayne'. It was plainly obvious that Bruce Wayne was wealthy enough to afford supporting the Dark Knight. As he waited for the two if them to arrive, he got his thoughts together and planned how he could approach the man. If Wayne really was Batman's money bag, then it was clear he could be trusted with the secret. The man was a hopeless playboy, but he could keep his mouth shut as he has done for the better part of six years.

"You must be the Detective Alfred mentioned" the deep voice of Wayne sounded as he entered the room without his butler. Dick stood up, suprised how he had not heard the man enter the room, which was crazy considering how large the billionaire was.

"Detective Richard Grayson." He said as he shook is hand. The playboy had a firm grip. Richard found it a little suspicious but reasoned that Wayne was a businessman and knew how to shake hands with someone. Bruce Wayne was wearing an expensive black suit with a diamond blue tie. He suddenly felt underdressed in his blue botton up and trousers. And the fact he was wearing boots did not lighten the feeling.

"Grayson? As in.." Wayne trailed off.

"Yeah." He confirmed.

"So you are a child of Gotham." Bruce mused. Alfred must have told him he was from Bludhaven.

"I did grow up in Gotham's New Hope Orphanage." He said, sitting down when Wayne did.

"So what do you need Detective?" Wayne asked not taking the subject further.

"I'd like to ask you a few questions about the Batman." He started, looking for a reaction from the man but found none. Nothing that stood out anyway other than classic interest in his inquiry.

"Batman? The guy who runs around in a Bat costume beating up criminals?" he asked with a humorous smile.

"Yes."

"Well alright, ask away." He said in a suave demeanor, gesturing with his hand for the Detective to continue. Just then Alfred reentered the room carrying a silver tray with an antique China set layed out on top. He then proceeded to pour the two men a cup of the sweet brew and stood off in the corner. Both Wayne and Grayson nodded a thanks to the old butler and Dick took his lead.

"I am going to assume you are aware of the kind of equipment Batman uses. His modes for transportation, his on hand equipment such as state of the art grapple guns, tazers, and choices of weapons. As well as his access to antidotes..." Richard trailed.

"Yes, I am." Bruce nodded.

"How much would you say that kind of equipment costs?" Richard asked.

"Mmmm, I don't know. For an approximation I'd say about 700 million assuming he went through legal buyers. However, that is also if he bought it all and not just the parts to assemble it himself." Bruce answered, helpfully elaborating.

So there is a chance Batman could be an engeneer and assemble the parts himself. But that would also include the equipment needed to create his custom technology.

"If he does assemble it himself, how much would the equipment cost to build it?" He inquired further, not really knowing the answer for himself.

"200 million at least, he could have specific brands and custom built structures to fit his workspace." Wayne elaborated.

"Not accounting for medical expenses and buy offs to keep doctors, builders and suppliers quiet." Dick said. Unless of course he uses a false name, he thought to himself. "So overall at least over billions of dollars to fund his Crusade alone." Richard voiced aloud. He ran a hand through his hair. There was a lot needed to pull off being Batman alone, not to mention the personal investment of life and limb.

Batman was crazier than he had initially thought.

"Alright." He huffed, "Thank you for your time Mr. Wayne." He said standing up.

"likewise." Wayne responded, moving to shake his hand before inquiring. "May I ask what you are investigating? I'd hate for the press to get any idea I was being suspected of anything unlawful." he asked, a serious tone to his voice.

"I'm going to catch the Batman." He replied evenly, turning to leave before Alfred spoke up.

"Would you like to join us for dinner sir?" Alfred offered seemingly out of the blue, a polite expression on his face. The offer genuine. Wayne sent the old butler a look he couldn't quite interpret. They know something.

"Uh, no thank you, I don't want to impose." Richard said, politely refusing the offer. Suspicious as to why the butler sounded so insistent.

"Nonsense, you should stay. I assume you have a long drive home, so please allow us to feed you dinner." Bruce said, agreeing to Pennyworth's scheme.

He really did not want to stay for dinner. Although it would allow him to analyze Wayne in a more natural environment. Besides, he doubted he could refuse the offer now anyway.

"Thank you." He conceded.

"Very well sir. Then in that case, dinner is prepared. Young Master Jason will be joining us as well." Alfred informed with a shocked expression from Bruce.

Jason was the street kid that Wayne adopted four years ago. He also had a ward who was the Drake heir. He remembered the media scrutiny Wayne had received when he had first taken in the teen. He hadn't for one second thought that Wayne was capable of anything so unseemly. He was a ladies man, through and through. One who respected his company and had never been publicly accused for mistreatment.

He followed behind Wayne as Alfred led them to the formal dinning room. The table was set for four and Richard had the sinking feeling that the butler had planned this from the beginning. Inside already were two teenagers, the younger was about 15 and he had slightly long hair that hung over his eyes but was still neatly kept and trimmed in the back. He wore a standard Gotham Prep school uniform, but the tie had been forgotten and the sleeves rolled up. The older boy, Jason was wearing a casual get up of dark jeans and a black long sleeve sweater. He was muscular like Wayne and was almost as tall as the Billionaire. He even exceeded himself by two inches.

The two teens caught sight of him, noticing the gun still strapped to his hip. They looked surprised, but otherwise unbothered. Alfred must have told them he was here, just not exactly expecting him for dinner. If anything, they probably wanted him to refuse the offer so they could have a quiet family dinner. Richard felt his heart tug at the thought.

Being the son and ward to Bruce Wayne must not mean they have a whole lot of privacy. Always being on camera and being cornered by interviewers. He understood a little, having experienced the same thing when he was younger and living in the circus. The Manor was their home, their place of refuge from the public eye. And now here he was, some random stranger with a gun on his hip no less.

He should have refused the offer more sternly.

"Boys, this is Detective Grayson." Bruce introduced for him. They each gave a polite nod, but were still intimidated by his presence.

"Richard or Dick is fine." He said, hoping to put them at ease. Besides, he was probably only two years or so older than Jason. Formality was just weird by that standard then. Wayne gave him a smile of thanks and approval as Timothy and Jason relaxed a bit, then motioned for him to take a seat right beside him across from Drake.

"I'm Tim." the younger introduced.

"Jason." the older said, squaring him with a look. "Aren't you a bit young to be a detective?" he asked. Richard laughed at that, he was a statistical oddity in terms of his status as a detective.

"I guess, I'm only 20. Most officers don't become Detective or Sergeant until their early thirties at least." He admitted, even though he turned 21 in a month.

"Do you have any dietary restrictions Detective?" Alfred interrupted.

"Just peanuts." He informed as Pennyworth nodded gratefully. They were each then served an Asian style cuisine. Baked pink salmon and sautéed vegetables with a dressing that was not served on his own plate, instead given a light cream butter sause on the side. Must be a peanut sause he thought, glad Alfred had asked. Otherwise he would have totally eaten it and had gone into anaphylactic shock in seconds. Not pleasant.

First night back in Gotham and he suffers death by peanut in Billionaire Bruce Wayne's dinning room.

He would never live it down.

"So Richard," Wayne addressed, using his informal name to set the example to his son's. Either that he just wanted to keep informal. Although Dick would never call the man Bruce aloud until given permission. "How long are you in Gotham?" he asked.

"Until my case is finished." until the Batman is in custody he thought to himself, his mouth watering as he ate the sautéed onion he had first grabbed. If the onion was a ballroom dance in his mouth, the rest must be heaven.

"What case are you working on?" Tim asked with interested eager eyes.

"To discover the identity of the Batman." He answered in an even tone and watched as the teens pupils dilated. Almost humorously so.

"I think you broke Timmy." Jason said bluntly, "He's a huge fan of Bats, surprised the kid hasn't figured it out before now." Jason teased, explaining Tim's shock.

"Do you really think you can figure it out?" Wayne asked, sipping from his wine glass.

"My superiors seem to think so." He said honestly, knowing that of every detective in both Gotham and Bludhaven, he had the best chance and skillp for cracking the case. Gordon had a good shot, but he was too busy trying to control Gotham's crime to focus on anything else.

Jason and Wayne were silent, the latter nodding in confidence. It was obvious they knew something, but it was highly unlikely that Bruce Wayne was the man behind the mask.

Dick then focused on eating the gourmet meal, after which being served a light desert of sherbert and lemon drizzled with a syrup he couldn't even describe. He listened as Wayne asked about his son's day, each discussing how school and work went.

Jason just graduated from High School and was now enrolled in classes at Gotham University. Apparently he was studying for private security and was still in his first semester. The career fit Jason, he didn't seem the type to sit behind an office desk working up to become Wayne's next CEO. He had said as much to the teen and that earned a large smile from the kid. Tim however could easily fill that roll, although after he graduated from high school of course. Which he was already a Senior. The kid was a renouned genius, Lucious Fox's singular intern and he often worked in other departments like clean energy and advanced computer technology.

He himself was a fan of computer science, having served as the precinct hacker a couple of times before he received his detective badge. But he didn't enjoy it enough to dive into a career with it, the interest serving more as a hobby.

After the meal was finished Wayne directed his two sons to bed and they each said goodnight, asking him to come over again. Bruce Wayne then led him through the door.

"Thank you for being kind to my sons, they don't get a lot of nice visitors." The man admitted with a sad tone to his voice.

"No problem, if they need anything or anyone just let me know. I should be getting a number with Gotham's police department soon." He informed. "Thanks for dinner by the way." He said, shaking Wayne's hand once again.

"Anytime. I'm sorry you have to head back so late, if necessary I could have Alfred drive you home to Bludhaven." He offered, taking notice of Richard's motorbike.

"That's alright, Mayor Garcia set up a hotel room for me while I work on the case. I won't be heading home tonight." He said, zipping up his biker jacket.

Wayne nodded, looking like he wanted to say more but deciding to leave him with a farewell. "Goodnight Detective." He said.

"Goodnight." He said back, switching on the throttle before pausing. "Mr. Wayne, I know you know something about the Bats. I'm not saying I think your the one under the mask or know his exact identity, but you know something. And I will find out what that is." He said to the exotic billionaire with a firm expression. Bruce's expression gave nothing away, but that wouldn't deter him. He wanted Wayne to know he suspected him, the man would get sloppy trying to cover his tracks and he'd be able to catch him. It was a risky move, considering the man's power, but he wouldn't gain an inch on the investigation if he didn't put himself out there. He needed Batman to know someone was comming to put him in check, and Wayne would provide that voice. He nodded to the still blank faced man and slowly maneuverd his bike out of the driveway, not wanting to disrupt the smooth gravel.

He enjoyed the quiet ride back to the hotel, thinking of his strange impromptu dinner with the Wayne's. He arrived at the hotel Mayor Garcia had booked for him, parking his bike in the side garage. Gordon had a space reserved, which he was extremely grateful for. He had a nice bike and he didn't want it to be stolen outside the hotel.

His room was medium sized, but it was nice. Queen size bed, standard dresser and nightstand with a 4k TV screen mounted on the wall and a Blue ray player. There was a closet and adjoining bathroom off to the side, which had a single sink and walk in shower, no bath. The walls were also a faded blue color that was peeling in some areas.

Realizing that he had no other clothes to sleep in, he undressed and climbed under the sheets wearing nothing but his boxer briefs. The air-conditioning was running cool in the hot June weather, which worked far better than his appartments. Comfortable and tired, he promptly fell asleep.

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I hoped you enjoyed chapter 1 of Vigilante Cop. Please vote and leave comments. As always, I do enjoy constructive criticism, so please edit any spelling or grammar mistakes. Also comment if you have any ideas or have something that you want to see.

Thank you.