The streets of Gotham are finally quiet, the buzz of midnight traffic long gone, the patrol almost over. Stephanie sits on one of the taller rooftops above crime alley and stares west towards where the sun will eventually break over the horizon.

“I missed you,” she says, and Steph doesn’t have to turn around to notice Black Bat peeling out of the shadows behind her. She fiddles with the end of her cape as Black Bat settles cross-legged next to her. The hood she wears is terrifying, Steph notes. She can’t even tell if Black Bat is breathing. Steph shifts, and their knees press together, a small comfort in the hazy two am light. She and Cass work better like this, speaking in small touches during patrols, Black Bat striking out of the shadows when Batgirl forgets to watch her own back.

Somewhere closer to central Gotham, a car honks. Black Bat reaches out, her gloved hand palm-up on Stephanie’s knee. I missed you too.

Stephanie drops her hand gingerly into Cass’ own, and their fingers grip tight automatically. God, she’d missed this. Missed her. Steph scuffs her feet against the dirty brick of the building and leans her head on her best friend’s shoulder. A block or so down, she can hear the sound of a fight breaking out, a man getting shoved to the ground. Batgirl gets to her feat surely, Black Bat just a moment ahead of her.

“Ready to go fight crime?” She asks, and Stephanie can’t see behind the mask of the costume, but she knows anyway that Cassandra is smiling as she vanishes down the side of the building with barely a flutter of fabric. Batgirl grins, and follows her down.