Chapter Text
The entire thing had started by accident. A joke really. A pleasant game of keep away, unknowingly initiated after a night of revelry.
The Iceberg lounge lay empty, save for the seals and penguins that inhabited the arctic enclosures on display, and of course the owner of the establishment. The laughter of a few hours prior seemed to hang in the corners of the glamorous lounge, causing the current silence taking up residence in the center of the ballroom to feel all consuming.
It was not often that the rogues gathered together for non business reasons, at least not anymore. After that final horrendous poker game ruined by the bat, the rogues' gallery had seldom gotten together for social occasions. However, Oswald’s opening of the Iceberg Lounge appeared to change things. He found his cohorts in crime waltzing through his doors on numerous occasions between breakouts and incarcerations.
There were a lot of things Penguin missed from his criminal career. The thrill of the chase, the pride in a successful job, and the chance to show up Batman. But there were also many things he was happy to leave behind. Since going straight, Oswald certainly did not miss the instability of his sleeping arrangements. Warm sheets and a soft bed beat the slab of foam that passed for a mattress in Blackgate any night. Though the loss of criminal camaraderie had taken a deeper toll on him than he’d imagined. Not that any of the rogues were overly close with one another, but there was a sense of kinship that came from what Harley had once described as a trauma bond from the bat.
Tonight had washed away most of his sense of loss. Several of the big-league rogues had decided to grace his establishment. One or two of the rogues wasn’t altogether unusual, but some string of fate had led what must have been half the gallery through his doors.
It began with Ivy and Harley. The two seemed to be growing closer by the day, conjoined at the hip. It warmed Oswald’s heart to see the two together. The old bird had always been rather fond of the clown girl, most of the gallery was, and it had been on more than one occasion that the heartbroken harlequin had stumbled onto his doorstep seeking shelter while tears rained down streaming through her makeup. He’d of course been only too happy to hold an umbrella over the child’s heart from the emotional downpour. He’d always thought she’d deserved better than the psychotic clown that toyed with her and threw her away when he got bored. He would forever be grateful to Ivy for taking so kindly to Harley. It was good for the both of them. Ivy had become more social, and Harley’s self-esteem blossomed.
He had quickly waddled over to the pair to serve them personally when the two sat themselves at the bar. They chatted amiably for a while as he fixed them their drinks. A mint julep for Dr. Isley, and an over-the-top fishbowl cocktail for Dr. Quinzel.
He’d hardly placed the large drink in front of the boisterous clown before Oswald heard his door flying open with what was certainly an unnecessary amount of force. The room seemed to quiet down as Two-face stalked into the lounge, his hands in his pockets, head down. His good eye glared across the room as if daring anyone to say something. It appeared Harv was in one of his moods. Saving his other servers from the misfortune of suffering through one of the past district attorney’s stormier attitudes, Oswald excused himself from the ladies and made his way down to the end of the bar where Dent waited impatiently, flipping his coin.
“Mr. Dent, how nice to see you.” He greeted, hoping that he had not noticed Ivy’s presence, recalling their disdain for one another at their last meeting.
“A half and half.” Two-face growled, apparently in no mood for conversation.
Oswald picked up the hint easily enough and remained silent as he fixed Dent his drink. Placing the two-toned drink in front of its matching recipient, Oswald slid away to return to Ivy and Harley.
“I hope that everything is to your liking, ladies.”
Stirring her drink with the slim straw, Ivy pushed about the mottled mint at the bottom of the glass. “Perfect as always, Oswald.”
“Yeah,” Harley agreed, attempting to fish out one of the candy fish swimming about at the bottom of her nearly empty drink. “I love these funny little candies ya put in here. Like a real fishbowl!” She gave a little cheer as she managed to snag the red fish with the help of the plastic umbrella that came with her drink.
Oswald couldn’t help but smile at her antics. “Glad to hear. Let me know if you need anything else,”
He made his way around the room, speaking with the customers and soothing any ruffled feathers should something not be to their liking. When he had finished his rounds, he was surprised to see two more of the rogues' gallery had joined Harley and Ivy at the bar. Scarecrow and the Hatter had slipped in completely unnoticed at some point. The foursome conversed amongst themselves, occasionally sending out a chorus of laughter throughout the room. Their joyous clamor caught Two-face’s attention as he glanced in false annoyance at the group. The small party didn’t seem to take notice, but it wasn’t long before Harley skipped over to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Shrugging her off, Dent tried to appear annoyed, but the fondness slipped onto both of his faces. Allowing himself to be dragged away by the bubbly clown, Two-face joined the others.
As the evening rolled on, a few more rogues filed into the lounge. Joker joined the small soiree much to the obvious dislike of Ivy, who quickly ushered Harley onto the other side of the group. Despite the small disturbance, the group continued on pleasantly. Raucous laughter filled the establishment as the group joked with one another.
After having made the rounds once again, Oswald returned to find a vibrant green individual had joined the group. Riddler appeared to be giving a lecture on God only knows what, much to the annoyance of those around him.
Stepping into the crowd, Penguin greeted Riddler in a jovial tone. “Mr. Riddler! How good to see you. Whatever brings you to my fine establishment?”
“Ah, what is cold but brings warmth, and when you drink it, it burns?”
The rogues let out a collective groan.
“And just what is your poison of choice, my revelrous riddling rogue?”
“Rumplemintz, if you have it.”
Penguin hurried behind the bar to pour Riddler his drink.
“Oh, and Oswald? Make it a double, would you?” Riddler called, his eyes roving over Two-face hungrily in a not-so-subtle innuendo.
Shoving aside sharp irritation (and that's all it was. Truly.) Oswald fixed his drink.
Giving a curt thank you, Edward took a long sip of his drink, his eyes never leaving Harvey.
This did not go unnoticed by Harvey, who rolled his eyes and ignored him.
After asking if any of his fellow criminals required any other refreshment, he attempted to leave once again, only to be halted by a now very tipsy Harley.
“C’mon Ozzy, stay awhile! Lounge is almost empty anyway.”
And it was true. Closing time approached and most of the other patrons had finished their drinks or had been frightened away by the large gathering of Gotham’s worst criminals.
Unable to come up with an excuse (and definitely not because he had missed any of them) Penguin agreed to join the impromptu party.
They stayed way past closing. Oswald had allowed the staff to leave, taking care of the rogues on his own while having a drink or two himself. He'd caught up on schemes, learned of the Batman’s newest little bird, and most certainly didn't pay attention to the Riddler’s shameless display aimed at the ex-district attorney.
Eventually the night became dawn, and the party wound down, the rogues slowly staggering out of the lounge to return to their hideouts.
Penguin took a moment to take in the silence left behind. The seals and the penguins all lay peacefully in their enclosures while rose gold light spilled into the lounge.
Gathering empty glasses, a splash of green caught his eye. The Riddler’s hat lay discarded on the table. A fresh green sprout amongst a sea of snow-white tablecloth.
Taking the hat in hand, Penguin ran his fingers along the brim. It seemed odd that the Riddler would forget such a thing, but then again, he had been inebriated.
Or.
Perhaps it was intentional. The smallest of things could mean anything with the Riddler. Perhaps this was a clue. A riddle with the answer leading him to Edward.
Oswald pushed aside all such thoughts. It was a hat. Left behind after a night of drunken revelry. A hat that Penguin would soon return to the top of his owner's head.
Edward’s head. Which happened to house a beautiful mind. A hat. On his mind.
Was this left behind as a subtle way to let Oswald know that he was on Edward's mind?
Chastising himself for such foolishness, Oswald tossed the hat aside. He would ring the Riddler tomorrow and inform him of his misplaced belongings. That is, if the Riddler didn't come and collect it first.
It was a hat. That's all. He would return it, and that would be the end of it.