Title: Not Quite the Bat...
Disclaimer: If I owned them they would have less clothing while together
Rating: PG13-R for now
Warnings: Gore for now
Characters/Pairings: Batman/Joker
Summary: A last stand by a band of Gotham's worst nearly kill The Batman and The Joker is less than pleased. No one stands between Joker and his Bat and he aims to make sure it never happens again...




The bandages were pulled tight across his chest, holding his mangled arm together, keeping him from falling apart at the seams. The tight cloth made the wounds burn and the stitches itch, he had not felt this strong since that last battle. The cowl was dark around his eyes, he felt hidden, powerful, he would not fail again. The city whizzed past him, lights streaming, people walking around like nothing existed in the world but themselves. It was strange, he wanted Gotham to be different from the one he had left in a cruelly selfish way, he buried the thought deep within himself, pushed down with the rest of the darkness that hovered always just out of sight. He was glad Gotham had survived this well in his absence, in a way he was almost thankful for the Knight. They fought the same people, but the Knight stepped over the line, he was as much a criminal as a hero whether Gotham wanted to admit it or not.

Batman hid down a dark alley very close to Arkham's main building, hating that he could not swing to the rooftop or even hide the Batmobile further but the strength in him was a blinding façade, even if he physically accomplished these tasks it was pulling at the unraveling thread that held him together. His belt blinked helplessly by the time he reached one of the side entrances, his heart rate was too high, he looked resolutely away from the instrument, he would not let his frailty stop him, not now. The halls were empty, dim in the half light of a false night, he glanced longingly at the stairwell, eyeing the rails high above he took a single faltering step towards them before turning to the service elevator. He cursed himself and the smug voice in the back of his mind that sounded suspiciously like Alfred.

Hugo Strange had requested a high security cell and his old connections at the Asylum bought him just that. A huge cell on the topmost floor of Arkham, alone because no one else merited such treatment and none were foolish enough to request it. The doors of the elevator swung open with a cheerful ding that made Batman wince, nothing like a cheerful calling card in case he was second to arrive. It only took a second and a few dragging steps to find the guards slumped behind their desk, a few more precious moments to ascertain that they were alive and unharmed.

The door was open. Barely half an inch, but it was open, were they waiting for him? He rushed forward, adrenalin pumping through his system, his hands balling into fists that could not feel the strain in the muscles above, only their own quite power. He rushed into a half darkness, streams of light crossing the room, illuminating only parts of a whole. He saw nothing; the people he came to see were encased in the darkness.

"Batman!" The voice was strong and clear, coming from the far right side of the room, almost happy. A low whine broken with choked sobs came from the left, a soft backdrop of pain.

"I knew you were alive! You would never let them kill you!" A figure stepped into the light, a black outline encompassed in a halo of light. Unrestrained joy emanated from him, infused his voice so thoroughly that for a moment Batman was at al loss. The number of times Batman met with such an honestly fond reception from anyone save Alfred was disheartening. His normal rage was a pale way to cope but his mind was whirling, he had planned for many things but this was not one of them.

"What did you do with Strange?" He had to focus, he had a mission, this person was going to kill Strange and he was the only one that could stop him…the only one who would bother.

"Nothing you would not have done in my place. But you know that already don't you Batman?" There was something in the way he said his name. 'Batman'. He had heard it used in pleas, in horror, astonishment, and in pain but never… in love. There was no other way to describe it, the drawing out of the syllables, the way it took on new life, the way his already smooth voice sweetened.

Batman shook his head in a vain attempt to clear it, looking dutifully away from the erratic flashing on his belt; the figure in front of him moved further into the light. The light glistened off him now, catching the black leather, highlighting the subtle curves of hip and chest but leaving his face in darkness. Heat flooded Batman's body as his eyes roamed over the figure, forgetting for a moment who this person was.

A small bright chuckle echoed through the cell, cutting the piteous moans. "Like what you see? I made it for you." He posed, hips cocked to one side, a black clad arm resting on the back of his head in a relaxed posture, so exposed and unafraid. "Tight black is all the rage with heroes." A hand gestured towards him flippantly, like his movements were unrestrained by practicality or weariness. Batman envied him, his own arm beginning to throb even through the screen of adrenalin, the slightest motion an act of the greatest willpower. "And I heard you had a thing for the Cats leather." The man shuttered visibly, waiting only a beat "I pull it off better."

The words of agreement were on his lips when he froze them in horror. Agreement? How could he banter like old friends with a murderer while his intended victim watched on the sidelines? Batman growled out loud, ever since he had seen the case photos from the murders he had been haunted by the faceless man, his supposed Knight. Something in the man's actions struck something deep within him. That part of him, that deep hovering evil that he fought with every waking moment sang with profound joy and unrelenting desire. For the first time someone was addressing not the perfect hero but conflicted man beneath whom no one wanted to believe existed.

"What did you do with Strange?" It was more of a scream now, the whimpering increased in pitch, panicked hiccups flooding the cell.

"But I already told you! I only did what you would have done in my place. It is how you knew I would be here tonight and not with Penguin! " He was stepping forward, long feline strides bringing him to rest in the center of the room, his body was thrumming with the need to make Batman understand at last. "The same reason that every time you think of how these villains have died you see the same beauty that I do. They died not by the innocent Batman's toys but by the ways they would have killed you! You can see the perfect dark irony, the way life imitates art in a way that only we can appreciate!"

Cruel and sudden understanding dawned on him. "Fear Toxin." Batman refused to answer the man, only the problem, refused to even deny what The Knight was saying. To condemn the words as insane ramblings would be to condemn the soul that resonated within himself.

"Fear Toxin." The Knight smiled in the darkness, it was fruitless to tell Batman that they were two parts of a whole, he would never understand until he was able to discover it himself. "But if you want to keep your virgin hands clean I would not go after him if I were you." The words were as soft as the others, not a threat but a gentle warning to a child not to step in front of a Mack Truck.

For Batman the room was tilting slightly, a criminal infused with Fear Toxin could wait just a little longer, just until his head stopped spinning and the panicked flashing on his belt subsided. Perhaps he could even wait until he had a face to go with the actions of his 'Knight'.

"Why are you doing this?" He was proud of how strong the words sounded when it had become such a trial to keep his back straight, to stand on betraying legs.

"To protect you." A hand rose up, reaching out to him, the tips of slender fingers grazing the edge of the light in front of him, just a step short of touching Batman's gloved hand. "With all your brilliance they could have killed you. A band of fools almost took you down because they are not bound the way you are." The hand dropped forlornly out of the light, Batman almost reached out for it. "Until you are free or they are dead I cannot stop."

Batman took another breath of cool air. Images of that last battle tumbling into the whirling in his mind, the Batman he knew saw how it was, the helplessness and the never ending battles which would only stop with his own death but the shadow beneath saw more. Each villain that had hurt him, each criminal striving to take his life could have been brushed away once and for all in an instant. Just as every person The Batman knew eventually asked…how many innocents would be saved if these few were to die?

"Why- Why me?" It was so hard to focus now. He was losing his grip on the reality he knew. He needed to know why, needed The Knight to keep talking so he could hear that voice again…so familiar. He wanted to see his face, to understand this mystery. But there was something else, the whimpering in the corner, he needed to save Strange, he did not need another beautiful death to finally push him over the edge.

"Batman?" The man in front of him took half a step closer as he spoke. That was not the answer he was looking for. He closed his eyes, willing the vertigo and spinning the walls to leave him alone. Why did the voice sound worried? Could that soft panic he heard exist in a person who had killed so ruthlessly? Were such emotions even allowed?

A scream broke through his consciousness, blue eyes flashed open. Strange. Time was running out and he had to save Strange. The mission gave him focus, he latched onto the delicate lucidity,
crossing the cell quickly, falling to his knees in front of Strange.

The whimpering stopped abruptly, the silence after so long was deafening. He could hear a panicked intake of breath before the half remembered bloodcurdling scream that haunted his childhood dreams. Batman grabbed Strange's lapels, dragging him to lay flat in the light. The scream stopped, everything stopped.

He tore at his own thick gloves, throwing them to the floor before pushing his fingers into the man's thick throat. The man lay limp on the floor, hand still clutching his heart, a thin line of saliva dripping from his open mouth. Nothing. No pulse. Batman pushed harder, he just could not feel it, it had to be there, Strange could not be dead. His fingers searched for the ghost of a pulse until blood pooled under his fingernails and something collapsed with a sick crunch within the man's neck.

A hand touched his shoulder, the Knight, he thought slowly. He should leave now, he had failed, only danger lay here now, but he could only blink as the man sat on the ground beside him, pushing the dead man from view. Batman watched the light trace the contours of his dead face as he was pushed into eternal darkness, dead eyes staring at him even now, begging for help.

"Amphetamines. Fear Toxin and Amphetamines. " He looked up and for the first time ice blue met poisonous green. "That is what I would have done."

He smiled, ruby lips too full for a man the only thing besides vivid green eyes Batman could see of the man under the mask and concealing black makeup.
"Fear and speed and then…be still his beating heart." Jokers heart pounded against his chest, that beautiful dreadful understand in Batman's eyes as he understood what they really meant to each other. But Batman was not looking at him anymore, his head was uncharacteristically bent, his hands lay prone on his lap.

"Batman?" He reached out and finally touched that exposed cheek. Cold. He pulled back as if the moist skin had burned him. Reaching out to cup his face with hands, watching as icy blue slowly raised to meet his eyes.

"You are really hurt aren't you?" The voice that came from him was not his own. The Joker was fearless, The Knight, self assured, this…this was a heartbroken child, small and afraid. Batman's cape fell back and a flashing from his belt caught The Jokers eye, his breath caught in his throat as the pattern flashed like the heart of a hummingbird, he did not need to be told what it meant.

'Batman? Batman your vitals are dropping-' The small electronic voice sounded from inside Batman's cowl, they were so close now that Joker could almost hear the words. 'You are bleeding out. You are going into shock. If we do not get you now…' Joker pulled back, he did not want to hear any more.

"Why would you do this to yourself! To us?!" He fumbled for a moment at Batman's belt, releasing the grappling hook and launcher. His voice broke pathetically as he continued but if Batman noticed he kept his own counsel. "But I already know that don't I?"

He pulled Batman's limp body to the shattered window he had made his entrance through, the wind tore at him as he leaned out, having to fire twice before the grapple stuck. Batman always made it look so easy. Desperation had made his hands shaky and the water in his eyes made it hard to see but he had done it.

Joker kneeled and caressed the pale cheek once more, smiling wanly as their eyes locked. "I promised I would protect you." He pressed their cheeks together as his thin arms wrapped around Batman's chest, eventually standing both of them up. He struggled to keep them both upright, all of Batman's weight resting against him as he cannibalized Batman's cape, lashing the two of them together.

"Don't you turn into dead weight on me!" He could feel the chest pressed against him rumble before he heard the deep broken mumble.

"Ha. Ha."

Joker's heart leapt. It was more than he expected, they were going to make it out of this. The broken laugh buoyed his spirits and he felt strong. He lifted Batman's legs and let them wrap around his waist, limp arms tried to lift themselves but they strained and failed. He gently lifted Batman's arms around his own neck, arms coming around him like a child.

He walked carefully to the edge. The electronic voices in their ears said help was still a few minutes away. It looked very high now, as if the building had grown while they were inside. How many times had he escaped from here unscathed? But never like this…certainly not carrying another…. Something warm was buried into his neck, a breath short and gasping heating the edge of his face. He had escaped Arkham to play with the very person he was trying to save, he could do it now. The launcher was set to lower them, it was tied to the cloth holding them together and grasped carefully in Joker's hand. His free arm wrapped around Batman, holding him tight he looked over the night skyline, it was beautiful, something to share with a lover. As they tumbled over the edge, a mass of black with limbs entwined like lovers, he laughed.

'We are almost there! Hold on! I knew we should have stayed closer!' The electronic voice buzzed desperately. His feet touched the ground and they collapsed together on the cold cement. Their bodies were a tangle of limbs and cloth, blood spotted their clothing but he did not want to know where or who it was from. Not now.

The streets were black and empty, complements of the panic the Knight had created in the criminal class, and the fall of Batman had created in the rest of the people of Gotham. Joker was glad for it. There was no one there to see as he held Batman in his arms, his head cradled against his chest.

"Batman." Black eyelashes fluttered and bottomless blue eyes looked at him, was this what it felt like to be afraid? It hurt.

"You want to know why- why you." The too-soft pulse beneath his fingers fluttered, he was afraid of the words even now so he leaned closer so as to whisper them. Their foreheads lay against one another, he could feel their quick breaths mingling and when he spoke their lips brushed.

"Because while you exist I am not alone."

As blue eyes drifted finally closed and Joker felt his heart breaking their breaths became one in a sweet desperate kiss.