The Joke's On You, Bats! [ 𝙱𝚊𝚝𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚇𝙹𝚘𝚔𝚎𝚛 ]

You'll Be Fine

"This the newest model?" Joker purred as his fingers ran alongside the door of the Batmobile.

"Yes." Batman grunted.

"Bullet proof doors, ballistic windows, smooth charcoal finish and tint. I've always wondered what this would look like up close." Joker mused, mostly to himself.

The Bat ignored him, he brought out the hostage from the closet who was now untied and rubbing his wrists. Batman looked down at him.

"Go home to your family."

The man nodded and ran off, maybe to be mugged and killed, maybe to a bar, maybe to his family. With those thoughts, the Bat stepped into his vehicle and let the Joker in as well.

The ride was silent. Joker kept humming and mumbling things, his fingers tapping the arm rest and door. He bit his lip, obviously deep in thought.

Batmam vaguely debated blindfolding him but decided to do something else. He kept driving, eventually realizing they were almost a block away from getting out of the city. So, he pushed a few buttons in the middle of the steering wheel.

"Hey, what's that for Bats...? Neh.."

The Bat looked over to what he was talking about. Installed in the seatbelt he had forced the Joker in was a patch that released a gaseous substance. It was barely enough to actually knock him out and only enough to safely spread out in the atmosphere of the car.

He drove quickly out of the city, through the scenery and into the hidden Batcave. Pulling into the designated area, he turned the vehicle off and paused. His throughts churned as the engine slowly stilled into a dull silence.

He really brought the Joker here. The Joker. Here. What the hell was going on in his head? Why did he succumb to the mad man's wishes? He was supposed to protect Bruce, but how could he when he wanted him here?

The clown stirred as though his thoughts summoned him, but things didn't work like that. It was just the effects of the drug wearing off like he planned.

"Oh geez, Bats. Talk about date rape. Have you done this to the Cat Lady?" He groaned, rubbing his head with both hands. When he finished, he looked up and around. His eyes were wide with wonder, he tried opening the door but found it lacking the latch.

Batman glared over at him, slightly annoyed he was awake. He opened his door and pressed a button on his wrist for the passenger door to open as well.

The Joker happily got out, stretching his limbs and then taking off in any direction to look at the various things his Batsy was up to. Specifically the large computer that seemed to have many other, smaller monitors. Each observed different news stations or police car cams, simultaneously changing to a new feed.

Quickly and angrily, the Bat followed, watching the other intently.

"Don't touch anything."

A giggle was the only reply, acidic green eyes peered over at him teasingly. A hand reached out and started messing with one of the computers, he smirked and looked at the screen. It now showed him Arkham Asylum's feed on all screens.

He hummed,"I wonder if we can see my room." He typed on a few keys and changed the screens to show different cameras.

The Bat stared in wonder, he never looked at the asylum's feed. By the looks of things, he really should be watching what the guards and doctors did though.

The Joker changed one screen that was showing a guard beating one of the patients as a nurse watched with syringes in her hand. He winced at the scene, not feeling any better when it was gone.

"Do they really treat all patients like that?" He asked, his growl nonexistent. Bruce was slowly coming out.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, all the time. Its bad, Batsy, real bad. The doctors and guards make it a game." The Joker explained, his voice losing some amusement.

"'Who Can Make Them Scream The Most'," he said, his hands in the air making a sweeping motion above him.

"I didn't.. know.. " his fists clenched tightly in anger. Had he known such a thing happened, he would have done something sooner. He closed his eyes in thought and crossed his arms tightly.

"Its fine and dandy, Bats. You get to beat on us and send us away to a prison, then we get beat on some more as we plot our escape." His voice had a humorous tone but his eyes were alight with anger. He shrugged, his grin still gone and his eyes distant.

The Bat looked him over, almost feeling the urge to hold him close and comfort his demons. But that would never happen, he couldn't have that come true. Not even if Bruce wanted to.

"Let's see some old footage, hm? See what they've done to me in your absence." With a sadistic grin, the Joker typed something and had his cell being broadcast on each screen. He sat beside the Bat, spinning around in the chair as he listened to his own screams and heard threats from himself and from the tormentors.

In horror, he watched each screen. Something inside seemed to twist and ache in pain, was it his stomach? Bruce's anger began to rise, is this where his money has been going to?

One screen showed the Joker all alone, his straitjacket tight to his body and he sat in the corner. His head gently hit the wall absently, as though he were doing that for ages.

Suddenly, two doctors and a nurse walked in. The Joker didn't seem to notice them, he continued to assault the wall. One approached him and stuck his neck with a needle filled with unknown substances.

The clown, whose hair wasn't as green and curled in his face, stopped all movements. The three watched, as did the Bat, and jumped slightly when he began to stand and try to squish himself into the corner. He cried out as though something was there that no one saw.

Batman closed his eyes and opened them to another screen, only to see another barbaric act take place.

Two guards were standing in his cell, the Joker was free of all restraints and seemed to be holding his ground. His face paint wasn't completely there, mostly smudged around. He seemed worn out and his face was twisted in a snarl.

The look in his eyes was almost feral.

The two guards closed in on him, each kicking him in the gut and legs. With the Joker down, one began to rip off his thin pants and the other held his upper body down.

They laughed at his helplessness and they relaxed when he stopped struggling. The guard that ripped off his pants now groped his bare skin and he earned a kick to the face.

Growling came from the Joker as he struggled once more, but a blow to the head stilled him. He panted and hung his head low, he looked dizzy and pathetic.

"Who will help you now?" One of the men asked.

He almost didn't hear it, but a soft cry emitted from the clown,"Batsy.."

The Bat couldn't watch anymore, he tore his eyes away when a loud screaming started. He made the monitors turn off and stared at the black screens, his mind too focused on that pathetic cry for help.

The cry for help that never came.

"See something you like, Bats?" The mad man asked, his face absent of the grin. He stopped his spinning a long time ago.

Batman didn't say anything, he only stepped up to the other and pulled him out of the chair. He looked into those broken eyes and saw the man behind the monster. The man that lived a life before he became this, a man that had normalcy.

Deep into this man's eyes, he saw love.

He embraced him close, his nose on his neck and his arms around his waist. He felt weak limbs wrap around himself and the clown's body shook with gentle sobs. That only made him hold the other tighter.

The Bat would let Bruce have this moment.. but only this one.

~

𝟎𝟐/𝟎𝟗/𝟐𝟐 𝐮𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞:

I'm trying to expand more on the Bat being Bruce's protector in a sense.
Sorry if it's confusing ૮ 'ﻌ｀ა