I stared at the ruby on my ring as I twirled it around. The light was caught and sent into a million sparkling shades of red onto my face. Jonathan would tell me how the light was being fractured and all that nonsense and I would pretend to listen. My heart beat a little faster at the thought of him. Jonathan, Jonathan, Jonathan... Every time he was gone I missed him. I guess that's what you would call a soulmate. Someone you missed when they left the room. Shilo was at school so I was at home with nothing to do, and everything to read. I guess that would be my problem: I buy books, read them once, then never touch them again. I picked up a book and opened it. It was an old book about a woman who waits for her husband to return home. Ironic, since that is exactly what I'm doing. How long has my Jonathan been away? A few days? He seems to be doing that a lot recently. Marcey thinks he's cheating. I don't think so. He's not that type of person. Then again, that's how all people are. You think you know them, and the poof! You don't. But I digress. I know he's not.
The door opened but didn't close. Little stomps and a small grunt signified that my little Shilo was home at last. She came bounding into the living room where I was sitting and stood in front of me. I looked into her deep blue eyes that I swear she got from Jonathan. Of course, both of us have blue eyes, but his were always much deeper.
"Momma?" she says with a small voice. "Some men outside said they wanted to tell you something." I set the book down. "Go and do your homework." Shilo ran off, probably to play instead, and I got up and went outside. The house we lived in was large, and away from the town. We were secluded and in our own world. We liked it that way, and no one usually visited us.
Four large men were waiting on the porch. One, a burly geen-haired man, was carving swear words into the wood. Another, who had a pink mohawk, was sizing up the door which was seven times his size. (Large door, I know). "Hey Lady," the green-haired brute said. "nice place ya got here. S'gunna be fun ta burn it down!" he snickered like it was a grand idea. "Who the hell are you?" I asked calmly. The other two men came forward with a large burlap sack. "Nice and easy now..." Mohawk said. Before I knew what was happening, everything went black.
I woke up with a large pain on the back of my head. When I tried to touch it, I found that my arms were bound by a straightjacket. Instantly I felt the choking sensation that I usually get when I feel that I'm in a small space. Air refused to enter my lungs, or if it did, it didn't feel like it. I was splayed on a table. I could hear faint voices around me. A large blinding light was turned on and after a moment I saw that I was in an auditorium. One of those ones where they show people how to preform surgery.
"...patient...bright light...blinds...tools here...small incision..." What felt like fire seared its way across my forehead just under my hairline. Awareness was flooding back into my brain as I tried to scream, but something was lodged in my mouth. A heavy block of metal was placed onto my head. "A simple procedure, really. Just tap-" Yet again, everything went black.
Movement was hard. I was pretty sure that I had been drugged. I tried to sit up, but it was as if I was paralyzed. Partially anyways. I could feel straw under my hands, and I could tell that my clothing had been replaced by a hospital gown. I opened my eyes, but I could only see through one. I tried opening the other, but it's sort of hard to do that when both are open. I was half blind and probably paralyzed, too.
I eventually got my hand up to my head and I felt the area where the incision was, and where the metal had hit me. I've seen this type of thing happen in movies. That was a lobotomy. At least they didn't take a chunk out of my brain. They made me blind in one eye, and my movement is now hampered. If I could just sit up, then I can take a look at my surroundings. I moved my foot and found that my ankle had been broken. There's no way I can walk on that. They must have done that to keep me from running. They might have done it because they knew that they didn't complete the lobotomy (and they want to finish it later) or they had no idea and they did it anyways just in case. Better to play dumb and blind.
Keys rattled around and there was a strange humming coming from the hallway. Someone was singing a song about burning babies and dancing in their blood. Loud banging came from the gates, and someone danced in. A man with green hair grabbed my face. "Well, hello-o-o-o-o Mrs. Crane~ How are you?" I had seen him somewhere before... In the news. Joker.
"Mmmm, seems like m'boys did a good job with this one. Y'think Scarecrow will listen to me now?" he laughed and the halitosis almost made me gag. "Uhhh, I don't know, Joker. Maybe?" his goon said. Joker frowned and threw me to the ground. I suppressed a groan and laid down like a rag doll. "Maybe? MAYBE? I'll tell you what- He WILL. And, if this doesn't work, then we'll just have to find a new chemist." Joker pulled out his gun and shot the goon. This time I couldn't suppress a jump. "Oooh, still in there, are we? Bouncing around in the ol' nogin? Hey, y'know what? I bet you're wondering where your husband is, aren't you? Oh what am I saying? OF COURSE you are." He grabbed me by the back of my neck and led me forward. As soon as weight was put on my ankle I fell to the ground. It was all I had to keep from screaming.
"Uh-oh! Goons! We got ourselves a lame one!" he paused. "Goons!" he looked around. "Oh that's right. Be right back." He danced off and found something on wheels. "Look, I got you one of those stand-up beds!" He lifted me up and strapped me in. "Look, it even has a mask! You can pretend to be Bane!" He put a hard mask over me, and part of it stuck in my mouth. I could only make mumbling sounds. "What's that? Can't hear you!" he cackled. Living with a psychologist you learn a thing or two about situations like this. People go crazy from the stress alone. I let myself drift into a state of almost-sleep.
Bright lights jolted me awake. I was in a lab. I could see solutions bubbling in glasses and tables with bodies on them. Whether or not they were alive I could not tell. "Scarecrow! Good t'see ya pal, how ya been! Listen, I did some thinking about the choice words you said to me – what were they again? F**k off? Yeah. Those ones. And I thought I'd bring you a present and – TADAA~! I brought you darling Roxy!" I heard glass breaking. "I thought you'd be glad to see her! She's missed you so much, the poor girl. She even had some work done! A little make over! Yes, I thought the hair had to go, too! She should be pretty quiet, now. The only good woman is a quiet one I always say! Well, tah tah for now!" I heard a door slam shut.
The one called Scarecrow was in my blind spot. He moved in front of me. He was covered from head to toe in brown, and most of it was burlap. Sick and twisted like the rest of these weirdos in Gotham. "Roxanne," he said. His voice was familiar. Too familiar.