When Jason finally hit the ground, landing heavily on his back, he knew, once he had enough breath back to think somewhat straight, that something was wrong. The first thing that Jason noticed, laying on his back, gasping for air like a dead fish, was the smell. It was a rotten smell, akin to spoiled milk or bad eggs, but it wasn't the rotten smell that Jason was used to. The second thing he noticed, when he managed to open his eyes and blink his vision clear, was the sky. It was a musky blue, a bit overcast, but other clearly visible, unlike the smog-diluted sky he was all too used to. The third thing that Jason noticed, as he shakily pushed himself up onto his hands, was the noise: car horns, engines, the gentle roar of people, the occasional police siren; the sounds of a city, devoid of petrified screams and bloodcurdling wails. With these three observations, Jason knew he was somewhere other than where he'd last been a minute ago.
Standing up, leaning against a brick wall, Jason reasoned that he really shouldn't be all that surprised he was somewhere else, considering the fact that he'd fallen through a portal. Or at least, that's what it had looked like. Jason gazed back towards the way he'd come, scanning the air for a trace of the swirling purple vortex he'd hurtled from, but found nothing except an old fire escape upon which a small bird perched. Yet another sign that he was no longer in Gotham.
Once Jason was more confident in his ability to remain upright, he pushed himself off the wall and dusted off his pants and the back of his jacket, thankful for the tough leather protecting his skin from road burn. With one more glance around the small alley that he found himself in, confirming that it was empty, aside from the bird, he reached up and removed his helmet, collapsing it and placing in a pocket on his belt. He then removed his domino mask and ran a hand through his dark hair, ruffling the helmet-hair back out of its flattened condition. Satisfied that he now looked somewhat normal, if not a bit like a biker, Jason pointed himself in the direction of the city sounds and started to pick his way out of the maze of back alleys.
Stepping out onto a busy street, the skyscrapers rising up to meet his gaze, Jason suddenly doubted everything he'd since deduced. It was a war between his senses as every one but one told him he was somewhere else while his eyes relayed to him the sight that was as familiar to his brain as his own hand. Gotham rose before him, as like as itself as it had ever been, but more different than Jason had ever known. The buildings, the streets, the landscape were the same, but the atmosphere, the air, the very being were wholly alien to a man who'd lived nearly his entire life among the smog and grime.
Without thinking, Jason latched onto a man in a suit passing near him and whipped him around, Jason's hand fisted in his jacket.
"Where are we?" Jason demanded, not caring of the strange looks he was receiving.
"Are you crazy, man?" Jason's victim asked, trying to pry Jason's hand off his front.
"I just want to know where we are," Jason growled, bringing his face close to the man's, twisting his own into an intimidating scowl.
"G-Gotham," the man stuttered, his eyes growing wide across from Jason's. "Sixth Avenue, near the library."
Even as the man spoke, Jason's eyes found a sign for the Gotham Public Library, caught a glimpse of a police car from the GPD, and zeroed in a group of teenagers sporting Gotham Academy hoodies and t-shirts. His eyes widened at the confirmation of his own doubt as he released the man and shoved him away, his mind not giving him a second thought.
"You're crazy, man!" The other nervously laughed, backing away.
"I shouldn't be the only one," Jason murmured in reply, already turning away. A terrified feeling was slowly seeping into his body, a feeling that Jason wasn't at all accustomed to. This Gotham, it was nothing like his own. Already he could see that it was fresh, raw, unexposed to the horrors that plagued his own home city.
As Jason headed for the subway, another thought slowly took shape in mind, ominous and foreboding and extremely dangerous. He hadn't fallen through the portal on his own; he'd been fighting the Joker when they'd both fallen into the trap. Where had the Joker ended up? Jason boarded the M train, headed through downtown, towards the west end of the city. If he was in Gotham, some other Gotham, not his own Gotham, and the Joker – his Joker, far more insane than it appeared this Gotham had every dealt with – was here too, then there was only one place Jason knew to go.
oOo
Jason arrived at Wayne Manor as the sun was just beginning its downward descent, touching the tips of the trees surrounding the manor with a soft gold light. It was beautiful in a way Jason was never able to see his own home as and he felt his throat get tight at the thought. But he pushed it away and hurried up the long drive faster. He'd walked the entire way up the private road leading to the manor after hitching a ride on a delivery truck out of the city, jumping off as it turned to head further out, away from where Jason wanted to go.
Once Jason reached the front steps leading to the garden and the curving, majestic drive, he paused, staring up the house that was so familiar, yet tinged with an alien air. His eyes quickly caught sight of a mailbox and he popped it open, pulling out a small stack of letters. They were mostly ads, with one letter from England addressed to Alfred Pennyworth (so the butler did live at the Manor in this Gotham) and a letter from the public library addressed to Richard Grayson.
Jason's hands froze when he caught sight of the name and he nearly dropped all the letters. With trembling fingers, Jason slowly tore open the letter, his eyes never leaving the printed letters spelling out his predecessor's name. Cautiously, Jason pulled out the slip of paper inside, his eyes scanning the short, automated message telling 'Mr. Richard Grayson' that his book on developmental psychology was overdue and that if he didn't return it soon, he would be charged a fine. Jason's mind hardly acknowledged the message, however, as he had eyes only for the name of the person to whom it was written. In this Gotham, Dick was still at the manor, still checking out books from the library….
Jason exhaled sharply, quickly glancing around again to check for signs of company. The Manor looked dark and the drive was empty of cars. Turning his attention back to the document in his hand, the question quickly rose of who all lived in Manor and what all were they doing. Scanning the library notice, Jason located a date in the right-hand corner: October 15th, 2010. Four years ago, in relation to Jason's Gotham, but Jason knew enough not to assume dates were consistent between the two worlds.
Replacing the other mail in the box, Jason absently tucked the library letter into his jacket pocket and started up the remaining steps towards the Manor's front door. If dates were consistent, then Jason would still be living at the Manor, but Dick would've been off at college. If Dick still lived here, then was Jason even part of the equation in this world? Secretly, Jason hoped he wasn't.
Skirting around the side of the building, Jason crept along the lawn, his eyes continually searching for signs of life. He wanted to get a decent bearing on Bruce Wayne and Dick in this world and whether Batman was a thing or not. If Batman was a thing, then maybe he'd be able to help Jason figure out a way to get back to his own Gotham? Jason quickly shot down the idea; Bruce was Bruce, no matter what world he lived and Jason wasn't willing to turn to him for help. No, he wanted to know about Batman and Dick for his own personal curiosity.
Soon Jason came upon a window with a faint light shining from behind the curtains. After mentally going through the layout of the Manor in his head, Jason started to climb to wall, avoiding all the security that he knew of and hoping that this world's Manor didn't have anymore. He made it to window without problem and alighted on the ledge, surprised to find the window slightly open at the bottom as the weather was starting to get chilly. After listening and watching the shadows behind the curtain, Jason twitched aside the blue fabric and was greeted by the sight of a young boy, asleep with his head on a desk.
Jason knew it was Dick after only a moment. The boy's dark hair was longish and fell across his face in a way only Dick's ever did. He was thin and wiry, though Jason knew that his hoodie hid the muscle of an acrobat. He looked maybe eleven, though Jason was hesitant to guess so young as he caught sight of the title of the book the boy had fallen asleep on: Developmental Psychology by Professor R.J. Hilton. Jason had to fight to smother his laughter at seeing the man he'd so long looked up to, asleep on a textbook, looking like an eleven-year-old boy.
Jason's eyes soon caught sight of another area of interest; the boy had some type of brace on his right wrist, explaining why he was at the Manor, asleep on a book, while the rest of the house seemed empty. Batman, if Batman existed, no doubt banned him from patrol due to his injury. Jason cast a glance around Dick's room, but saw nothing of interest aside from a picture on the boy's desk of him, Bruce, and Alfred wearing Christmas sweaters, smiling in front of a large Christmas tree. It looked recent – most likely taken the past Christmas – and that meant that Jason hadn't come into the picture yet – literally and figuratively.
As Jason let the curtain fall back into place, he couldn't help but wonder if Jason even existed in this reality and if he did, where he was at the moment. If Gotham was different here, then maybe Jason's childhood was different too. And even if it wasn't, the boy hadn't even met Batman yet and with Batman, the Joker…. Harshly, Jason shoved the thoughts from his mind. It wasn't up to him to change things, to change the timeline, to intervene. Bruce had nailed it into his head enough times how dangerous that could be. No, all Jason could do was try to figure out how to get back to his world and then do it. No messing around.
Upon rounding the front of the house again, Jason caught sight of a newspaper lying on the front step. He bent to pick it up and carefully pulled it out of its packaging. The front-page story was on Killer Moth and how, after a long streak of bank robberies, Batman and Robin had finally succeeded in capturing him and sending him to Arkham. As Jason read, the question of Batman was answered and more pieces to the puzzle of the new Gotham floated to the surface. If Killer Moth's capture made front-page news, then Jason was willing to bet that all the villains in the new Gotham were tame compared to where he was from. That would explain some of the differences between the two cities….
Jason's breath suddenly caught in his throat. If Killer Moth and his bank robberies were front-page news, then even the most sane baddies from Jason's world would be capable of wreaking absolute havoc on this Gotham, especially with a Batman unused to such terror…. Jason hadn't fallen through the portal alone. And everything Jason knew about portals said that they were one-destination only, meaning if he ended up here, then so did the Joker. His Joker. The clown who'd beaten him and blown him up at sixteen for the fun of it. The man who tore Gotham apart from the ground up.
Dropping the newspaper, Jason took off at a sprint, heading in the direction of the faint sound of falling water. He had a Joker to hunt and needed some equipment.
oOo
Robin sighed, rounding another corner and scanning the alley in front of him. Nothing, big surprise. Batman was further back busting a drug ring or something and he'd ordered Robin to go keep watch. Or more like ordered away from danger because he was still 'injured'. In reality, Robin was nearly one hundred percent sure his wrist was one hundred percent, but, since Batman was more paranoid than a bird, he didn't get a chance to find out if he was right.
Robin was actually rather tempted to take out his phone and start texting Wally, but his common sense told him that then he would be an idiot and probably die. Don't text and patrol, kids, or you'll end up with a slit throat. Nonetheless, he was bored out of his mind as he'd been walking around the same few alleys for the past hour with no contact from Batman other than the friendly reminder to stay put. How long did it take to bust a drug ring?
"Hahahahahaha!"
Robin froze, automatically fading into the shadows as his eyes searched the darkness. He knew that laugh, though something about it this time was different….
"Hello, Bird Brains!"
The voice was the one Robin knew all too well, haunting his dreams, echoing through his head in terrifying laughter. High-pitched and full of malevolence and a psychotic glee.
"You don't know me yet," the Joker continued and Robin desperately tried to locate the source of the sound. "But you will!"
"Joker," Robin hissed, his hands going to his utility belt. "Show yourself!"
"Maybe you do know me," the clown laughed and the sound bounced off the walls of the alley, making it impossible to locate.
"What are you talking about?" Robin asked, his hand closing around an eskrima stick. "And I thought you were still in Arkham. When did you get out?"
"In Arkham, was I? Hehehe, good to know."
"Stop hiding, Joker," Robin demanded. He was afraid of the Joker, like no other villain except maybe Two Face, and he didn't like not knowing where the clown was. He'd already sent a signal to Batman letting the older man know what was going on, but if the Dark Knight was in the middle of something, it could be a few minutes before he arrived.
"Oh, you'll see my face soon enough, Birdy," the Joker cackled. There was some banging and cursing and then he spoke again. "You're so… fresh. So… young. I haven't seen you like this in years! Definitely miss it – you're so serious now! Shoulda blown you up like I did the other one, before you could get all… old. Blek!"
Now Robin felt thoroughly confused. "What are you talking about, Joker?"
"Oh, nothing. Don't worry about the blowing up thing – it looks like I've been given another chance to right my wrongs! Hahahaha! But first, there's someone I've got to see. Later!"
"Joker!" Robin shouted, but the alley erupted into a chorus of banging and crashing and laughing and once it finally quieted down again, it was silent. "Joker?" Robin called. There was no reply.
Robin remained where he was for a long time, waiting. Once he was sure that the Joker was gone he took a shaky breath and folded against the wall behind him, leaning heavily into the cool brick. What the Joker had been talking about – the parts that Robin could understand at least – scared him. It had sounded like threats – threats by the Joker to blow him up…. Just like the other one? Robin shook his head; it didn't make any sense – who had Joker blown up before?
oOo
Arkham had been fairly quiet that night; only one or two screams and merely one diabolical tirade. Joe felt calmer than he had in a long while, which was rare for someone of his occupation. His wife had been complaining recently that he'd been acting 'weird' and it made her 'uncomfortable' and she'd even asked him once or twice to consider quitting his job at the Asylum. He'd told her that he was fine and that it was a good job – he might not be able to find another one that paid decent. She'd reluctantly agreed, but since then Joe had been determined to prove to her that Arkham wasn't getting to him and that he was just the same as before. Tonight was a good night and when he got home in the morning, Jessica would see that this wasn't a bad job.
"Who are you?"
Joe groaned to himself. The Joker was at it again, talking to a new prisoner or something.
"I'm you."
Joe froze, a cup of coffee just about to leave the table in his hand on its way to his mouth. Now the clown was talking to himself?
"You're me? Oh yeah, I guess I can see the resemblance."
Rolling his eyes, Joe pushed himself to his feet; he probably should see what was going on.
"Did Batman lock you up?"
"Batman. And Superman. And Flashy. And the entire 'Justice League' and their kiddies."
"Justice League?"
"Hmm, don't have one of those where you come from?"
"I do… but they've never locked me up before."
"Hmph."
"What's the Batman like in this world? Is he ruthless? Immovable? Perpetually annoying?"
"The last one for sure."
"You're soft."
"Excuse me?"
"I'm going to blow up Batman's bird."
"Oo, really? Can I help?"
"No."
"Why not?"
As Joe rounded the corner and peered down the long hallway lined with cells, he nearly turned on his flashlight until he saw the faint glow of a white face in the darkness.
"You have no experience in this area."
Joe peered into the darkness, trying to discern what the shape in the darkness ahead was. It almost looked like the Joker, out of his cell….
"And you do?"
"Of course."
Joe slowly began to creep forward, his footsteps silent on the stone floor. The shape ahead of him grew into focus and Joe immediately recognized the green, greasy hair and pale, white face of Gotham's greatest villain, standing outside his cell. He was facing away from Joe, towards his cell, still talking to himself.
"I blew up one of the birdies from my world already. And I can't wait to do it again."
"At least let me out of here."
Joe crept a little closer, drawing the Taser from his belt and holding as he'd been trained. He was right behind the Joker when his eyes strayed for a second to the cell where the Joker had been kept. Suddenly he was face to face with the smiling face of the clown, still locked in his cell, his grin stretched wide.
"Well hello there," the clown in the cell laughed. The one that Joe had been about to tase turned around and smiled as well. Before Joe could make a sound, the Joker in front of him pulled out a knife and ran it across his throat.
Joe collapsed to the ground, choking and coughing as blood filled his throat and lungs. The Joker outside the cell laughed, a high-pitched, insane laugh, before tossing the bloody knife to the Joker still locked up.
"Here. From one madman to another."
As Joe's vision started to fade, he watched as the first Joker took off down the hallway, cackling softly into the shadows while the other stood at the bars of his cell, a wicked grin on his face as he watched Joe fade away, Arkham finally getting him at last.
oOo
Jason had been scouring Gotham for nearly three days straight and still had found no sign of the Joker. Part of him wanted to believe that the clown had simply ended up somewhere else, but, even if that were true, Jason had to keep looking until it was confirmed. There was no way he could let the madman run free in a Gotham unprepared for what he delivered. Of course, Jason had realized early on he really had no idea what he was going to do with the Joker once he found him, as he didn't have any way of returning to his own world. He'd figure it out when the time came.
While he may not have found the Joker yet, he had managed to avoid Batman and Robin for the entirety of his stay in 'happy' Gotham, as he'd come to call it, jokingly. While the city still reeked of crime and cruelty, compared to his Gotham, it could seem almost happy at times. Speaking of happy, Jason had never realized before how unnaturally cheery Dick Grayson was. He'd nearly ran into the Dynamic Duo a couple times and had spent some time observing them from afar, quickly realizing an intense desire to throttle the kid. He was always smiling, cracking jokes, and making bad puns – similar in some ways to the Dick Jason knew, but also so much younger and… carefree and innocent. It stirred something in Jason to think of what the kid would become.
"Why are you still following me?"
Jason's head shot up at the Joker's voice drifting through the night air. He was down by the docks, one of the Joker's favorite haunting grounds back in his Gotham and was currently perched atop an old warehouse used to store rusting boats and rotting ropes.
"I'm not following you."
What? Jason cocked his head at the second voice, so similar to the first. Soundlessly he crept to the edge of the roof and peered down, catching sight of two figures in the darkness. In the darkness all he could make out were pale faces and green hair, but it was obvious who the second voice belonged to: the world's Joker.
"I'm here to demand what's rightfully mine," the second Joker, the Joker that belonged in this world, continued. "This bird's mine and if you're gonna blow him up then I deserve to be there. And help. You already got your chance."
"You'll just get in the way," Jason's Joker retorted. "I know what I'm doing, you don't."
"I've hit the kid plenty of times."
"This is different."
"No…," Jason whispered, the topic of their conversation making itself clear to him.
"I'm coming."
"Not if you can't catch me!" And with a gleeful giggle, Jason's Joker took off running down the street, his purple coat streaming behind him. The other Joker snarled before turning away and disappearing in the other direction.
Jason had only eyes for his Joker, the clown's words dancing around in his head in a sickening taunt. He was going after Dick, thirteen-year-old (as he'd since learned was the kid's age) Dick, and planned to do to the boy what he'd done to Jason three years ago. There had been times in the past when Jason had been so bitter at Bruce he'd entertained the fantasy of what would have happened if it had been Dick and not him, but always he knew that he'd never wish his own fate on someone else. Especially a kid so young and carefree as this Dick Grayson was.
His face twisted into a snarl, Jason took off across the rooftops after his Joker, his hand going for his gun even as he caught up to the clown and dropped off the rooftop in front of him.
"Well hello," the Joker purred, coming to a stop, panting a bit from his run. "Fancy seeing you here."
"One move and I blow your brains out," Jason shouted, raising his gun and aiming at the spot between the clown's eyes.
"Haven't we been through this before?" Joker sighed, as if exasperated.
"Don't touch that kid," Jason hissed, steadying the gun with his other hand, struggling to remain calm enough to aim.
"Oooh, so that's what this is about." The Joker laughed, twirling around in excitement. "You know, I was doing this all purely for my own amusement, but seeing now how much this upsets you…. Mmm, it's just too perfect!" The clown laughed again, throwing his head back and letting the sound echo through the surrounding warehouses.
Jason angrily stepped forward and the Joker stopped, his hand going into his purple coat warningly.
"Now just hold your horses, Bird Boy." The clown took a breath and pretended to straighten himself out. "Hows abouts we make a deal."
"I could shoot you right now!"
"Yes, but you haven't, so I will continue to talk. I want to blow up the new bird kid, you want to stop me; doesn't sound like they'll both work out, eh?"
"You have nothing I want."
"Really? Not even a way… home?"
Jason almost dropped the gun. "What?"
"You heard me, Red Bucket."
"You… can't."
"I can. You didn't think I wanted to stay here forever, did you? I got us here, after all, and I plan on going back."
"You're lying."
"I do do that a lot…. But not today! I've turned over a new leaf! I know when the portal will appear again and where."
"I don't care," Jason snapped, though with a small bit of effort. Joker could be the only way home, but there was no way he could sit back and let the clown torture and destroy another kid.
"Your loss." The Joker moved faster than Jason thought possible and suddenly there was a gun pointed at his face and then it was going off and on instinct he dove to the side. He came up to see the Joker laughing hysterically while a small flag waved on the ground, the word 'bang' scrawled on it. Jason had a second to flip the botton on his mask to make it airtight before the air filled with a putrid yellow gas.
"Later, alligator!"
oOo
Jason panted as he scaled yet another building, hoping that he'd finally catch a glimpse of Batman and his brightly colored sidekick. (Though, Jason had noticed that the Dick in this world wore a very toned-down version of the Robin costume consisting of mostly black and dark red.) Jason didn't know what the Joker's plan was to capture Robin and for all he knew, the freak could have his hands on the kid right now. Jason picked up his pace and cleared the edge of the roof.
As he ran, that night played over and over in his head, like it had when he'd first been brought back. The sights, the sounds, the smells, and the pain. The dusty warehouse, dark, except for the small light above the face of the clown, twisted into a grin that forever danced behind Jason's eyelids. The crack of the crowbar hitting his body, his bones breaking under the onslaught, the hysterical laugh that followed his every movement. The smell of the blood that painted the floor, mixing with the sawdust and rat poop and the smell of old gasoline. The pain of his broken body as the clown pounded on it relentlessly…. And then the silence. The absolute stillness when the Joker had finally left him, alone, and suddenly hope had sparked anew. The eerie hush as he'd pushed himself to his feet and staggered across the floor to the door. The calm as he'd finally rested his bound hands on the handle and turned. The silence as the timer ticked out his final seconds…. The explosion, the pain, and then the nothing.
Jason could never escape the memories of that night. He could never get away from the nightmare and now, another was lined up to suffer as he had. He was determined to never let it happen. He would do whatever he had to to spare this kid, this young, innocent Dick Grayson, from living the horror that he himself had suffered.
As Jason approached the edge of yet another roof, he poked his head over the side, searching the darkness, his eyes finally landing on what he'd been looking for. The Joker stood, concealed in the shadows of the building opposite, his pale skin glowing in the darkness. The clown turned and locked eyes with him as Jason swiftly drew his head back, but he didn't care that the psycho had seen him. Let him know he was coming. Let him prepare for Jason's vengeance.
oOo
Joker knew that his counterpart was onto the kid, closing in on him at the very moment, but what the other Joker didn't know was this Gotham belonged to him and he knew every which way about it. The Bird Boy was his and if some other crazy clown wanted to blow him up and ruin his favorite toy, then the counterpart would have to go through him.
Batman and Robin had been patrolling separately as of late, with Batman taking care of the baddies while Robin kept watch. Of course, other-Joker was probably finding this all extremely convenient, however, he still had to find Robin, which would give Joker-of-this-Gotham just enough of a leg-up to keep up.
Some inkling in the back of his neck caused Joker to turn around. As he did, he caught a glimpse of a red helmet disappearing behind the roof of a building – that metal-headed freak that had arrived with other-Joker. Apparently he wanted to stop other-Joker from messing with the birdy as well. With a smile and a quick laugh, Joker led off on the chase.
oOo
Robin stifled a yawn as he adjusted his position slightly from where he crouched, hidden in the crevices of a gargoyle atop the old downtown bank. He and Batman were staking out the scene of a rumored robbery and had been for the past two hours. It was getting late and Robin had spent the entire day working on a paper for his advanced English class that was worth a way too high percent of his grade. It was due the next day and he hadn't finished it yet. The outline continued to dance through his head even now and he found he was having a hard time paying attention to the stakeout.
"Batman to Robin, I have a visual; I'm moving in. Stay where you are."
"Roger that," Robin sighed, wishing that he'd been the one to get the visual. Anything to keep him awake.
Turning back to gazing out onto the empty street in front of the bank, Robin failed to notice the shadow climbing along the side of the bank behind him. His mind wandered to the mission the Team was promised in the days ahead and whether Wally really put the itching powder in Artemis's shampoo and what kind of cookies Alfred was making. A figure was just creeping into his field of vision when suddenly a gloved hand wrapped itself around his mouth and hot breath tickled his ear.
"Hello, Bird Brain, we meet again."
A sickly sweet smell invaded Robin's nose and before he could even hold his breath, he felt his vision getting fuzzy and his head growing light. And then all was black.
oOo
"So, Birdy Boy's finally awake, is he?"
Robin groaned, struggling to open his eyes as he became aware of a tapping on his cheek.
"So, are you ready for some fun?"
When Robin's vision finally focused, he found himself looking into the face of the Joker, grinning madly back at him. Except, the clown looked different. His hair was wilder and longer and his grin was stretched tighter, his face more twisted and sinister looking that Robin remembered. His clothes were rattier as well, with a look of faded glory to them. The man's eyes were black pits, ringed by dark shadows, and looking into them, Robin felt a fear take a cold grip of his heart and squeeze.
"Well, I am, so let us begin." With a smirk, the Joker yanked the chair that Robin was sitting on out from under him and the boy fell to the floor, discovering as he fell that his hands were tied behind his back. Unable to catch himself, he hit the floor hard, banging his head against the concrete.
"So I've heard that you're new to this game, so let me introduce you to the players." The Joker turned around for a moment and came back holding a baseball bat. "First up we have Mr. Bat. He's a real hard hitter." With a laugh, Joker swung the bat down hard, connecting with Robin's upper arm.
Robin bit back a scream, groaning through clenched teeth as he tried to roll away.
"Strike one!" Joker screeched, bringing the bat down again, this time near Robin's elbow. "Strike two!"
"Stop!"
Through slit eyes, Robin gazed around the room, looking for the voice. Was Joker talking to himself?
"What was that?" Joker laughed, bringing the bat down on the back of Robin's head.
"I said stop it!"
"Sorry, can't hear you!" Another hit, this time to the boy's side and Robin sucked in a sharp, pained breath.
"Do it again and I'll shoot you!"
Robin groaned, his head spinning as he tried to figure out what was going on.
"Fine. Let's settle this in private."
Before Robin could try to piece together what the Joker meant, the bat connected with the back of his head again, this time hard, and he was out.
oOo
Jason was pretty sure he'd never run so fast in his life. As he heard the first thumps of the bat, he felt his heart jump to his throat and he almost choked. Almost there, he told himself, forcing his legs to move faster as he leaped over an old fishing boat. They were back by the docks and Jason could see the faintest bit of light coming from a warehouse up ahead, the sounds of something heavy hitting something softer reaching Jason's ears. Hold on, Dick.
Jason reached the door just voices rose from behind it, accompanied by a loud crack. Without a second thought, Jason threw the door open, the sight greeting him something out of both a comedy and a horror film. Both Jokers stood in the room, illuminated by a single light bulb, while Robin lay on the floor, bound and unconscious, Jason's Joker standing over him holding a baseball bat.
"Well this is awkward," the Joker from this world laughed.
"You led him here!" Jason's Joker snarled, twirling the bat threateningly.
"He followed me."
Jason's Joker looked from Jason to the other Joker, his wild eyes narrowed as he evaluated the situation. Then he turned and flew at the other Joker, laughing hysterically as he swung his bat. The other Joker leaped away, a smile on his own bright red lips as he dodged the swinging bat. The two spun around the room, caught up in a strange and fantastical dance, purple coats swaying in the darkness, illuminated by faces and crazed eyes.
Jason watched the two Jokers chase each other around the room for a second before turning his attention to the boy on the floor. He looked mostly alright, aside from a few bruises blossoming on his arm and the concussion that he'd likely sustained. Jason reached around and untied his arms, laying them at the boy's side. Looking down at the boy, so like he himself had been only years ago, Jason suddenly wondered if things could have turned out differently for himself. If things would turn out differently for the Jason in this world. This Batman was different; less dark and more willing to seek help. Maybe things would turn out better for this Dick. Jason hoped so.
Suddenly a bright purple light lit up the warehouse and Jason turned to look.
"Not already!" His Joker whined. A swirling purple vortex hovered a few inches off the ground not far from where the two Jokers were fighting. "Oh well!" Joker laughed, dancing off towards the portal. "Coming, Hood? This isn't really our world anyway. Let's finish this elsewhere." And then the Joker gave one last look to his counterpart before leaping into the portal, disappearing into the glowing light with a laugh.
The other Joker watched him go, a knife still held in his hand. Once he was gone, the clown turned to where Robin lay and Jason drew his gun.
"Cool your jets, Bucket Head," the other Joker laughed, dancing back towards the shadows. "I've got no bone to pick with you." And then he too was gone.
There was a rumble outside and Jason knew that Batman had arrived. Not wanting to be caught by the Bat, he rose to his feet, his eyes finding the portal, still swirling in the darkness, and started for it. A thought suddenly struck him and he paused and reached into his pocket, pulling out a white envelope. Swiftly Jason tucked it into Dick's belt before rising again.
"Take care, Kid. And look after your Jason."
With one last look at the boy, Jason stepped backwards into the portal and let it take him home.
oOo
Dick yawned heavily as he let the door to his bedroom fall shut. It had been a long night and it was nearly morning now. After waking up back at the Batcave, Batman had interrogated him for a solid thirty minutes on what exactly had happened. Dick hadn't really had any good answers and Batman revealed that when he'd entered the warehouse, Dick had been lying on the floor alone, a strange purple glow fading from the room. Dick didn't have any answers and Alfred had finally insisted that he go to bed as he had received a two nasty blows to the head (though thankfully didn't have a concussion), successfully stopping Bruce from persisting in his interrogation.
Now Dick began to wonder what exactly had happened. Obviously the Joker had captured him, but why had the clown suddenly left him? And who had he been talking to? Or had Dick been hallucinating?
Rubbing his eyes, Dick made his way over to his desk, sitting down and pulling out the envelope he'd found tucked into his utility belt. It was plain white, addressed to Richard Grayson. Hoping for answers, Dick flipped the flap open and pulled out the letter inside. His eyes scanned the page hopefully, only to narrow in confusion as he realized it was a notice from the library about an overdue book. Developmental Psychology by R.J. Hilton. Dick groaned as he realized that he still had to finish the book which currently lay open on his desk.
Figuring he probably wasn't going to get any sleep that night anyway, Dick turned his eyes to the page open and started reading. It was a section about siblings, discussing the difficulties middle children often faced and the feelings younger siblings had for their older siblings as they tried to live up to standard the first child set. After a half hour, Dick shut the book with a tired sigh, promising himself as he climbed into bed that if ever Bruce adopted another child, he'd never let the kid feel like that.