Disclaimer: We own nothing Batman or Batman Beyond. Also, I co-wrote this with my friend, Mike, so it isn't completely my brainchild. Weoriginally intended tofilm it. Please review, so we know whether it's a worthwhile idea! Thanks!

Batman Beyond: Last Laugh

Maniacal laughter as the clown's hands clasped about his throat. He was speaking. Rambling about his victory as he had Batman pinned to the floor. In all honesty, Batman didn't care what he was saying, his eyes were locked on the pale neck before him. His mind focused on ending this, as he stretched his hands for something just outside of his reach…

A little further…

Just a little more…

Got it.

He tuned in just in time to see Joker get into his face, demanding, "Laugh!"

And Batman managed a small smirk as his hand shot up to the Joker's neck.

"Ha… ha…"

It was over in moments, as the overelectrified joybuzzer destroyed the monster's DNA. The form shifted, and a heavyset man slumped forward unconscious. Tim Drake had returned. The Joker was dead.

Gotham City—1 year later

The streets were dark and silent with the exception of a small commotion a short distance away, just within the shadows of the huge Gotham Bank. Two clowns bickered, their argument betraying the fact that their grinning masks were not expressing their true emotions.

The clown in pastels, taller and heavier than his accomplice, glanced back at the bank before turning toward his partner. "Okay, Smiles, let me get this straight: We blow up the bank and then take the money?"

Even wearing the mask, the shorter, more gothic clown, Smiles, had the look of someone who wanted to kill his partner. Preferably in the slowest and most painful method possible. "Okay, Buttercup," he said through gritted teeth, "I'm gonna say this really slow so you get it this time. Then I'm gonna shoot you if you talk to me again, got it?"

Buttercup said nothing for a moment, looking at the bank again, and back at Smiles. "What?"

"Think about it doofus, how are we gonna take the cash if it's blown up?! We take the money, then blow the bank up."

A long dark figure made up like a skeleton with a trench coat and a cane, stepped out of the shadows, breaking up the argument. Both clowns staggered backwards.

"Z-zabo!" Smiles stuttered.

"Boss!"

Zabo glared between the two men before him. "You two quit your bickering. It doesn't take a genius to level a bank. Remember, we're just doing this to keep Batman busy while the girl does her thing."

Batcave

It had been a long night. A long boring night. Bruce sat in front of the supercomputer deep within the batcave, the flickering light from the monitor was the only thing illuminating his face. He'd been monitoring the city with his protégé for the past half hour, knowing full well that if things didn't pick up, Terry would be checking in soon. As if on cue, a familiar teenage voice crackled through the speakers.

"Hey, Bruce, you there?"

The old man smirked… So predictable. "Yes…"

"It's dead tonight. I think I'm gonna patrol for one more hour, then I'm gonna hit the sack. I have a math exam tomorrow anyway…"

"Fine," Bruce replied shortly. "Don't forget to check in."

"You got it. Later." Terry didn't notice the irritation in Bruce's voice. Or at very least, he was intelligent enough to pretend he hadn't. Bruce sighed. It wasn't Terry's fault he had school. But it was sometimes difficult for Bruce to remember that… even on a night as slow as tonight.

Bruce was interrupted from his thoughts by a low knock on the front door. He could barely hear its hollow echo this deep within the caves. Bruce slowly got up, grabbing his cane from where it rested against the computer. Scowling, he let it support him. Honestly, he hated the thing. Made him feel old.

Slowly, he made his way up the long staircase, swearing softly to himself as he went. The stairs had seemed like such a great idea when he'd set the cave up. An elevator would have been a nice touch, too. He snorted. God, he was in a pleasant mood tonight.

Downtown Gotham

The explosion could be heard for miles as the bank went up in smoke and flames. Three Jokerz stood in front of the bank, loading their guns, their pockets full of creds. The bat signal flared against the smoke in the sky, fighting the flames for precedence.

The Jokerz stood warily looking around. This wasn't their usual scene. It had always been "grab the creds and run" in the past. But rules were rules, and they'd been told to stand and fight.

They didn't have to wait long. Moments later, a dark shadow flew through the signal directly at the trio. Zabo and Smiles dove to the ground, shooting as they rolled back to their feet. Buttercup, unable to decide which direction to follow, was plowed down by the Bat.

Batman smirked. One down. Two to go. Good thing the suit was bulletproof.

Just as he was about to go into action, an unmarked police car squealed onto the scene, and an undercover cop jumped out, pointing his gun at everyone. The young detective glared at them, sending a special scowl directly at Batman.

Batman winced. Deveroux. Shit. This guy was worse to deal with than the Commissioner on a very bad day.

"Freeze, assholes!" Deveroux snapped. He glanced back at Batman, who was taking a step toward the detective. Deveroux's gun shifted slightly to include the dark knight. "That means you too, batboy," he growled.

Wayne Manor

Damn stairs. Bruce had finally made his way up and was trying to ignore his Ace's angry barks as he slowly walked to the door. The knocking had unsurprisingly stopped awhile ago, but just in case, Bruce continued to the entranceway, a quick glance at the security cameras showed no intruder.

But there was something on the doorstep.

He stopped and looked back at the screen. It was small and rectangular. He tried to zoom the camera in, but still couldn't make it out. Probably some garbage from one philanthropy or another. Certain that no one was in the vicinity at least, Bruce finally walked to the door and opened it, looking down at the porch. There was a single small package waiting for him.

Bruce bent down to check the package. It was only then that he noticed the playing card attached.

"Joker..."

Downtown Gotham

The second explosion rocked the city, putting the first to shame. Deveroux and Batman were momentarily startled by the explosion, and the fight halted.

The Jokerz took advantage of the distraction, hopping onto their motorcycles and taking off down the street.

"Shit! They're getting away!" Deveroux leapt into his car and squealed off down the street after them.

Batman, meanwhile was still staring in the direction of the explosion… the direction of Wayne Manor. It can't be… He took off into the air, touching his earpiece. I've gotta just make contact with him. Probably a coincidence. There's a couple of other banks in between here and the manor.

"Wayne? You there, Wayne?"

No answer. Just static.

"Wayne! Damn it! Answer me!"

Still nothing. This wasn't good. He was already past all of the likely sources of the explosion.

A flicker of orange glimmered off the mask as Batman neared the edge of the city. The sound of sirens wailed in the distance.

"No," he whispered. "God, no."

Wayne Manor, or what was left of it, was up in flames.

Author's Note: I'm really sorry if this comes out sounding weak or shoddy. It was originally written as a script and I'm having a HECK of a time turning it into prose. Please bear with me. Let me know what you think. There are original characters in her (like Deveroux) and we did work hard on developing them and this storyline. I'd love to know what you think of it. So thanks for reading. Please please please review!

Sirius