This is for Batjokes' multiple choice contest! I chose the Alternate Universe 'Children', so there it is, an UA where Bruce and Joker grew up together, and became best friends (or more than friends if you ask Joker XD)

Enjoy!

It was very warm outside, despite the small raindrops that fell on the emerald green grass. The sunset was gorgeous, similar to a big, round drop of blood staining the blue sky.

Joker wondered why he was the only person who seemed to take pleasure into looking at the many wonders that nature offered. Well, maybe he wasn't the only one on earth, but he knew nobody else who took time to admire the sunset like he did. His mother had long given up on life, spending all her time on the couch, watching TV as if it was the only thing that she was able to do.

Oh, wait.

She was also able to cry. Yes, she did cry. A lot. Especially when his always drunk father had some moment of lucidity and remembered that he had a wife that he could beat to spend time. Sometimes, he beat Joker as well. But the kid was strong, and he wouldn't cry. Instead, he would laugh, laugh, and laugh again. Not because it was funny – it wasn't funny at all – but because laughing always made him feel better. So he laughed.

Joker was not his real name, of course. That was the name he had given himself years ago. He hadn't shared it with anyone, that was his little secret. People would laugh at him if he'd tell anyone, and Joker really hated when the other children made fun of him, which happened a lot, unfortunately.

Because he was different.

To begin, he was rather small and skinny, and according to his classmates, boys with awkward bodies were funny. He failed to get this joke…

His hair was very messy, and the fact that he couldn't cut it because his parents were too poor to get him to the hairdresser didn't help. He wore his father's old clothes, which were far too large for his frail body. Besides, he was one of the smartest kids of the school, always getting the best grades despite the fact that he paid no attention to his teacher. No wonder why he was the target of mockeries.

But it didn't matter, because he had his laugh. His laugh was his closest friend, the only thing that would never let him down, the only thing he could trust. The other children were nothing, anyway. Just like his parents. Just like anyone else.

They were nothing. They couldn't understand him, they couldn't understand life like he could. He couldn't share this joke with them.

He sighed, and lay on the grass which tangled quickly with his hair. He giggled, thinking that it would be very funny if he actually had green hair. It would fit his eyes, and above all, it would make him appear even more like a weirdo. He would love that.

His mother called him to eat. He crossed and arms and pouted, begging his mother to let him play outside a bit more. He enjoyed fresh air and big space too much, and hated every single seconds that he spent locked in his house. He obeyed his mother nonetheless, knowing that his father would beat her hard – and him as well – if he didn't come.

Before entering his house, he looked at the sunset one last time.

He saw a tiny bat.

He smiled.

Bruce Wayne was missing at school today. The black-haired boy was usually sitting next to Joker in class. The two kids never really talked to each-other, mostly because he didn't matter more than the rest of his classmates in Joker's eyes. But at least, Bruce never made fun of him. He simply ignored him, and that made him the most bearable child of the class.

The teacher told the class that Bruce was missing because his parents had died the night before. The class made sounds of shock. Some of them cried. Even the teacher had tears in her clear blue eyes.

Joker giggled, because once again, he didn't know what else to do.

The teacher punished him, judging his behavior inappropriate. Joker laughed more, thinking that it was their behavior that was inappropriate. Hypocrite. As if they cared about Bruce. They were feeling sorry for him simply because that was what they were expected to be. They didn't care about Bruce's feelings.

Hahaha.

Days passed, and Bruce only went back to school a month after his parents' death. When he sat next to Joker, the latter could…feel that something was different in Bruce. True, the boy had never been particularly smiling and talkative, but he had never been that…dark. A shadow seemed to surround him, as if he had signed some kind of unknown pact with the devil. His used-to-be sparkling blue eyes were now as cold as ice, and his thick eyebrow were always frowning. He irradiated anger.

He must have been looking at him for too long because the black-haired boy suddenly turned his cold eyes at him.

It was the first time their eyes really met, and for a second, Joker thought that time must have stopped. He couldn't even describe what exactly he was feeling, but he was sure that he had never felt it before.

He giggled a bit awkwardly, which was completely uncharacteristic. He was always confident and full of himself.

Bruce laid his eyes on Joker's right arms, still bruised from the last time he 'talked' to his father. Then he looked at him in the eyes again, with a serious expression on his face.

"I'm sorry your father beats you." he said.

His voice, though emotionless, sounded sincere. Joker was sure it was the first time someone felt sorry for him.

"Well," he said. "I'm sorry your parents are dead."

And he truly was, now. He didn't even know why. Maybe because he felt the sudden urge to see Bruce smiling, to see him happy.

For the only person who managed to express a bit of concern towards him deserved to be happy…

Bruce had not say a word after that small exchange, which had made Joker uncomfortable. Strange, considering the fact that they had never shared a word before and that it had never bothered him. Only know, Bruce did exist in Joker world. He wasn't an insignificant onlooker anymore. Now, he was part of his life.

Joker rushed toward the small hill that overlooked his even smaller house. He always went there after school: lying on the grass and feeling the fresh air running through his hair allowed him a feeling of freedom that he couldn't experience anywhere else, and God knew he loved freedom.

He really didn't expect Bruce to be already sitting on the grass, facing the rising moon.

"Hey." Joker said, sitting next to him. "You know that this is my spot, right? If it wouldn't be you, you would have been dead by now, he he!"

He liked speaking as if he was psychopathic killer; it gave him a feeling of security, somehow. Maybe in another life, he killed people by dozens?

Bruce grinned slightly.

"I had never noticed this place before." he said. "It's peaceful."

"It gives you the feeling you can escape your problems, am I right?" he giggled.

Bruce turned to face him, and after a short moment of silence, he nodded.

"You're smarter than any adults who tried to comfort me," he snickered.

"Oh, it's not about being smart, it's about…understanding. Seeing the obvious. Most people fail to see the obvious. For example, have you ever noticed there was a bunny on the moon?"

Bruce frowned, before looking attentively at the moon. After a little while, his eyes finally opened wide, and a small, barely audible laugh escaped from his lips.

"You're right!" he exclaimed. "My God…I've never noticed that!"

Joker felt his heart beat faster while hearing Bruce's laugh. He was probably getting excited by the fact that someone finally saw life like he did.

"Bruce?"

"Yes?"

"Can you call me Joker, from now on?"

Joker licked his lips, a habit that he had every time he felt nervous. He feared that Bruce might not understand, that he might mock him, that he might-

"Ok."

Joker blinked.

"Really?"

"Sure, why not. 'Joker' fits you better, anyway."

"Oh, goodie!" he smiled.

He was about to ask him if he wanted any nickname as well, but he was interrupted by his mother who called him for dinner. He rolled his eyes and gave an apologetic smile at Bruce.

"See you tomorrow at school," Bruce said.

"Yeah. See ya!"

He licked his lips again, not knowing if he should shake Bruce's hand like adults did or if he should simply wave at him. He finally decided to not do a thing, and with a last glance at Bruce, he went back home.

"Mom?"

Joker's mother barely looked at her son, still watching some stupid series on TV without paying attention to anything else.

"Mom?" Joker insisted.

"What…?" she sighed tiredly.

"How…How do you know when you're in love?"

A lot of things happened since the day Bruce first talked to him in class. Bruce and Joker now spent a lot of time together, from early on the morning to late evening where they would admire the sunset together. Joker couldn't deny the way Bruce made him feel, the way his heart beat when he was near to him, the way he would smile stupidly every time he managed to make him laugh. He had seen this kind of things in movies, and he knew what it meant. But in movies, it was always between a girl and a boy. Not two boys. Was it even possible? He felt that he would like Bruce even if he had been a girl, he would like him just as well, so was it a problem if they were two boys? Could he be in love with him, even despite the fact that he was not a girl?

His mother turned her glassy eyes towards her son. There was not a single expression on her face.

"I'm afraid that…I don't know anymore." she whispered.

Then Joker left.

He couldn't bear to see his mother cry…

The day after, at school, Joker became sure that he was in love with Bruce. He knew it the moment he saw the disgustingly pretty Selina Kyle prancing around the classroom with her mother's lipstick on her lips, flirting with Bruce. Selina was that kind of ten years old girl that wore make up, dressed-up like a sixteen-years old, and who probably put socks in her bra to make her flat chest bigger. Joker had never liked her, but now that she was putting her dark red lipstick all over Bruce's cheek, he hated her. He wanted Bruce to be only his, not this…this…what word do adults used to describe this kind of girl, again? Oh, he was pretty sure it was one of those funny words he was not allowed to say. Heh, never mind. That was in those sort of situations that he wished he was an actual psychopathic killer. How he'd want to stab her in her grotesquely big chest! Bruce was his toy, and he was not the type to share!

He spent his day fulminating on his chair. Every time he laid his eyes on the lipstick mark that stained Bruce's cheek, he could feel his blood boiling in his vein. Bruce obviously noticed that his classmate was angry, but he also knew that it wasn't a good idea to talk to him right now. So none of them spoke a word, just like they did back when Bruce's parents were still alive.

When class was over, Joker rushed to his house, then to the bathroom. He frantically searched for his mother lipstick in her bag. When he found it, he applied a large amount of it on his lips.

There, he was way prettier than Selina. He had more lipstick than her. It was a brighter shade of red then hers. He would leave a bigger mark on Bruce's cheek.

"Son?"

Joker jumped while hearing his father's voice. He dropped the lipstick, and turned towards him, with a spark of defiance

"What the…." his father said, in a low, dangerous tone. "Is that lipstick on your lips?"

He bit his lip.

"I…" he cleared his throat, trying to sound more confident. "I want to be pretty for Bruce…"

He saw his father's teeth tighten, and he stood proudly, waiting for his fist to make contact with his body. But nothing came.

Then his father took a knife from his pocket.

"Dad what are you…" Joker said.

"I won't tolerate my own son to be a freak," he explained calmly.

"Dad…"

"I knew you were a mistake from the day you were born."

He moved closer to Joker. The child took a few steps back, but he soon found himself trapped by the sink. All he could do was to keep his eyes fixated on his father's knife.

"How dare you say I'm a freak, when you can't even spend an hour without getting drunk?" he spat.

His father grinned and lifted him by his large collar.

"You have always been too talkative," he said. "The first thing I'll do to you will be to cut that unbearable mouth of yours."

"If loving Bruce makes me a freak, then I'm a freak!" he shouted. "and I'll always be proud to be one! Kill me if you want, but you'll never be able to change the fact that you gave birth to a freak!"

"SHUT UP!"

He raised his knife above his head. Joker closed his eyes, waiting for the blade to penetrate his skin, but instead, he only heard a very noisy 'BAM!'.

He opened his eyes, only to find his father lying unconscious on the floor.

And behind him, with a heavy wooden plank in his hand, there was Bruce.

"Joker, are you ok?" he asked, a look of concern in his piercing blue eyes.

"Bruce…My hero! How did you…"

"Your mother. She saw your father coming at you with a knife. I was at your door, then – I felt bad having angered you at school – and she ran towards me, begging me to help you…"

Joker smiled weakly.

"Hehe. I guess she does care for me a bit, after all."

He raised his green eyes at Bruce.

"Thank you," he whispered.

"You don't have to thank me. I just can't lose you. I… I'd die, if I'd lose anyone else who's dear to me."

"Heh. Hehehehehehe….HAHAHAHAHA!"

"Why are you laughing?" Bruce said, "I was really scared for you!"

"Oh, I'm sorry hehehehe! I can't help it! I don't know what else to do! Hahahaha!"

Bruce let Joker laugh for a while, then he asked, raising an eyebrow:

"Is that lipstick on your lips?"

Joker stopped laughing.

"Yes, why?" he said, his eyes suddenly menacing. "You don't like it? You find me disgusting, just like my father does?"

"Not at all. You look pretty."

Once again, Joker's mood swung so fast it was almost scary.

"Ow, reallyyyyyy?" he squealed, batting his long eyelashes.

"Hum, yes."

"Do I look prettier than Selina?"

"I don't know, I can't compare, she's a girl…"

Joker felt his heart drop in his chest. He pouted, and eventually asked:

"…Do you like her better than me, Bruce?"

"Of course not, you're my best friend!"

Joker tried to not look disappointed by the fact that Bruce only considered him as a friend. He smiled widely at him, as if it was exactly what he had wanted him to say. Bruce returned his smile and then he extended his hand at him.

"Wanna come?" he said. "We still have a sunset to see. Have you noticed the sky almost looks purple during twilight?"

"I haven't, actually", he smiled. " I always thought it was blue. But if what you say is true, I'm sure purple will become my new favorite color."

He took Bruce's hand and tried not to blush. Obviously, his friend wasn't ready to accept his feelings. But he could wait. Someday, he would make him notice, just like he made him notice how beautiful the sunset was.

There were only children after all.

:D