This is a fan-fiction based off of Warner Brothers and DC Comic's "Batman" Any references to places or people from "Batman" included are under their copyright. WhipLash, Ruby Haly and any other side characters are of my own creation and not to be used without my permission. This fan-fiction is my interpretation of Gotham and its inhabitants from a grand mixing of the original comics, early animated series, television shows and movies.
Chapter One – The Punch Line
I rose slowly into a sitting position on my bed, my ears perking up at the feint sound that they'd caught. Somewhere in the building something was moving and the sound had woken me. I slid my hand under the clean white pillow and wrapped my fingers around the handle of the object that was always nearby. My other hand soon followed suit and I got to my feet.
For a moment I stood on the cold cement floor listening to the night air. What was usually a quiet calm was anything but that at this moment. Sounds of voices and things being dragged across the cement that coated every inch of the abandoned chemical plant filled my ears. It rebounded off of the walls and floors echoing a hundred times before reaching me. Yet with as far off as the noisemakers were I knew that they were going to be nothing but trouble.
My arms straightened and I cracked the two whips I now held in my hands, sending the thin wire in graceful arcs as they snapped and flexed now free from the confines of the coils that they'd rested in beneath my pillow. Whoever had woken me from my sleep wasn't going to be making noise for long.
I strode across my room without bothering to get dressed. By the time I was done with them what I was wearing wouldn't matter. All they'd be seeing was red.
A little grimace played across my lips as I pushed from my small concrete room and walked down the dark empty hallways. There was only one type of person who would bother coming to an abandoned building so late at night, or more appropriately early in the morning, and that was my favorite type; people who needed to hide.
I knew very well that there were various reasons that people would feel the need to hide, being one of such people myself that is.
The cold cement floors didn't bother me as I strode across them with my bare feet. I was tired and, having been woken, was now in too irritable of a mood to care about the little details. The two whips I carried danced through the air as I moved my wrists in small fluid movements allowing them to come into contact with nothing. Though I knew that whatever oafs were making suck a ruckus couldn't very well hear me I was still as quiet as I could possibly be as I turned the corner and pulled open the heavy metal door.
The lower I made my way down the stairs the louder the talking got. No longer faint echoes I could make out the voices of numerous gruff male. I had no doubt that of course they were the biggest and dumbest men that Gotham City had to offer. It seemed, more often than not, that these were the type of crooks who found their way to my little sanctuary. I'd hidden myself away in the confines of the thick cement walls for the very reason that normal people didn't find their way here.
With one last jerk of the wrist I sent my whips curling back up in my hands and lovingly ran my thumbs over the sleek black button that rested on each handle. I reached out and twisted the large cold handle of the stairwell door and gave it a huge heave. The door slowly swung open and I placed my hands, that so firmly held my whips, behind my back. A small innocent smile crossed my face as I stepped into the large room, my short nightgown brushing over my thighs with every step.
My blue eyes darted around the room surveying the men who all were too preoccupied with either the large boxes they were moving in or each other. I stopped a few steps into the room, my small pale feet absorbing the cold of the damp cement floor as I waited. A gush of air worked past my back and my long blonde hair blew forward over my shoulders just as the door swung shut with a loud clang. It echoed through the air, rebounding off of the walls and sure enough I now had attention of the audience of motley men.
"Look what we have here," one of the men nearer me breathed as his eyes hungrily searched me. I hid the irritation from my face as I watched all of the men tense up. You throw one attractive girl in a nightie into a room of mindless thugs and next thing you know they can't pay attention to the work at hand.
A man with shaggy blonde hair and a cleft lip stepped forward, sneering at his companion. My eyes scanned his body quickly assessing what type of a threat he posed for me. Though he was well built that meant little. Rather, my eyes drifted over the various scars that riddled the skin I could make out with the tight white wifebeater and tan cargo pants he wore. This could mean one of two things; either he could take a hit and keep on going or he's just bad at dodging attacks. Either way it wasn't particularly important.
He smirked at me the moment my eyes left his body and met his. "Looks like she's dressed for bed," one of the other men commented as though I couldn't very well hear.
"Where do you think you're headed?" the blonde who was stepping up to me asked, crowbar still in hand.
I gave a small little smile and quirked my head as I eyed the way he held the crowbar in such a relaxed manner. He obviously didn't find me a threat. "I'm already here," I said lightly and once more raised my eyes to meet his.
The blondie scanned me up and down taking in my innocent stance as I stood one foot slightly in front of the other, legs barely crossed, hands still behind my back and an innocent expression on my face. "Is that so?"
"Yup," I gave a little nod and batted my eye lashes at him.
"What are you doing in this neck of woods at this time of night?" one of the men asked and my eyes wandered over towards his brown ones. "Don't you know it's dangerous for a pretty little thing like you?" he questioned, setting down the large box that he'd been lifting a moment ago.
The blonde man shushed him, obviously not pleased my attention was no longer on him. "Shut up James, we're perfectly harmless."
My eyes wandered back to his and I gave a little nod. "Yeah, we're all harmless here," I agreed. I took a little step forward and eyed as much of the room as I could see. To my count there were only seven men, all near boxes and holding something or another in their meaty paws. Only one held a gun but he stood near the far door and much too far for me to reach without the others noticing what I held behind my back.
"A little vixen like you?" the shaggy blonde haired man asked with a smirk. "Harmless maybe, but fun; definitely."
One of the other men cleared their throats and butted in with, "I think we should bring her to the boss."
"No," the blonde man said, still eyeing me up and down. "Do you think that'd do any of us any good?"
I pursed my lips trying to contain my annoyance. Seeing the boss was exactly what I wanted to do. "We did find her first," another added in gruffly.
"Haven't you ever heard caring is sharing?" I asked sweetly, once more batting my eyes. "I came all the way here and now you're going to be impolite and greedy?" With a mischievous giggle I took another step forwards, the blonde man and I just a few feet away now. "There's plenty of me to go around."
"What are you doing here?" the brown eyed man asked, steering the conversation as he too stepped forth, his hulking figure blocking my view of the man with the gun.
Growing tired of the lack of data I was collecting I stepped slowly forward with each step rolling my hips to keep their eyes on my fair skinned smooth legs and off of the fact I still had my hands behind my back. "Well," I started in a little voice as a smile played across my face, "I'm here because this is my house."
"You live here?" one of the men asked in a laugh of disbelief.
I turned to give him a toothy grin. "Unfortunately yes, and I'm not the type to accept roommates."
With that said I brought my arms outwards, freeing the whips from the coils they'd been wound in. In a smooth fluid movement I brought my right whip upwards, swinging it slowly around. The blonde shaggy haired man eyed it as he moved to raise his crowbar stumbling back a surprised step. A giggle escaped my lips as I jerked my right whip quick as a flash, wrapping the tip of it around the crowbar and yanking violently.
The metal piece flew through the air, crashing against the wall as shouts of surprise rang out from the men. I didn't waste a second as my whips zipped through the air dancing around me as I brought them forcefully against the side of the blonde man's face. Instantly he screamed out in pain, the thick metallic cord of my whip shattering his cheekbone on contact. The force of the blow reverberated up my arm and I let out a gleeful laugh as I rolled into a cartwheel, narrowly missing a tape roll that had been flung towards me.
"Get her!" someone bellowed as the blonde man lunged for me his face contorted in pain. Giggles ran over my lips at his pathetic attempts and once more my whips sung through the air with a beautiful whistle as they closed in on his approaching form. The dark cords snapped against his skin as the tips contacted with his soft flesh. Instantly they broke through and a beautiful red began to line all of the little splits I was making across his chest as I let the whips tease at his skin.
His screams rang through the air and I smirked in pleasure before pulling my right arm back in a graceful arch. I let free all the tension of being woken in that forceful pull as I brought the beautiful whip forward towards his slumping form. It contacted marvelously with his skull, hitting between the eyes then wrapping wonderfully back over the length of his skull until the tip came to rest at the base of his neck. My arm drew backwards and the black cord freed itself from his head, flying back from him as he slumped to his knees.
Satisfaction flooded my veins as his eyes froze wide open. A small trickle of blood made its way through his blonde hair, matting it down before finally rolling down between his eyes. There wasn't any time to savor this simple little drip for gravity took its toll and he fell forward, his head colliding with the cement with a sickening crack. I raised my eyes from his fallen form just in time to see a hammer soaring through the air towards me. Once more my darling little whips sung threw the air. The left one snapped around the hammer and knocked it off of its intended course.
Three of the men lunged for me, crowbars in hands. I ran forward, setting my hand firmly on a box as I narrowly dodged a swing from a man clad in black slacks. With a push of my legs I sent my body upwards lunging over the box. I hit the ground, pulling my knees up to my chest as I rolled to soften the impact. From the corner of my eye I caught movement and quickly rose to a crouching position. Metal clanged loudly on the floor as a crowbar zoomed past and hit the cement where I'd been only moments before.
I sprung up and leaped, bounding through the air with a great push of my legs, before landing atop one of the large wooden crates they'd been moving in so loudly. "Listen," a voice came out, unusually calm, and I turned to see who'd spoken as I peered down at the four men who surrounded the crate I stood on. "We can reach some sort of agreement," the brown eyed man from earlier finished.
"Hmm," I muttered as I pretended to think. Seeing as the blonde man lay undeniably dead but a few yards away, the lack of remorse on the remaining men's faces told me all I needed to know. These were hired men and whoever their boss was hadn't been their boss for long. "What type of an agreement?"
"If you get out now we won't ever mention you being here."
Being the annoyingly confident woman that I was a smirk played across my pink lips as I observed the five men who surrounded me. "Now normally I may take such a generous offer-"I started and stepped forward, my toes hanging off of the edge of the wooden crate as I stood on the edge, "but you see you're the ones encroaching on my territory."
To my surprise he looked up at me as though worried. "Where in here do you live?"
With a little spring I hopped down from the crate and eyed the men. "I can't very well tell you the specifics," I said lightly, my whips coiling up in my hands as I debated what move to make next.
"James, I still say we should take her to the boss," one of the thugs from earlier said his beady eyes locking in on mine.
I could hear the disgruntled groan of the man James. "You go ahead and try," he said and I made note of the fact the brown eyed man was indeed James.
"Yes, please do," I agreed and leaned casually up against the crate.
"Fuck this," the man in black spat shoving aside another as he stepped to me.
Once more a laugh left my lips as I unwound my whips in the air sending the man named James backing up already keen enough to know what was coming. The metallic cord of my whips tore through the air meeting the flesh of the idiot who'd lunged for me. Everything jolted into action and I found myself dropping into a side splits to avoid the metal weapons being swung at me.
Flashes of the red painted metal crowbars and the jet black of my whips filled the air as I dodged and darted around all across the place. My beloved whips whizzing through the air with every flick of my wrist. The metallic cables of my whips piercing skin with every lash against the mens' skin, sending blood through the air. It splattered against the baby blue nightgown I wore in cool little sprays across my fair skin.
As the third body fell I found my eyes hungrily searching for the next, stepping over the body of the blonde man from earlier as I looked around for him. A blur moved behind me and I spun to face him a smirk on my face. "I don't hit girls," he insisted lamely, holding his large worn hands up in the air.
I cocked my head to the side, my golden blonde curls cascading across my breasts. "Well that's too bad-" I teased him with a little smirk, "because I just love to hit boys."
My whip soared through the air connecting with the side of his neck with such great force that it began to cut the skin even before the tail of the whip wound itself around his throat. It constricted tightly with every coil it made until the very tip pierced against the man's chin with a chilling snap. Instantly he fell to his knees, his hands darting up to the coils of deep metal that cut into the flesh of his neck. My eyes lit joyfully as he opened his mouth and a great cough of blood splattered across my chest as I stood before him a grin on my beautiful face.
I watched his eyes lock on mine, his mouth opening and closing as though trying to say something to me. But no words came out, only great sputters of saliva mixed with blood that ran over his split bleeding lip and flushed onto my whip that rested so comfortably around his neck. A little sigh escaped my lips as I realized that this was going to take much too long if I waited for him to choke to death. I still had James to find after all.
So my thumb itched towards the button on my latex rubber handle that I grasped. Once more the man coughed on his words and I gave him a smile as I cracked my free whip against the cement floor beside him before it came coiling back up in my grasp. My eyes darted from his to quickly scan the floor and, once pleased at the surroundings, I pressed down on the button.
In a matter of seconds a loud crackle rippled down through the cable of my whip. Electricity rushed through it and into the man's body. His eyes shot wide as his body jerked under the current. A little twisted smile came to my lips as they inched upwards. As tempted as I was to laugh I didn't want it to be the last thing he'd hear when he died; even I wasn't that cruel.
My thumb rose off of the button stopping the flush of electricity and the man's body fell to the ground with a loud thump. I gave a great yank on my whip, twisting my wrist as I did so, and it unworked itself from his neck. Just as I turned my eyes to search where the one named James and the man with the gun had gone to, who I'd only just realized I had lost track of, an unsettling sound filled the air.
Laughter flooded my ear drums as it rebounded off the walls. It echoed and bounced around the air multiplying the volume of it threefold. Crude and high pitched in an off tone it rolled about in great waves. Every nerve in my body pricked uncomfortably at this eerie sound. This was no normal laughter; it was the laughter of madman. Great roars of it came from every angle closing in on me as I froze like a deer caught in the headlights.
I flicked my wrists to bring my right hand whip back up to rest in a coil in my hand as I turned my eyes slowly to the right letting a deep breath escape my lungs. It was all I could do. I was well aware of the fact that, even with as skilled as my background in the circus had made me, there was no avoiding the man who now laughed so profusely.
My eyes instantly locked with his green ones that were lit up with laughter. For a few moments more he laughed, his crude voice diving into my ears and burrowing into my mind. It was a laugh I knew I'd never forget, a laugh no one could ever forget. His laughter came to a sudden halt, his red lips contorted in an upwards smile even as he said, "Quite a show you put on-nah. You cheezed me off by messing in my affairs. Normally, I eviscerate people for tha-tah."
The rubber latex handles of my whips collected small amounts of moisture as my palms began to sweat. Had it not been for the treaded grips they would have surely slipped from my grasp. "I'd say I'm sorry-" I said my voice coming out much smugger than I'd intended it to, "but I'm not one to lie."
Of all of the thugs and crooks in Gotham City to have woken me this grim night I'd never expected in a million years that The Joker himself would be the one behind it. I knew that I'd dug myself into a hole I'd never crawl out of and so I stared straight into his glistening eyes. Apparently my remark amused him for once more his laughter filled the air, his head tilted back as it broke free from his painfully red lips.
Unable to stand the sight of him my eyes instead took in the three men that stood a step behind him, all toting guns and all looking at me as though I'd caused them much more trouble than I was undoubtedly worth. Could I take back having ever come down to rid my house of the vermin I most definitely would. But, as the men gripped onto their firearms with daggers coming from their eyes, I knew then that it was much too late. I could only dodge bullets for so long. My only hope was that I could upset The Joker into a quick death at the hands of these idiot's weapons.
It wasn't until The Joker spoke that I realized he'd stopped laughing, for his laughter had seeped into every pore of my body by then. "Well-lah, aren't you a little Catwoman wannabe?" he asked his tone ear gratingly harsh yet a smile still stuck on his face. My teeth gritted in response and if it weren't for his eyes lighting up in amusement I wouldn't have been able to tell his forced twisted smile from when he actually was smiling. "A little less feline and a little more dominatrix I will admit."
There wasn't much I could say in response to that. As much as I wanted to anger him so as to earn a bullet to the brain and avoid any cruel means of death he may otherwise take I wasn't keen on rushing my death along too quickly. Yet being compared to Catwoman was enough to make my blood boil. "She may wield one-" I said looking down to my darling whips, "but only I can make them play."
The moment my eyes landed on the deep black material of the whips I held my face softened. They were my soul companions in my poor excuse of a life. Through everything I'd ever been through they'd never once done me wrong. Night and day they were always at my side, always ready for whatever I asked of them. Nothing and no one, not even The Joker, could insult my beloved, cold metallic cords of beauty. They'd been hand crafted by me the day I left the circus and I was as devoted to them as they were to me.
A short laugh came from him and I turned my eyes back to his sickly white face. I could tell now that he was clearly grinning for even his permanently hitched lips were glistening in amusement. "So what-tah is it that makes you tick my dear?" he asked, taking a step forward closing the thirty foot gap between us only the slightest bit. "What brings you to my-" he smiled, jutting his arms out to gesture to the large cement loading room full of wooden crates, "-humble abode?" Once more he stepped forward his dirty brown shoes thudding on the clammy cement floor. "Crime fighter? Thief? Vigilante?"
I opened up my mouth to respond but he snapped his purple gloved hand up to stop me. "No, no let me guess," his eyes scanned me slowly. They worked up from my barefeet, over the smooth fair skin of my exposed legs, up to where the baby blue mesh started halfway up my thigh, over my blood splattered body to finally rest on my face that lay half hidden in my golden curls that were matted here and there with the blood of the men I'd killed; his men. "An ex lover seeking revenge?" he teased me his green eyes landing on mine filled with obvious enjoyment.
"A cranky tenant," was my response.
He tilted his head, his dirty green hair falling in his eyes as he did so. "I don't-tah remember you signing a rent agreement."
"That would be because I was here before you," I responded flatly. I instantly regretted the words as one of the men behind him rose his gun to point at me without hesitation. My hands gripped tighter around the handles that were now damp with my sweat.
To my surprise it was The Joker who fired first. The man who my eyes had focused on fell to the floor as splotches of blood rose from his chest. I turned my eyes back to The Joker, not finding any need to mask my surprise. He grinned ruefully at me. "Guns, gotta love their distance," he said as he came to stop but a few feet in front of me. "Funny thing is. I much prefer a knife to a gun. It's hard to get precision from guns. I manage but it took some doing."
His green eyes rested on my whips. "You understand. I can tell," he commented as I noticed for the first time I was gently thumbing the metal of them when his eyes rose back to mine. "Few do."
For a moment we stood in a claustrophobic silence. Just his eyes alone could make the world seem like it was closing in on me. For the first time I realized I was holding my breath and I released it in a slow soft stream. From how cold and numb my body was becoming I wouldn't have been surprised if it had condensed into steam. The chilly cement floor I stood rooted in spot on had worked up my bare feet and into the rest of my nerves as well. Whether it was from the gleam in The Joker's eyes or the sudden coldness of the air I wasn't sure, but I shuddered nonetheless.
The Joker never broke eye contact as he titled his head and yelled over his shoulder, "Get moving!"
My eyes broke free from his to watch the two remaining men shuffle out through the door, their eyes darting to me before they disappeared. After a moment the big metal door swung open once more and one of the men pushed through it to hold it open for a pair of men who lugged in a heavy crate. For a moment they struggled to get it through the door at I watched, slightly amused as one of the men nearly stumbled over his own feet. The fact The Joker was watching me intently didn't escape me even as I turned and took a few steps towards him and to his right.
My right hand whip uncoiled instantly and cracked outwards. It lashed out and even though my eyes were still on the men who were lugging in a heavy wooden box I knew it hit its mark. The tip snapped up against the lever and the two inches of the tip that had contacted it wound twice around the metal to latch securely on. I jerked my wrist downwards and the lever came down with it pulled by my beautiful whip. A loud sound resounded through the air and I turned my eyes towards The Joker as he turned to look over his shoulder at the cause of the sound.
One of the large white painted doors rose up revealing a garage sized loading door, causing the men holding the box to look to it in surprise. They hadn't even considered finding a way to open the much more suitably sized door. His eyes lighted in amusement as they landed back on me, my whip coming back to a coil in my hand as I drew it back into my protective hold. "Nifty trick," he commented as a little laugh escaped his crimson lips.
I gave a little nod, my blonde curls bouncing as I did so. "You-" he said, pointing his gun at me in his lax grip, "already know who I am," he tapped the nuzzle of the gun up against his green vest a sparkle in his eyes, "but I find I know nothing of you." Once more he motioned towards me with the gun. He cocked his head to the side as his lips took on a smirk. "Not a very accommodating host-tah now, are you?"
"Ruby Haly." I answered simply, unsure why he'd even be asking.
"Ruby," he repeated with a laugh. "You don't look much-cha like a Ruby. More like-" his green eyes skimmed over me again, "-Shirley."
I gave a numb shrug, not bothering to get irritated at the fact he was making fun of my innocent appearance. Were it not for the blood that covered me and the whips in my hand I would most definitely not look like someone who had just killed five men and was now standing in once abandoned chemical plant talking to The Joker. I wasn't even sure why he was still standing around talking to me. "Well that's what they call me."
"Your mommy and daddy?" he asked with another roar of laughter.
The moment it died down I shook my head. "No."
His eyes narrowed on me suddenly, his mood changing in the blink of an eye. "Then who Ruby?" he demanded to know his hold on the gun no longer loose as he pointed it directly at my face.
"The circus named me that." I answered honestly.
"The circus."
I gave a nod my curls bouncing once more. "The Haly circus. It's where I got my name," I confirmed even though he hadn't meant it as a question. I wasn't even sure of what my real name was. I doubted if I'd ever had been given a name. As far back as I could remember I'd gone by the name of Ruby.
He laughed suddenly his face contorted with delight. "A circus act!" he bellowed into the air. For the second time that night his laughter filled the building. It bounced off the walls against me. In waves it grated into my ears stinging deep in my mind. Unnerving laughter that tempted me to swallow in apprehension; nothing good could ever come from the laughter of a mad man.
Once more his laughter ceased and his hold on the gun slackened. "Well, Ruby Haly-" he said my name slowly, letting it roll over his tongue as though testing out the sound of it, "I think it's time you give me the grand tour. Don't you?" He grinned madly and spread his arms, waving his gun around in the air as he motioned all around us. "After all, this is your home is it not?"
My eyes widened in surprise as I nodded. I opened my mouth to respond but found myself needing to pause and wet my lips with my tongue. "I suppose so," I stated dryly. I hadn't accounted for him to make such a request. Hell; I hadn't counted on being alive long enough to tell him my name. "Where do you want to start?" I asked when I realized I had no idea where to begin. How thorough of a tour did The Joker have in mind? It was a fairly large building after all.
Instantly the shine left his eyes and once more the gun was pointed towards me though his grip wasn't tight. "Ah-ta-ta," he said with a shake of his head, "you're the one giving the grand tour here not me Ruby."
Just my name leaving his lips was enough to make my hold on my whips tighten. "Right," I acknowledged and swallowed awkwardly. "You already found the loading docks," I said looking around the large room that more men were now bringing crates into, "so I guess I'll start with the-" I paused looking for the right word. It'd been quite some time since I'd spoken to anyone and my audience being an unpredictable insane criminal didn't help with my nerves. "the labs."
I turned to start leading him when the cocking of his gun stopped me dead in my tracks after my first step. "I'll take those little toys of yours."
I gritted my teeth and turned to stare into the muzzle of the gun he held now just a few inches from my face. It wasn't pointed between my eyes but rather at my mouth. "I won't do that," I stated brazenly clutching tighter onto my beautiful whips. Nothing would ever part me from them; nothing but death.
His beady green eyes narrowed as his lips turned into a noticeable scowl. "It wasn't a suggestion."
"It was never up for debate," I retorted firmly.
For a long moment we stood, me staring into his eyes and his gun staring at my light pink lips. Finally a laugh rang through the air as his hold on the gun slackened and he twirled it around on his finger. "You're quite-tah a barrel full of laughs Ruby."
I stared at him blankly unsure how to respond. This man was clearly insane. One moment he seemed as though he'd shoot me at point blank and the next he was laughing. The worst part was I didn't know which emotion to fear more; his irritation or his amusement.
"I'm waiting-ah," he finally hummed and stopped his twirling of the gun. He held it lax and waved it forth as though shooing me onwards.
Once more I turned my back to him and began my way across the cold cement floor. With every step I took he followed behind me, his footsteps causing soft thuds from his shoes. Now that he couldn't see my face I let a small wave of fear wash over my emotions. I was about to be alone with The Joker. For some reason this disheartened me more than anything had ever before in my life. If I was lucky then perhaps I could still pull out of this ordeal with a bullet in my brain and no need for him to pull out one of his knives. Even as a recluse living in an abandoned chemical plant I knew more than was good for my health about the man who walked behind me.
I pulled open the large metal door that I'd entered the damned room from and held it open for The Joker without a second thought. He walked past me, amusement playing on his face as I stopped with the heavy door against my back, propping it open. The Joker grinned brightly as he stuck both hands, gun included, into his deep purple jacket pockets and whistled a tune as he walked by me and through the door. Once he'd finished taking his sweet time walking through I followed into the stairwell behind him and let the door close behind us.
My eyes met his and I instantly rushed past him taking my position in front of him once again to lead him up the stairs. His whistling had stopped and the awkward silence made it all the more blaringly obvious how vulnerable I was being the lead. With my back to him he could strike at any moment and even with my trained eyes I was certain that he could move more swiftly than I. From what I'd heard of The Joker he had more than just insanity under his belt.
"This is just where the vats used to be held," I informed as we reached the first platform and dragged open the door. Once more I propped it open with my back for him. He stepped forward, peering inside. "All that is left is metal basins. None of the pipes work on this floor and I've already taken all the bulbs out to replace ones on other floors," I informed him awkwardly unsure of how much he wanted to know. I felt an odd obligation to give him as many facts as I could. Seeing as I'd be dead soon I may as well save him the annoyance of finding things out on his own.
His eyes scanned the room and he rocked back on his heels as a grin played across his face. "You've been here a while haven't you Ruby?" he asked in almost an accusing tone of voice.
"Yes," I replied with a simple nod. I stepped away from the door, placing my right hand that still held my whip in it against the heavy metal. "This is the only floor they bothered to clean out since it held all the chemicals. The other three floors will be of more interest to you."
The Joker stepped out of the doorway and I followed suit, letting the door close behind me. A moment passed in which his eyes locked on mine as though I was growing more amusing by the second and I quickly averted my attention to the task at hand. I started up the steps my barefeet numb from the cold of the cement. We reached the second landing and I looked down at the whip in my right hand. After a second I put my left hand out to signal The Joker to stand still. Surprisingly he obeyed and I stepped away from him.
With a flick of my wrist I let the whip free from its coil and it arched through the air. I raised my wrist to rest diagonally on my left shoulder causing the whip to coil over left shoulder, around the rightmost side of my waist then back up over my shoulder. I released the whip now that it rested securely across my chest. It lay diagonally across my body, sinking into the fabric between my bosoms as it nestled comfortably between them.
The Joker's unnerving laugh rang through the stairwell and I turned my blue eyes to his. For a long moment he laughed, his head tilted back to allow it full escape from his red lips. When it finally ceased his eyes flashed brightly as they stared into mine. "You're quite a class act Ruby."
Not sure on how to respond to this I stepped forward and pulled open the door with my now free right hand. "This floor is where the creating went on."
He stepped forward to look into the room and I stuck out my arm to hold open the door as my hand groped against the inside wall. My soft hand hands found what I was looking for and I flipped the switch upwards. Light filled the dark hallway and The Joker took a few steps through the doorway. I followed behind him letting the door close behind us. "These doors are locked," I informed him, stepping past him to lead down the hall. Each side was lined with large windows to show into the rooms. Though the lights in the rooms remained off the bright white of the hall bulbs illuminated them to some extent.
Obviously interested he stopped walking and gazed into one of the rooms. "Locks always have an easy fix," he stated with a grin as he drew his gun from his pocket and moved his arm upwards.
"Wait-" I stated, my arm sticking out in front of the door he was now aiming his gun at, "I have the keys back in my room."
His eyes turned to mine surprised at my interruption of his fun. Surprise glistened in his green eyes as he eyed me. "You've got the keys?"
I nodded firmly. "Yes, I have everything short of the blueprints to this place." As I said this he turned his eyes back to the large window and stepped up to it to peer through the dusty glass. "Leave it to the people of Gotham to not know how to properly abandon a place," I muttered as I too gazed into the room. It was full of test supplies laid out across the large metal lab table. "They must have been in a hurry to leave this place for it seems the only thing missing are the personnel and whatever chemicals were housed here."
"Gotham City. Always brings a smile to my face," he muttered his eyes lighting up as he took in the layout of the lab room he stood gazing into.
"Yeah, gotta love Gotham," I grumbled in agreement. I noticed him shoot me a sidelong glance, interest sparkling in his green eyes but ignored it as best as I could. When it came to The Joker I had a creeping feeling that catching his eye was what had gotten me in this situation in the first place. Once more I found my throat growing dry and I wetted my lips before asking, "Do you want to see the other floors? Once I give you the keys you can have more-" I stopped as I debated what word would properly fit what The Joker would do in testing rooms such as these. Would he destroy everything? "-fun here."
The Joker gave a mischievous smile that sent a chill up my spine. Nothing good was going to come from a smile like that. "Let's-sah continue the tour, shall we?"
I gave a little nod, my eyes catching on the dried blood in my blonde curls. It wouldn't matter soon anyways. I was sure that my beautiful hair and whips would soon be drenched in my favorite color; red. "This way," I said and turned to walk back out the way we came. Once more I held open the door for him. I turned off the lights behind us as the door closed with a loud clang. I started up the stairs knowing that there were only two floors left. In two more floors I'd most definitely be dead. This fact seemed to lift a small curtain of my worry. Surely he'd be too occupied with wanting to explore on his own to drag out killing me. Maybe an aptly placed bullet to the heart would be the death of me?
When we reached the next floor I stopped and grabbed the handle with both of my hands. "It sticks most times," I explained under my breath as I set my feet square on the ground and gave a grand yank. The door barely budged, the hinges creaking madly as though just thinking about moving pained them. "I'd meant to fix that," I added as I gave another huge pull, putting all of my body into it. The door finally pulled open the rest of the way and I stepped aside as I released it and it stayed stuck open. "It also won't open from the inside so never let it close behind you," I added as I picked up the wooden block I'd set just inside the room and set it against the doorjam so if the door did somehow loosen itself it couldn't close.
The amused expression on The Joker's inhumanely white face caused me to look away quickly, my eyes darting and nervous. "I'm not sure exactly what went on here," I breathed as I walked into the room and shut on the lights. With loud snaps the rows of light began to snap on. Large overhead lights hung from the ceiling and as I flipped three more switches they lit up the length of the long room. The pure white light only added to the awkwardness of the room that we now stood in.
The floor was white tiles that had gathered dust everywhere but the nearest right hand corner that I used. In even intervals on the floor were drain covers. Large metal grates that were disturbingly silver glistened in the light. I could feel him eyeing the room along with me. The walls were tiled as well with faucets and spray nozzles sticking from them. "I take it-tah the plumbing works?" he asked, eying the obvious lack of dust in the corner.
I gave a small nod. "Yes. The heaters don't work anymore but the pipes are still running," I confirmed. Our voices carried through the air rebounding off the walls and mixing together until it became a soft odd toned hum. We stood for a few moments just gazing at the disturbing room that lay before us. When I chanced a glance over towards The Joker I noticed how he rocked back and forth on his heels his eyes focused on the patch of floor that was clear from my usage. It was apparent that he was in thought and so I looked away from him and waited, my bare feet feeling awkward on the smooth ceramic tiles.
A few minutes passed and he seemed to snap from whatever train of thought he'd been having, his eyes landing on me. I turned already knowing what his look meant. "Right, moving on."
The Joker lead the way this time as he strode from the room, his hands now free from his jackets and swinging at his sides. I was keenly aware of the fact he loosely held his gun in his rightmost hand. I paused by the door to turn off the lights, flipping each of the switches one after another from left to right. The lights shut off row by row starting from the far wall and ending with the ones above where I now stood. I strode from the room, the odd feeling that always came when the room was dark washing through me. When I left the room The Joker stood waiting for me, leaning casually up against the stairs.
"Almost the end-dah of the tour then Ruby?" he asked his amusement apparent in his eerie grin.
I gave a small nod, running my fingers over the lovely metallic cable of the whip that was still coiled and clenched in my left hand. "Yes. One last floor."
I passed by him, aware of his eyes glinting dangerously as I started up the cement stairway not bothering to close the door of the floor we'd been on that was stuck open. There would be no need to exert the amount of energy it would take to do so when he'd more than likely be pulling open the door to wash himself of whatever blood would get on him when he, hopefully, shot me. With every step my lungs seemed to shrink and I had to let out a long slow breath to even out my breathing. I wouldn't prolong the moment any longer than was necessary.
As I followed behind him through the large metal door I had held open for him on the top floor I wet my lips yet again. "The office floor," I said as we stared down the length of hallway. It broke off here and there into more hallways but I didn't feel the need to lead him down each one. "There are restrooms at the north end of each branch of the hall. In a few of the larger offices there are private ones attached as well. Plumbing works fine. Again; no heated water."
He gave a nod, his dirty green hair shifting as he did so. I let out a slow breath and turned to face him. "That's the tour then," I said lamely. So as not to watch the gun in his hand I instead focused on his green eyes.
They lit up as he gave a disturbing smile. "Aren't-tah you forgetting something Ruby?"
I stared at him blankly for a moment processing his words. I'd shown him all of the floors like I rightfully should so that couldn't have been it. My mind worked slowly, too caught up on the fact I'd be dead soon. Finally his words dawned on me. "My room," I said with a slow nod as it became clear, "the keys."
"And we have a winner," he responded his teeth showing as he flashed me a toothy grin.
My curls bobbed as I nodded, surprised at my own lapse in thought. I didn't say a word as I gently thumbed my left hand whip and turned. With my feet thudding lightly on the cement I walked down the hall and towards my room at the end of it. "All the doors are locked except for my room and the ones leading to each floor," I said softly as I realized he'd need to know this. "The keys are numbered for the separate rooms so it's easy enough to sort through."
We entered my room at the end of the hall and I let out a slow breath as my eyes scanned what I'd considered my home for the past two years. It wasn't much but it was all I had. The room wasn't furnished in the least. All that it consisted of was a few cardboard boxes on one end that held my neatly folded and organized clothes, a simple metal framed bed like one you'd see out of a hospital and a table. The long metal table held my most prized possessions: all of the whips I'd had starting with the one I'd taken with me when I'd left the circus all those six years ago.
It was littered with materials, tools and various other doodads that came in handy when creating the final product of the whips I now yielded. The table was where I'd spend hours at just messing with all of the possible ways I could improve my beauties. The Joker seemed focused on this little display of my obsession as well for he asked, "So-uh how did your little circus act end up here-uh?"
"Batman," I muttered his name, gazing intently at the very whip from the night that he'd made me what I was now; a girl who stole for food, lived in an abandoned building, had no source of human interaction save for through criminal activities and who spent hours just playing with her whips day in and day out.
I became aware of The Joker's eyes boring into the side of my head as he now directed his attention towards me. "He decided that the Haly circus as I knew it was immoral. So he-" I took a deep breath my teeth clenching as I fought back the memories from that night that haunted me every so often, "-he decided to clean it up. I was one of the ones who were decidedly not fit to stay. A fifteen year old orphan who played with whips wasn't a commendable act for Gotham City's innocent civilians. "
Laughter filled the air but it didn't rightfully bother me. Even as it rung in my mind I continued to stare towards that very first whip. The whip that had made me the Ruby I was now. It had been my very first friend in the cruel Gotham streets. "That does rather-ruh sound like bat-breath," he finally got out as his lunatic laughter ceased.
I nodded in agreement and strode forward, snatching the ring of keys from the edge of the table. I turned and extended it towards him. "The large one works on any of the non private offices on this floor," I informed him as he extended his left purple gloved hand, the one his gun wasn't in, palm up towards me. I dropped the keyring into it with a jingle as they landed in his grasp. "You can use that for the third floor labs," I explained further as he stowed them in his jacket pocket, "it saves you having to go through the keys."
The Joker's eyes met mine as he shifted his gun from his right to left hand and pointed it loosely towards me. "Your-ruh toy," he breathed and motioned his gun in a 'give it here' fashion. I stared down at it blankly for a long moment. "Come now Ruby, you haven't-tah got all day."
If I was going to be dying by the hand of The Joker it would be poetically apropos if it was under the tip of my whip. I turned my blue eyes up to meet his as I extended forth my darling baby towards him. He gripped it in his purple gloved hand a smirk dancing across his twisted facial features. I released a breath and took a step back from him as I released my beautiful masterpiece.
The Joker let it unravel onto the ground before cracking it awkwardly against the cement floor. I watched with expecting eyes as he smacked it forward once more, pressing the button this time to let a current of electricity rush through it. It cracked against the concrete before he finally released the button giving a pleased laugh. One more he raised his arm and sent it recklessly downwards his swing neither graceful nor restrained. The metallic cord hit clumsily against the floor and rebounded upwards smacking into the underbelly of the table.
Obviously displeased The Joker ceased his swinging and shrugged as he waved his gun around and said, "I've always much preferred knives as my weapon of-fah choice-suh."
I nodded slowly. "Yes, I know," I responded softly for lack of anything else to say.
His green eyes scanned the room and he strode towards the door, pausing in the doorway with gun aimed on me. "Want-tah to know what I found so hilarious just a moment ago?" I responded with a numb nod feeling I had no other real choice but to play along with it. "Bat-breath's misconstrued ways took away a life-uh so to speak from me in a building like this one here," he motioned around the room with the gun still lax in his hold.
Our eyes locked and I couldn't help but lick my lips to wet them once again. "That does sound like him," I agreed.
At this The Joker's mouth contorted into a grin once more as he let out a great burst of laughter which he quickly quieted to continue speaking as it was obvious he hadn't finished yet. "Now-uh it seems that he's returning that lost life to me unbeknownst to him!" another round of laughter tore from his lips as he pointed the gun loosely in my direction. "Oh won't he be tickled pink-kah to see how his heroic actions have come full circle?"
All I could do was swallow awkwardly as The Joker flipped off the light switch with the muzzle of his gun sending me into the shadows. "A chemical plant-tah becoming the birthplace of his two most daring foes all at his own doing!" he cackled loudly and ceased suddenly his eyes meeting mine and flashing in glee. "Now how's that for a punchline?"
With that said he pulled closed my door and stepped from the room leaving me standing in the darkness a look of utter shock on my face. After the click of him locking me inside of the room sounded all I could hear was his laughter echoing off the walls growing ever softer as he walked through the once abandoned chemical plant that had now become the house for The Clown Prince of Gotham.