A/N: If you guys have read The Evolution of Batman and Robin, then this is the same chapter. At the time writing it for Batman and Robin felt right, but this is definitely a Batgirl story, hence why it is also going on here. If you have read the other story, no need to read this chapter, but if you want to, I'm not going to stop you.
"Barbara, cut the crap, I know you're Batgirl, and you can't do it anymore. It's dangerous."
"You're just saying that because Robin died." Barbara counters. "It's always been dangerous. You've known for awhile that I'm Batgirl, but you only want me to quit now."
"That maniac is still out there." Gordon says, signaling this by waving his hand in the air. He continues pacing back and forth.
"Yes, and Batman need as much help as possible, trying to find him. Don't worry dad, I'm not inexperienced. I've been doing this for years." Barbara tells him.
"I know," Gordon says putting his hand on his daughter's shoulder, "but I worry."
"I know that, but I worried about you coming home since I was five, the first time you ended up in the hospital."
Gordon looks at her, "Damn, you know I would argue, but you would just continue proving me wrong." He gives her a warm embrace. "Just be careful, ok Barb?"
"Always," she replies with a warm smile.
Gordon looks down at his watch, "I really got to be going. Thanks for dinner Barb. And thanks for giving me a new perspective." He walks towards the door and unlocks it. He turns the knob and opens it to a cold grin and a tropical shirt. Barbara runs and dives tackling her dad out of the way, as the Joked fires a shot.
The bullet tears through Barbara's abdomen, severing her spinal cord. She lies on the cold floor, bleeding. "Well, well, well. I was going for the commissioner, though shooting his daughter works just as well. Doesn't it Jimbo?" Gordon grabs a vase and swings at the Joker knocking him over. He begins hitting him over and over again. But two of the men that came with Joker pull him off.
"Where'd you learn your manners? Don't you know not to attack a guest? HAHAHAHAHA!"
"Tell your goons to let go of me you maniacal bastard! C'mon face me like a man!" Gordon shouts at him. Unbeknownst to the Joker, Gordon has pressed a button in his jacket that calls Batman.
Bruce is in the Batcave when he sees a message flash across the Batcomputer. "Sir, what is it?"
"Gordon's emergency way of contacting me." Bruce puts on his cowl and jumps into the Batmobile. "Alfred send me the coordinates of the distress call." Alfred nods and begins typing away.
As Batman pulls out of the Batcave, Alfred calls him on the com. "Alfred, what are the coordinates?"
"I don't think you'll need the coordinates to get there, it's Miss Gordon's home." Alfred tells him. Bruce's face turns a pale white, and he steps on the gas more so than before.
He goes over two hundred miles per hour, narrowly dodging cars and civilians. He doesn't even wait to come to a complete stop, he just jumps from the car. He runs up the stairs of the apartment. The door is locked when he gets there. Just a single kick, and that's changed. He sees Barbara on the ground, bleeding, and with her shirt unbuttoned.
"Barbara," Bruce says quietly, nervous. He rushes over to her and feels for a pulse. He reaches for her cell phone and calls Harvey Bullock. The phone rings. Once. Then twice. Then he picks up. Bruce is carrying Barbara towards the Batmobile.
"Barbara, what's going…" Harvey begins.
"Bullock listen to me. Barbara has been shot, and the commissioner is missing. Tell the Gotham General to be ready to receive a critically injured female in early 20's who has lost a lot of blood. Blood type AB positive. Possible laceration of the spinal cord." Bruce says, beginning to drive to Gotham General Hospital.
"Ok," Bullock says on the other end trying to sound calm, but his breathing is unsteady and shaky. Bullock hangs up the phone and calls Gotham General. "This is Detective Harvey Bullock, badge number 4225. In about five minutes Batman is coping to be at your hospital with a woman around 23. She has lost a lot of blood, and is suspected to have a spinal cord injury. Her blood type is AB positive, and she will definitely need a blood transfusion. So get everything ready for her!" Bullock hangs up the phone and prays.
Bruce parks in front of the hospital and rushes in with Barbara in his arms. The doctors are waiting for him and put her on a gurney. They rush towards the elevator. Among the doctors, is Leslie Thompkins. "What is your diagnosis of her?"
"The bullet tore through her mid abdomen, possibly causing the spinal cord to be severed." Bruce says monotone.
"You know it's ok if you show emotions right?" Leslie asks him.
"Crying isn't going to help me right now. Call me when she's out of surgery."
"You aren't staying?" Leslie asks concerned.
"No, I'm going to look for whoever is responsible." Although Leslie disagrees, she knows that he copes by using his anger in a positive way. Bruce walks down the hall and opens a window. He opens the window and jumps out.
Bruce unlocks the Batmobile and hops in and starts driving. His comm starts buzzing and he clicks it accepting the call. "Master Bruce, is she ok?"
"No, and the have Gordon!" Bruce shouts, "I'm heading back to the crime scene to look for clues."
"Master Bruce, maybe you shouldn't…"
"I need to." Bruce replies calmly.
Alfred sighs, "Ok, call me if you need anything. I will alert you if I hear anything on Miss Gordon's condition."
"Ok. And… thank you Alfred."
"Anytime Master Bruce."
Bruce pulls up to Barbara's apartment and gets out of his car. He walks up the old, concrete steps leading into the apartment building. The wooden stairs creak as he makes his way up to Barbara's apartment, on the second floor. Her door is still broken from when he kicked it in, except there is police tape across the doorframe.
Bruce ducks under the tape and enters the messied apartment. The carpet is soaked with Barbara's blood. He kneels getting close to the ground, and sees a shine under the coffee table. He moves the coffee table and sees a playing card coated in blood, reflecting the lamp's light.
He clenches his fist and punches the wall putting a hole in it. The remaining offers look at him, but don't say anything. He taps his comm and utters two words, "It's him."
"Master Bruce?" Alfred asks concerned. "It's who?"
"The Joker." Bruce exits the apartment and walks quickly to the Batmobile. The top of the car slides back, and Bruce enters.
At an abandoned Amusement Park, Joker drags a bloodied Commissioner James Gordon. "How's it going Jimbo? How do you like the place?" Gordon remains silent. "I know it's a bit old, but I got it for a killer price! HAHAHAHAHA!" Joker looks over to Gordon and his smile fades, "Oh Jimbo, why aren't you smiling? C'mon, you can open up to Uncle J."
"Is my daughter alive?" Gordon says, struggling to talk using his bloodied mouth.
"Who the hell cares? She would've gotten in the way of what we are going to do!"
"What are we going to do?"
"It's a surprise," Joker says with a growing grin. They walk up to a cage. "Here we are! Now Gordon, I would really appreciate it if you took off all your clothing and gave them to me.!" He says with an innocent smile.
"And if I refuse?" Gordon asks tired.
"I'll make you take them off!" Gordon takes off his clothes and tosses them to Joker, as instructed. "Thank you!" Joker shouts.
Someone hits Gordon in the back of the head, and Gordon falls to the ground. His vision blurs as he lands on his knees. "What the hell?" Gordon mutters as he passes out.
When he wakes up he has a spiked dog collar on, attached to a leash, and is being led by very short men. He is dragged to a group of stairs, where a single large throne sits at the top. Next to the stairs on either side were thousand of baby dolls. "Prepare to go mad." Joked says standing up from his throne.
Behind Gordon are all 'circus freaks'. A Siamese twin dressed as a ballerina, a man covered in hair, a bearded woman, and three midgets. "Get him up and into the cart!" Joked shouts to the freaks.
They put him in a roller coaster cart and the ride starts. It goes into a room full of televisions. On the televisions, pictures of his naked injured daughter flash onto the screen. Gordon screams out in agony. His eyes spill water as he shouts.
Bruce continues looking for the Joker. He waits in crime alley. He sees a young woman walk in. Not far behind her are two men with with pocket knives, and an unmistakable insignia on their jackets, "Give us your money lady, and maybe will letcha live."
The woman shrieks from fear, but not from the two men, from the black shadow that comes out of nowhere and snatches one of the men. "The hell?" The remaining thug shouts frightened.
He turns around and comes face to face with Batman. He starts stumbling walking backwards, and falls on his backside. "Run!" Batman shouts at the lady, and she does as told. "Now, tell me what you know, and you might get out of here in one piece!"
The thug shakes, "Shhhhh… Sure… whatcha wwwanna know?"
"Where is the Joker?" Bruce shouts, grabbing the thug by the collar and lifting him off of his feet.
"I… I… I don't know," the thug stutters out.
"Try again," Bruce begins, "and maybe I'll actually believe you." Bruce's voice is stern and intimidating. He knows that this thug is about to open up. He cracks his knuckles.
The thug begins sweating, "I don't know."
"See, you're already getting better." Bruce says punching the man in the gut, then again in the face. Then he throws the thug into the wall. The thug falls over and looks up, hanging from the fire escape is the thug that he entered the alley with. "Do you want to end up like your friend?" The man shakes his head. "Then tell me where Joker is!"
"He'd kill me!"
"After I'm done with you, you'll pray for death! You have one chance. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1." The thug says nothing. "Ok, fine. Have it your way." Bruce walks toward the thug, he takes his arm and twists it. Finally he gives up with playing mercy, and breaks it. The thug shouts out in agony. "You still think I'm playing!?"
"Fine, fine," the thug says exasperated, "he's at…"
"No, you lost your chance to speak!" Bruce take the man's hand and starts dislocating fingers, one by one. The thug begins shedding tears. Bruce punches the thug's face. Once. Twice. Three times. The thug's face is bloodied from his broken nose and swollen cheek. Bruce's fists shine with the thug's blood.
The thug falls over at Bruce's feet; beaten, broken, and bloody. "Joker is at the old amusement park in old Gotham. Amusement Mile," the thug mutters. Bruce begins walking away, and the thug lies relieved that his beating is done.
Bruce gets in the Batmobile and begins driving. Fast. "Alfred, Joker and Gordon are at Amusement Mile. I'm heading there now."
"Ok, and Master Bruce, I just want you to know, Miss Barbara just got out of surgery. Her T6 vertebrae was severed. The doctors say she will never walk again. But they say she will definitely live. Thanks to you. Thanks to Batman. Remember, that Batman saves, he doesn't kill. I fear, that you will have to remember this more than ever, for your confrontation with the Joker."
Bruce listens, but doesn't respond. He simply turns off his comm and throws it in his passenger seat. The seat that Jason used to ride in. Jason, the boy that the Joker killed. Bruce's eyes fill with rage. Joker will not get out of the confrontation alive.
Bruce pulls up to Amusement Mile and sees Gordon in a cage. Gordon is naked and curled up, head in his knees. As he approaches he is attacked by a group of 'circus freaks'. He takes them easily.
He walks over to Gordon and tries to open the door. When he pulls at it Gordon looks up. "Batman!"
"It's locked, stay back. I'm going to use a low level explosive to destroy the lock." Batman sprays a gel on the handle of the cage and steps back a few steps. He presses a button his belt and the explosive explodes, opening the door. Gordon walks out and Bruce takes off his cape handing it to Gordon. "Don't worry paramedics are on their way."
As Bruce begins to run off to find Joker, Gordon stops him, "Batman, my daughter… is she ok?" Batman dreaded having to tell Gordon, though he knew he inevitably would have to.
"She's fine Jim, though she was badly hurt," Bruce looks down, "Don't worry, Joker will pay for this."
"Don't kill him, bring him in by the book. You have to show him that you're not like him. You need to show him that our way works."
Gordon's words surprise Bruce slightly, but Gordon has always been sort of like an uncle to Bruce. And after seeing that Gordon, after being tortured, and knowing that his daughter was hurt by this man, still doesn't want Batman to kill him, speaks volumes. Bruce nods, and continues to run.
The speakers start booming Joker's voice. "Oh Batsy! Yes YOU! I'm in the funhouse, come get me!" Bruce runs into the funhouse and is encircled by a hall of mirrors. "Did I hit a string with Gordon? I'm pretty sure I did! Has he been driven mad?" Joker's voice booms from the speaker. "Because if he has, then I've proven my point. Any sane man can be driven mad from one bad day. Pissing off you was just an added bonus! HAHAHAHAHA!"
Bruce continues running through the maze looking for Joker, "You know I had a bad day once, and you did too. You and me are alike in that sense. We were both created from tragedy, we both went insane because of trauma. But the difference is that I embraced the truth, you pretended that you were ok. You're delusional, and I hate you for it," Joker finishes.
"Why can't you just see it's all a joke? Life isn't meant to be taken serious, it's all just one big messed up joke! So WHY. AREN'T. YOU. LAUGHING?"
Bruce crashes through a mirror knocking over Joker. "Because I've heard it all before," Bruce replies, "not funny the first time," Bruce punches him, "not funny now!" Bruce walks over to the downed Joker and says, "I spoke to Gordon before coming inside, he wants me to do this by the book, after everything you did. He is still sane after all the torture. Maybe it's a joke, a joke on you. Because you can't handle one bad day." Joker takes out his joy buzzer and goes for Bruce. He dodges and knocks it out of the Joker's hand. Bruce begins sprinting and knocks Joker out the window.
They land outside in the pouring rain. Joker lies on the ground in pain, while Bruce is able to stand. "Go ahead," Joker says coughing, "beat me up, kill me for Christ's sake."
"No, Gordon said to do it by the book and I will. We will get you the help you need."
"Why? I shot some helpless girl, tortured Gordon, hell I even killed Robin."
"And maybe, none of that would have happened, had we tried to get you the help, you so obviously needed," Bruce reasons.
"That reminds me of a joke. See there were these two guys in a lunatic asylum. And one day, they decide they don't like living in an asylum any more. They decide they're going to escape.
"So like they get up onto the roof. And there, just across this narrow gap, they see the rooftops of the town, stretching away in the moonlight… stretching away to freedom. Now, the first guy, he jumps right across with no problem. But his friend, his friend daredn't make the leap. Y'see he's afraid of falling.
"So the first guy has an idea. He says, 'Hey! I have a flashlight with me! I'll shine it across the gap between the buildings. You can walk across the beam and join me!'
"But the second guy just shakes his head. He suh- says… he says 'Wh- what do you think I am? CRAZY? You'd just turn it off when I was half way across!'" The Joker begins laughing. "HAHAHAHA HAHA HA!"
Bruce looks at the Joker, and then his serious scowl turns to a grin, "Heh. Heh heh heh heh!" They both laugh together in the pouring rain. After a while Bruce's stomach hurts from laughing so long so he leans over and holds onto the Joker for support.
The sirens start wailing a little while later. The cops are frightened by the sight they see. A silhouette of Batman and Joker laughing together. Over what, they don't know, but the sight truly terrifies them.
Author's Note: Hope you guys enjoyed it. And if you haven't checked out the Evolution of Batman and Robin, I would suggest it. As always, reviews are much appreciated, and I'm going to take down my poll pretty soon, so if you are interested in that, go to my profile page.
