Meeting Batman
JJ had heard stories of the masked figure who ran around in the dark.
A Folks tale spread throughout the whole of Gotham, it was JJ who turned out to be the most troubled. Many people saw the mysterious figure to be the hero, but the back of his young mind speculated for him to be the villain.
At three years of age, JJ got his first insight to the role that the Bat played throughout Gotham. A bedtime story to help him settle in for the night, it was his father who chose to set the scene; as for each story it would involve the Bat and the influences that he had on his parent's life. First believed to be a bedtime story and nothing more, through little JJ's eyes as he listened to his father talk; the Joker had shaped Batman to be the notorious villain that every listener loathed. Equipped with the characteristics to be both dangerous and cunning, every night the Joker would tell his son a story. A past event it would shape both him and Harley to be the heroes, and at the end of each story the Bat would be shaped as the villain.
A manipulative technique, the small boy was too young to see past his father's gentle corruption. For each night the story held promise to him that he would gain his son's trust high above the Bat's. A small boy that would now do anything to make his parents smile, the back of the Joker's mind would often linger to if he could use that to his advantage. The many opportunities held open for him, it all began by shaping little JJ's mind to believe that it was the Bat who deceived the whole of Gotham.
His parents trying to make the world laugh at their antics, it was the self righteous Batman who was quickly growing to be little JJ's least favourite character.
Tonight's story no different from the others, once settled and fussed by his mother little JJ would lay inside his bed. The blanket tucked in to avoid him from rolling off, his young toes would often flex themselves against the top of the woolly barricade. His eyes droopy, his mind was far from tired when he glanced across at his tall window.
His window tinted a harsh black to protect the growing infant from the life outside, he would often find himself perched against it; watching the world move around him no one could see him in return. He was hidden, and for good reason. The son of the wanted King and Queen of Gotham, their location had to remain as secret as the man behind the Bat's mask. A security technique, all of the windows in their house were tinted; JJ's being the most however as there were still many people in the whole of Gotham who were yet to find out about him. Mostly in contact with the many henchmen and clients that visited their house, the young boy had never really gone outside. Proven to be easily content with the entertainment that he found within the house, it was moments like this when the rest of Gotham was tucked away under their blankets that JJ would sit and watch.
It had been on a particularly cool night with the promise of harsh rain that JJ finally saw it. The rest of Gotham out like candles as the people slept, his eyes casted over in curiosity to the light that beaconed the sky with a defiant glow. Projected, his blue eyes lazily took in the silhouette that defined the dark creature that masked the cold personality. A prominent signal, it didn't last long as it burned its way through the minutes until it had disappeared entirely. The scene forever stored within the young boy's mind, he found it to be more traumatising than fascinating. Given the horrors that his father had told him the Bat was capable of, JJ was very relieved that he had tinted windows. His occurrence with the Bat signal that night not shared with either of his parents, little JJ kept his mind to himself; the thought of the Bat lingering around in the night proved to be too much for him to comprehend and he did not want to upset his parents.
His demands for attention no longer severe as they were before, little JJ proved himself to be more than capable to be supervised by other people than his parents.
The Joker's own preference being his right hand man, Frost; he stubbornly refused to allow any babysitter or other member of public look after their son whilst they were out. A man who had been there since the very beginning at the birth of little JJ, you would be foolish to think that the Joker would pass up the opportunity for Frost to bond with the future Joker of Gotham.
Acquainted to JJ from an early age and now known as Uncle Fwost, the man proved to have the most stable relationship out of all of the Henchmen that the clowns owned. Well acquainted with both Jokers of the family, it was with Joker Jr. that Frost allowed himself to relax more. His mind no longer on edge for his Boss' random outburst to follow or equip him with weapons, babysitting little JJ promised to be tiring but it actually proved to be the opposite. His frame of mind content, he would trade his real gun for a toy one at the request of little JJ who enjoyed to play cops and robbers. Being that JJ had a heritage of Jesters, it seemed only right that he would play the role of the robber. Frost had been given the duty of being the cop, the same duty that was given to him every time that JJ requested that they played.
His small game with Frost nothing compared to the game that his parents would play out in the streets of Gotham with real policemen, the small child would happily play it for hours. But it was within those hours that the back of little JJ's mind grew to be troubled. Close to his bedtime, his attention would drift to his many bedtime stories that he has listened to. The only difference here being that instead of being given one on this cool night, both of his parents were now out in the dark with the Bat.
His mind distracted, he thought back to the masked figure that ran about in the night; terrorising his parent's fun and he glanced up at Frost when he finally cornered him in the hallway, very out of breath.
"Uncle Fwost?"
His victory of capturing JJ after five minutes of torture vanished when he sensed the little boy's sudden change of mood, he paused. Concerned, he knelt at the boy's level. "What is it JJ?"
The boy bit his lip, "is Bat gonna hurt mommy and daddy?"
Caught off guard completely, every trace of them having spent the last half hour playing games had been eliminated by JJ who had touched on such a serious subject.
"Why would you say that?"
The boy grew to be unsure, troubled his mind shifted back to the stories that his father had told him to help him count his sheep. To the tales of the notorious Bat who would corner both his mother and father, his own personal targets the thought of them not coming home had the little boy on edge. Clearly upset but too ignorant to show it, little JJ masked it through a light sniff. "They home soon?"
Once again Frost proved to be unsure of how to respond, "it's difficult to say,"
Little JJ's nerves grew, "oh."
Clearly upset, it took a lot of fuss from Frost's behalf until the small Jester began to reappear through little JJ's eyes. His mind far from being settled, after he had been tucked in for the night JJ would once again lay there. His mind on edge and his eyes no longer droopy, the small boy would wait for any sign of movement. Anything to suggest that his parents would be coming home that night. And true enough, the small child stayed awake for a further three hours past his bedtime when he saw it. The sky flared up with the demanding Bat signal the small infant held his breath at the noise that eventually followed it.
A defiant bang that echoed the rooftops, the figure that the Joker had been painting for little JJ in his mind finally appeared for him to see for the first time. A shadowed figure that blended in with the darkness that surrounded the night, he gracefully swept from roof to roof. The silhouette proved difficult for JJ to analyse and he could only watch in despair when he ran off into the night, where his parents were. The beam as vicious as it was before, the anticipation that JJ had to having his parents home was rewarded less than a couple minutes later.
The light still prominent as it shined in the night sky of Gotham, his ears perked at the sound of the door when it finally opened. Two sets of staggered feet, the boy didn't risk it and with a hitched breath he confronted them. Dressed in his purple and green pyjama shirt and shorts that his mother had picked out for him, the small child collided into the first set of legs he could find. Not yet tall enough to reach the waist, little JJ grasped hold of his mommy's legs like his life depended on it.
"JJ? Why aren't you in bed?"
His mind still in shock he proved to be unable to answer her startled question, unable to see the stern look that the Joker sent Frost's way of the child who was still so very much awake. Troubled more than anything, he allowed his mother to manhandle him into her arms. Not a cut or bruise planted on her pretty face, the worse that had been inflicted was the smudge of her makeup and the breeze that had misshaped her hairstyle.
"What's wrong cupcake?"
"I saw the Bat." He whispered, fingers clenched around his mother's outfit he shared a troubled look with her; enough for her to make the connection she released a short sigh.
"Oh cupcake, the Bat didn't catch us; mommy and daddy are still here." A passionate comfort between the pair of them as she comforted her son; it was Harley's turn to pass the stern look onto the Joker. Proving to be too much for the small child's mind to bear, it appeared that he had perhaps corrupted his son's mind a little bit too much. Now proven to not have handled his parent's night out, he ended up sleeping with the pair of them that night; anything to help him accept that there were still there.
The event from that night not wanting to be repeated, both the Joker and Harley had to adapt their newly gained free time to making sure that their son wouldn't revisit his slightly traumatic experience. Two weeks after the incident, there grew to be an opening night for a new casino in the city of Gotham. Not on the guest list but their presence to be expected of it took a lot of thought between the two clowns before they decided that they'd take their son with them. To help settle the small boy's mind that the late night outs had nothing to fear. It was also a chance for the whole of Gotham to finally meet little JJ as the Joker and Harley's son, so the pair of them had gone out of their way to make sure that he would get the recognition that he deserved.
His coordinates on the chessboard set as the Joker and Harley's son, that would've been enough; but he had his appearance that he needed to uphold. Princes had dignity that they had to maintain, to look superior amongst the subjects of the city; and JJ wasn't an exception.
A man with particular taste, the Joker made sure that he was gifted with the finest materials. A criminal whose eyes were particularly at awe to the colour gold, he made sure his son was showered in it. Materials for clothing exported from the finest countries, jewellery crafted and stolen from the most incomparable dealers in the whole of Gotham (although the boy was too young to wear them yet); nothing was too much when maintaining the Joker's reputation. His premiere to the rest of Gotham due in a couple hours, the Joker was not going to let his son fault it due to them neglecting his appearance.
The Joker would provide the goods, and Harley would dress him.
Surrounded in treasured goods of designs and colours that he had never seen before, little JJ would simply watch in awe at his mother as she would dress him. Her own little Ken doll for her to customise, she would go through every combination humanly possible for him to wear; and with every new outfit she would release a triumphant squeal.
"Oh! Cupcake you look so handsome in that outfit. Puddin', come look!"
The choices to the outfits limitless, it wasn't long however until a grumbled Joker encouraged them to pick out the right one. Dressed in a combination of a crisp white dress shirt and silver waistcoat, it was topped off with a golden belt that surrounded his trousers that finished it off. Branded with the capitalised signature 'Joker' in gold platinum much like his mother's choker which equipped her 'Puddin' it was the Joker's attempt in marking his territory on their son so it would be known to the rest of the world. To be worn with dignity, not one person who would see him that night would be able to miss his claimed authority, and if they did; trouble would certainly arise.
His first night out into the real city, JJ stood with both his mother and father a couple hours later. Dressed to match the style of both of his parents, the three of them stood in the new casino. Henchmen stationed in different corners of the room if trouble was to arise, little JJ simply looked around the place in awe. His idea of decoration limited to the ones found in their house, he had never seen so much gold; never mind the amount of new people that he now encountered.
Dressed for the occasion, just like the Joker had expected the crowd had merely looked at the small boy before alarm signals had flown. In the company of both of his parents, little JJ would only watch the many people make eye contact with him before moving away; some even half way across the room. Unsure of how to act to this news, he glanced up at his mother who seemed rather intrigued to the small dance floor stationed across the room.
"Mommy?" he began lightly, "people scared?"
One thing little JJ was proven good at was being able to read the mood of the people around him, and tonight proved to be no exception.
His response expected, Harley gently brushed her son's stress off. "No, my little JJ; no one here is scared. They're all just very excited about your first visit here, they want to make sure that you're all nice and comfortable by giving us lots of room."
That part was true to an extent, five minutes after their arrival now and the once overcrowded hall had now created a pathway that the clown family could easily walk through. The Joker in front followed by Frost, it was after the Joker had passed a few people with a mumble through his lips that they would smile down at little JJ. Unable to tell if it was natural or not, JJ however did feel a bit more comfortable at their welcome and would occasionally smile back at them in return.
The night proving to not be as scary as JJ had first thought, he actually began to show signs of enjoying himself as he spent it with his parents. His mother a dancer and his father a player, little JJ would occasionally switch between dancing with his mother on the dance floor and sitting on his father's lap whilst he played at the casino. A cunning player, it wasn't often that the Joker would lose his game but when he did; a stern glare would often settle the dispute for him to claim his earnings. A successful night that was enjoyed between the three clowns more than the rest of the community, little JJ had almost made it to the home stretch when the shadowed silhouette arrived.
"Batsy, Batsy, Batsy."
Her lips chanted, little JJ had to turn his head to meet where his mother's gaze was distracted. Now nestled in his mother's arms for protection after the arrival of the newcomer, the small boy once again felt himself to slowly growing to be on edge. The middle of the room separated by the sudden commotion, his eyes trailed along to the figure who had been captivating his dreams and invading the landscape of his bedroom window. A dark shadow that contrasted his father's defiant emerald green hair, his posture was refined; his eyes cold.
As the Bat's eyes locked on the Joker, the small faint sound of the Joker's cackle could be heard through his silvered teeth. "Ah, if it isn't Mr. Batman; now how do we owe the pleasure on this fine evening?"
The words came out of his lips with no emotion, "party crashing."
Humoured, the Joker purred, "We're not the only party crashers here, are we Bat?" he spun around him like a hawk would to their prey. "No, things were all fine and dandy till you had decided to arrive my friend." His words taunting, it hadn't been long till another silvered cackle had left his lips. "Why do you always have to ruin our fun?"
JJ watched the Bat as he narrowed his eyes beneath his mask, "Your idea of fun is everyone else's idea of causing both havoc and destruction among the community."
"You've always had such a way with words,"
Highly entertained, the Joker shared a look with both Harley and his son before his attention turned back towards the Bat. His eyes now slightly more serious than they were before, the back of his mind turned. "You've upset my boy Bat, with your gallivanting cape and masked personality you failed to notice that your hidden identity scares the little boys and girls at night."
Finally mentioned, little JJ grew to be slightly on edge when the Bat's eyes found him for the first time. A definite resemblance showed between the two clowns, his eyes only had to linger down towards the child's belt and Harley's protective arm before his eyes shot back to the Joker in shock. "You have a son?"
There was a laugh.
"I do, and he's not very pleased with you." The words sung from the Joker's lips, it was his past manipulation that he had toying with his young son that was now being put to the test. "No, not pleased at all. You see, he's heard stories about you; the notorious Batman who enjoys capturing followed by the occasional torturing of his parents in the dark."
His words once again corruptive as little JJ heard him speak, the small child watched the Bat as he shared another look with him.
"Stories, that had only been heard at bedtime; it's only now my dear friend that JJ can see you for the character that you truly are. A criminal."
Angered, there was a flash of black and through the Joker's mind games; the gathered crowd released a startled gasp at the slight suffocation that the Bat caused for the Joker by his hands.
"Puddin'!"
Latched by the collar, with a grimaced wince the Joker found himself gripped in the Bat's grasp. The mood sensed between both men he released a short huff. "This is getting kinda old ya know? Could at least try something more adventurous."
"Through all your mind games Joker, you and I as well as the rest of Gotham know who the real criminal is here."
A random outburst to the Joker's taunt, the Jester released a short purr. "Yes, but does my son know that?"
Gazes met, little JJ released a short sniff; his mind clearly troubled.
Framed, due to the Joker's corruptions on both his son and Batman; the Joker knew now that he had won his son's trust high above the Bat's. His posture heavily slacked to the abuse that the Bat's hands inflicted to him through his tight grasp, he managed a small grin. Proving to be the victim much like many of the stories that the Joker had told his son, he did not struggle; but merely encouraged it.
"What reputation are you going to paint yourself with Bat?" gripped by his collar he allowed the Bat to continue manhandling him, "Are you gonna use a lot of red?" his voice a menaced whisper he flashed a shine of silver with the metal gnashers.
It was only after that night that little JJ finally saw the Batman for who he really was, and it came with a lot of red paint.
As always, thank you to everyone for the reviews, follows and favourites for this story; you are all truly amazing.
Unfortunately, the updates for this story will now slow down a bit as I have gone back to college, but I will try to update it as frequently as I can.