Sorry! I'm a little late but here's the next chapter.
Batman woke to the sounds of voices coming from in front of him. He dared not open his eyes until he knew where he was and who he was dealing with.
". . . He's still not awake?" A familiar voice asked irritated.
"He should be soon," a woman's voice reassured him. It also sounded familiar but somewhat different. Softer, perhaps.
"You sure seem different when you're not her," the Joker observed. "I wish I could know how different."
"Nice try, but joke's on you. I'm not becoming visible again until I leave this damn place once and for all."
"Too bad," he reached his hand out to where he thought she was. "We could have had loads of fun together taking over Gotham."
She moved away from his hand and laughed. "Too bad that's not my goal."
"What is your goal?" He asked. "Why were you following that guy's orders?"
"'That guy' just happened to be the only family I had left. He helped me through a lot before he changed. But I'm not going to tell you about any more than that."
He nodded, a bit disappointed. "How long did you say you needed?"
"Until noon tomorrow. He'll be crying at your feet by then, your royal craziness."
He grinned thinly as he pulled his knife out. "Is that sarcasm?"
"Of course not, just highlighting your assets. Now, may I begin?"
"Of course, remember to lock the door so no one gets in unless they have the key."
"Okay," she said as she followed him to the door and locked it behind him. She turned to where the Batman was laying on the bed. "You can stop pretending now."
"How did you know?" He asked as he gave up the act and tried to sit up only to find that his wrists and ankles were tied to the bedposts.
"Easy, whenever I hypnotize someone, especially someone as stubborn and controlling as you, it never lasts for long. Maybe two hours tops."
"How long has it been?"
"About two hours and ten minutes."
They stayed silent for a moment.
"Do you always keep track of exactly how long you can stay in control?"
"No, you're just special," the invisible woman said, amusement evident in her voice.
They were silent again. Batman was beginning to feel slightly unnerved by the fact that he couldn't see her and had absolutely no idea where she was.
"What are you planning to do?" He asked finally.
She laughed. "Nervous?"
"Stop playing around and just-" he stopped short when he felt her small, soft hand caress his cheek. It still seemed strange feeling something but not being able to see its source. He felt her fingers move gently across his skin, felt its warmth drift slowly upward. . .
Until he realized what she was doing.
He tried to jerk his face away but it was too late.
His cowl was removed. And he found himself staring at the spot where it seemingly floated in midair. For a moment, he thought he saw the outline of her body but it was gone before he could be sure.
Bruce took that moment to realize that his costume had been replaced by a pair of sweatpants and a white t-shirt. How had he not noticed that earlier? He supposed that he'd been too focused on her and the Joker.
He looked around the room. It was painted white with hardly any furniture except for the trunk in the corner and the bed. There were no personal items to suggest who the room belonged to so he could only assume that it was hers. There were two doorways and one small window on the other side of the room.
"This is my room and his goons were instructed to change you while you were unconscious," she said finally. "They were told to leave your mask on because the Joker agreed to let me do the honors."
"What does he get in exchange?"
She was silent for a moment. "I think he was hoping for me to change my mind," she said softly.
"About what?"
"I think it's my turn to ask the questions here, Mr. Bruce Wayne," she said as he felt her hands on his cheeks. "This has turned out to be a very interesting evening for the both of us, wouldn't you say?"
"I definitely can't say it's been boring. But then again, it hardly ever is when you're the Batman."
"Of course," she said as she reached up to tangle her fingers in his dark hair. She sat on the bed beside him and gazed into his deep blue eyes. Why was she doing this? For the money? For her pride? It seemed as though she was having a change of heart.
Maybe it's the fact that I'm not Desiree right now, she thought. But that's just silly, costume or no costume, Desiree was a part of her. She just had to relax and think this through. Earlier, she'd been doing this for the money. She'd agreed to do this because he'd rejected her and she'd wanted revenge. So much for that.
Maybe she should just cut him loose. But that would be boring, she thought.
So she kissed him.
When she broke away, he stared at her. "What was that for?"
"Don't ask," she said. "I'm not exactly sane right now. I'm doing this because just cutting you loose or handing you over to the Joker is boring. But play along and you'll be gone by morning."
His eyes widened as she walked over to the trunk and grabbed a pair of scissors off of the lid. She came back and he watched the shirt lift from his chest. She cut the front of it in half and spread it open. She placed her hands on his chest and kissed him more deeply this time.
"You should be able to understand what I plan to do," she mumbled against his lips.
He nodded.
"Do I have your permission to do what I want?"
"You're asking me now?"
"Well, we both know how you're not exactly the most submissive person on the planet. You just love to have control over everything, including yourself," she snorted. "What I need right now is for you to give yourself over to me completely. I need to have complete control even if it's just for one night."
"And if I refuse?"
"You get to hear my beautiful singing voce again and I hand you over to your good, old friend the Joker tomorrow morning as I go on my merry way," she said as she laid her head on his chest. "Of course, I could always change my mind and help you escape. But there's one more thing you would have to do for me."
"What?"
"You have to pay my foster brother's debts."
"Deal, but why can't you just set me free now? We don't have to do any of this."
She shook her head, grinning. "First, I get to control you. The position you're in right now is the perfect opportunity."
"Fine," he murmured. "But I have a condition of my own."
"What is it?"
"I have to be able to see you. I don't want this to feel like some really weird hallucination."
"Okay, fine, but you can't look at my face."
"How is that fair?" he asked as he saw her wavy, dark hair and pale body become visible. She wore a white, sleeveless, lace dress on her thin frame. Her makeup was washed away, so he could see her flushed cheeks before she quickly covered his eyes with her hand.
"No matter what, you can't look at me."
She kissed him sweetly and bit on his neck gently before licking, kissing, and biting her way down to the waistband of his sweatpants. He stiffened when her fingers met his waistband. He knew what she was doing and he knew what she wanted from him but he couldn't bring himself to trust her. He couldn't bring himself to give her control over him.
She sighed softly before whispering in the silent room. "It's okay. Just this once, close your eyes," she reached up to place one of her hands on his chest over his heart. "And leave everything to me."
He felt a bit of panic as she began to stroke his throbbing member but eventually he relaxed and gave himself over to the pleasure she offered him.
Ugh, this probably sucked and disappointed some people. If so, please comment. If it didn't disappoint you, please tell me, I tend to criticize myself pretty harshly. If you want a lemon or if you think I should "fade to black", please vote on my profile. Was some of this a little weird? Remember to review, it motivates me!