Disclaimer: I do not own Batman in any way (comics, movies, shows, books etc.) or any of the characters. I only own Juliet.

10. Not So Grand Finale

The police presence in Juliet's life had become overwhelming in the last week. Gordon had instructed a security detail to be assigned to Juliet as well as the mayor, hoping to prevent two more deaths and a city descending into chaos; officers were posted outside the penthouse, at the elevator in the lobby, at the back doors, and they patrolled the streets day and night. Even if she just went out for coffee there would be at least two men in blue following her. Needless to say she was put on edge about the situation. Being told she was a target of the most dangerous criminal currently residing in Gotham wasn't exactly the most casual information to deal with, even if she did double as a vigilante. The good news about the personal security detail was that it forced her to rest, forced her to stay in sight, and forced her to heal.

Juliet failed to understand why she of all people would be targeted. It wasn't as though she had some major stake in Gotham politics and the only thing that made her remotely noteworthy was who she was married to, and the Joker hardly seemed to bother himself with the socialites. The only interest he ever showed in her unlucky favor was that night at the fundraiser and she'd deduced he'd only done so to get a rise out of everyone there, make them realize he could do what he wanted. And in all honesty, Juliet spent those weeks under intensive watch just wondering just why she seemed to be a prime target for the bad guys; she supposed she could understand why when it was Jonathan, but the Joker? She just couldn't make sense of it.

"How are you this evening, Mrs. Wayne?" Alfred asked as he approached Juliet, who sat cross-legged in the middle of her bed.

"The same as yesterday and the day before that: my leg gets continuously better and I'm looking forward to having the police detail disbanded even more. Although, I will miss Gary, he's very cheery," she told the older man, referring to the officer who always stood at the elevator in the lobby. He always smiled and said 'good morning, Mrs. Wayne,' or 'have a pleasant day, Mrs. Wayne.' She bought him coffee whenever she went out and did so for any of the men or women who stood around by doors all day long; she felt bad they were being asked to stand guard for her benefit. Alfred smiled at her with a sense of paternal care present in his face.

"Take comfort in knowing that you're safe. Threats are nothing to sneeze at." Juliet sighed and looked out at the cityscape that extended out beyond the windows, bathed in cool evening light.

"I know… at least I had warning this time and he didn't just barge into my home. At least he didn't pretend he was sane and then go stark mad…" she murmured, mind momentarily drifting back to the dark haired man she'd once called friend. Juliet then shook her head and let a smile crawl up her lips. "I think I'm less opposed to being stuck home than I was earlier."

"Master Wayne only wishes you to be safe," Alfred reminded her gently as he handed her a mug of tea. She smiled to herself and accepted the mug, staring down into the steaming liquid.

"Yeah… I know. The question is, if I want to keep him safe, when will he listen?"

OOOO

The next morning bared a bright sky of sun to accompany the solemn day that was to follow. It was the day of the memorial parade for the former police commissioner and fallen officers and the most dangerous day for the Mayor, who would be giving a speech. The streets would be lined with policemen, including the majority of the ones who had been posted for Juliet's security detail. There would only be officers at each entrance. Juliet had insisted. Bruce was heading out to check the address of the man who could potentially be the Joker's sniper, instructing Juliet to stay home, something she readily complied with.

"Bruce, if anything goes wrong you know you can––"

"Call you? I know. But I won't because having you out in the open is not an option, Juliet," Bruce finished off as he grabbed a leather jacket out of the closet, shrugging it on as he kept eye-contact with his wife. She sighed and put her hands on her hips, pacing the width of their bedroom nervously.

"I don't like the feeling of this… nearly everyone in Gotham lining the streets… dozens of cops––some of whom are incredibly corrupted––to keep them safe… if you get there and things go wrong… you're not gonna have your suit," Juliet pointed out in a trembling voice. Bruce zipped up the jacket and strode his way over to her, gently holding her face between his hands. His warm brown eyes searched her cool blue ones, watching the fear and and doubt run rampant through her eyes.

"Look, everything's going to be fine. The probability of the Joker actually making a move during this parade is…"

"Too high for comfort," she finished for him in a whisper, her brows furrowing. "You need to be so careful, Bruce… if you don't come home…" She shut her eyes and swallowed thickly. Bruce leaned forward and kissed her forehead for a long moment, drawing her against his chest in a tight embrace; he held her close and kept her there as he inhaled deeply, her hair tickling his nose.

"And if I come home and you're not here… I don't know what I'd do…" he said in reply. Juliet's hands tightened against his back, her fingers pressing tightly against the black and red leather of his jacket. Juliet knew she couldn't stop him and knew that if she was able to go outside she would be accompanying him or doing it herself.

"You won't have to worry about that… I'll be here when you get home. I promise, Bruce. I promise…" She drew back and placed both hands on his cheeks. "And you know the address? The exact address?"

"Fifteen-oh-two Randolph Apartments just off State Street and Parkside Ave, overlooking the parade. And I know exactly how to get there on the motorcycle, which will allow me to cut through traffic," he confirmed. Juliet stretched up on her toes and kissed him, winding her arms around his neck and threading her fingers into his hair; Bruce quickly reciprocated, his own arms tightening around her waist. Neither of them wanted to admit it, but the amount of emotion that was put into the kiss was present just in case the inevitable happened and everything went against what was planned. In case one of them was gone by the end of the day.

"Be safe…" Juliet whispered as they both drew back, foreheads resting together. Bruce nodded, inhaling deeply with his eyes still shut.

"I will…"

OOOO

The day, as they might have expected, did not go as they had planned. The Joker had disguised himself as one of the Honor Guard members, having removed all his make up and tucked his hair into the cap, making a shot for the Mayor the first chance he got. Gordon took the fatal bullet. The streets had dissolved into chaos, filled with screams, gunshots, sirens, and the panicked neighing of police horses; Bruce had come home in a panic, barely stopping to breath before he was off again to dawn his suit and make the proper rounds. To see Maroni. To find Harvey. He apparently disappeared in the madness that had started once the Joker made his presence known.

Juliet spent the rest of the day pacing and jumping at every sound she heard. Sirens still wailed and whirred through the city at a near constant drone, making her feel on edge. What if one of those cars was headed to the penthouse to let her know she wasn't safe? That she was going to be taken out any moment. Then again, what if she was expected to be at the parade? Would the threat on her life be removed? Was the plan thwarted? Surely the detail for her safety would be dropped to the lowest it could be now that they had bigger issues and more injured officers. Rachel showed up somewhere around one, the two women staying isolated in the kitchen as they mindlessly made tea or coffee to keep their minds off what was happening in the outside world; the assistant DA spent the night in a guest room, exhaustion taking over her entire body from the days events. The penthouse was the safest place in Gotham. She could rest easy there.

By the time Bruce was home, it was past midnight. He wore the black clothing he always had on beneath his suit and a troubled look on his face; sitting with Juliet on the middle of their bed, he quietly told her the happenings of the day after the memorial. He found Maroni in some club or another, enjoying a drink with a woman in a tight dress. The crime boss said that the Joker found them, not the other way around. Then there was Harvey. He'd taken one of the Joker's men, a former Arkham patient, and questioned him at gunpoint, leaving his life up to chance––the flip of a coin.

"Harvey? Harvey was going to kill a man?" Juliet asked with disbelief. Bruce ran his fingers through his hair, nodding his head in confirmation.

"Unfortunately. Desperation drives people to do absolutely crazy things…" He looked over at Juliet, eyes scanning over her face. "What would you think of having a completely normal life? No Batman, no Phoenix… no vigilantes. Just a normal life…" Juliet blinked at him for a moment as he took her hands, thumbs rubbing over her knuckles.

"I… I… that would be… amazing, but… Bruce… what's this all about?" she inquired softly. Bruce dropped his gaze and let out a long, deep breath.

"I was told… and have known… that there would be a day that Batman wasn't needed in Gotham anymore… and look at what's happening. People are dying because a mad man wants me. I… I told Harvey that Gotham was in his hands. Batman is going to turn himself in," Bruce admitted. Juliet's hands were ripped from his as she jumped off the bed in shock, staring at him wide-eyed and scared.

"What? You've done… what!? Bruce, they'll arrest you! For… for anything that they can peg on you! Or, even worse, they could send you to Arkham. Either way it's an the Asylum or its Blackgate; what would even… possess you to think of turning yourself in? That doesn't spell out 'normal life,' Bruce. That spells out pain," she sputtered, her eyes tearing up. Bruce rose from the bed and reached out to her, sighing heavily when she stepped back, shaking her head.

"It would be normal for you again. No more reckless endangerment because of me, no more… stab wounds to the leg or psychotic doctors chasing you down…"

"And the man I love in prison."

"We don't know that it would be prison, Juliet…" Bruce tried to reason. He finally managed to pull her against his chest, her hands limply resting on his chest, tears running down her cheeks.

"What else could it be?" she whispered. "You've upset a lot of people, Bruce… they won't just let you go without a sentence."

"It wouldn't be forever…" he told her, rubbing her back and smoothing out her hair.

"But it would be a long time. Don't do this, Bruce… please!"

"I have to, Juliet."

"I'll hate you for this…" she whispered, voice breaking. "I'll… hate you… for this…"

"I know. And I'll let you. Just… We've got till the morning, Juliet… please… if everything goes south tomorrow, let's just have these last few hours to just be happy… to just be in love… please…"

Juliet looked up at him with a defeated resolve in her eyes, leaning her cheek into his palm as he wiped tears off her cheeks. Ducking his head, he kissed her gently, brows slowly creasing as he realized, just like that morning, it could be the very last time he ever kissed his beautiful and loving wife. With that thought in mind, the kiss became more impassioned and both of them slowly began to lose themselves in the dark oblivion the future surely held.

OOOO

The next morning Bruce and Juliet, dressed up for the press conference later that afternoon, watched on as Alfred tossed another stack of documents into the incinerator. Juliet's fingers were interlocked with her husband's with bruising pressure that was returned by his own; they had stayed as close to each other as they could that morning, knowing very well the moment Bruce announced his secret identity, he would be arrested and taken away for questioning. And, if they were incredibly unlucky, Juliet would be as well in the suspicion of her having been involved with it all since she was his wife.

"Even the logs?" Alfred asked.

"Anything that could lead back to Lucius, Rachel, or Juliet," Bruce confirmed. Another book tossed into the flames. Alfred stared at the suit clad man before him "People are dying, Alfred. What would you have me do?"

"Endure, Master Wayne. Take it. They'll hate you for it, but that's the point of Batman… he can be the outcast. He can make the choice no one else can face. The right choice," Alfred told him, voice plain but utterly truthful. Juliet would have agreed or added in her two-cents, but she was exhausted emotionally and mentally. She barely had the energy to keep herself standing.

"Today I've found out what Batman can't do. he can't endure this," he smiled ruefully and shook his head. "Today you get to say 'I told you so."

"Today, I don't want to." A pause. "Although, I did bloody tell you." Bruce and Juliet turned to face the two cases that stood before them. The Batsuit and the Phoenix's suit. Touching a scanner on the side of each case, they sank into the floor, locking themselves up before the trio made their way towards the lift. The lights went out row-by-row as they walked, slowly descending the room into the shadows. "I suppose they'll lock me up as well. Your accomplice."

"Accomplice? I'm going to tell them the whole thing was your idea," Bruce managed to joke, smiling just slightly when Juliet barked a laugh.

"And then the three musketeers will be locked up forever," she added as the lift began to rise, the Batbunker dropping into darkness.

OOOO

The press room was crowded and filled with cameramen and reporters, hecklers and stern faced officers. Harvey, looking as composed as he could be, stood at a podium looking over the crowd. Bruce and Juliet stood side-by-side, arms linked together as the city's DA began to speak.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for coming. I've called this press conference for two reasons. Firstly, to assure the citizens of Gotham that everything that can be done over the Joke killings is being done. Secondly, because the Batman has offered to turn himself in––"

"So where is he!?" shouted a crowd member. Harvey ignored the call.

"But first, let's consider the situation: should we give in to this terrorist's demands? Do we really think that––"

"You'd rather protect an outlaw vigilante than the lives of citizens!?" demanded a reporter, making Bruce wince.

"The Batman is an outlaw… but that's not why we're demanding he turn himself in. We're doing it because we're scared. We've been happy to let Batman clean up our streets for us until now––"

"Things are worse than ever!"

"Yes, they are. But the night is the darkest just before the dawn. And I promise you, the dawn is coming." The crowd quieted down. "One day, the Batman will have to answer for the laws he's broken. But to us, not to this madman."

"No more dead cops!"

"Where is the Batman?"

The crowd suddenly became unruly and wild, shouting and demanding that the vigilante turn himself in, colorful language flooding the air and carrying over the crowd. Bruce looked over at Juliet, who was watching him tearfully, her arms wrapping tighter around his arm, shaking her head in a final plea. He dropped his head and kissed her briefly, a saddened look in his eyes.

"So be it. Take the Batman into custody," Harvey ordered, turning to the officers on the side of the room. Everyone quieted down, craning their necks to see who would step forward. Bruce took half a step before suddenly Harvey continued to speak. "I am the Batman."

The room was dead silent. Cameras flashed and murmurs broke out as the DA was cuffed and led from the room. Shock. Utter shock was what ran through Bruce's body, freezing him to the spot with widened eyes and tightened lips; Juliet's mouth had dropped open and her arms went slack around her husband's. If anyone were to look their way, their shock would be interpreted as finding out their friend was the outlaw vigilante. But it was far from that. Far, far from that. It was as though they were caught in a dream, in a daze. Nothing seemed right. It was as though they were looking at the world through a funhouse mirror, watching as everything they knew was bent and twisted out of shape; and if there was one thing they both knew, it was that everything was going to get much more complicated.

Afterword: Sorry about the late update! School has been kicking my ass all over the world, and I've been absolutely exhausted. I will also admit it's because of this: I want to make everyone happy and incorporate what they'd like to see in this story, but a lot of it contradicts what I originally planned. So my mind has been kinda raging and rebeling, trying to choose what to do aaaaaaaand yeah. That's that :)
Review Replies!

grapejuice101: Indeed, Joker after Juliet is not good. I hope you keep on reading! Thanks again!

SomebodyWhoCares: I love writing their banters, I feel like it makes them see a bit more real :) I hope you keep on reading! Thanks again!

LaceySionis: Ahaha! I'm smiling so much at the fact you expected to see Juliet in the Dark Knight, that's a huge compliment! Thank you so, so much! I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Lilliana Celeste: Sooner update? Unfortunately not. But the next chapter should be better and sooner on the horizion :) Anyway, my surgical recovery has gone perfectly without any bumps in the road! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and thanks again!

highlander348: We'll see how it goes for the Phoenix and the Batman now that we're nearing the most emotional and action-packed bit of the movie :) I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks again!

The Auburn Girl: Yeah, I still can't find the DVD and that really annoys me because it was a collecters edition :-/ And the Joker attacking Juliet… I've had that bit planned out forever! You'll see that very soon! Bruce will most CERTAINLY freak out ;) Hope you enjoyed! Thanks again!

prydain: I'm glad to have gotten this chapter up and I really hope it's not as crappy as I think it is; it's more of a summary chapter for scenes I wasn't too keen on writing… I hope you enjoyed it anyway, though! Thanks again!

WinterRain36: The reasoning I have for the Joker so interested in Juliet is revealed next chapter and it may not be solid, but it's the reasoning I've had in my head for a good long while; I know he's obsessed with the Batman and that's why he's doing all of this, but that comes into play for why he's so interested/why he's targeting Juliet. Hope you stick around to find out what it is :)

kindleflame5: This isn't the last we've seen of the Phoenix, I promise! But… things are gonna get… complicated :) Thanks again!

Ravenmore45: Juliet isn't out of action permanently, just temporarily; we will see the Phoenix again :) Thanks again!

And thank you to those who have added this to their favorites/story alerts! It means a lot to me!

That's it for this round, guys! I hope to get the next one up really soon 'cause it'll be easier for me to write :) Hope you enjoyed! Thanks again!

~Mary