Title: Snapshots
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Crossover: the Batman & Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice
Characters: the Batman: Garfield Lynns (Firefly) ; J/C/H no Kuni no Alice: Alice Liddell
Pairing: Smileshipping (Garfield Lynns/Alice Liddell)
Summary: "… Wouldn't it feel better if you made an honest living?" Clank. Cringe. "What? You mean, like, a… job?"
Word Count: 415
Author's Note: Oh, Alice. No matter how hard you try, I don't think you'll be able to get Garfield to agree with it.
Warnings: None.
Disclaimer: the Batman & Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice do not belong to me in any shape or form (including characters). Thank you.

Job

"Garfield?"

The arsonist gives a distracted hum.

"Wouldn't it be better if you got a job?"

"I do have a job."

She's quiet for a long period of time.

"That's not what I meant."

"Uh-huh."

If only he wasn't fixing his jetpack then he would have understood perfectly what it was she meant.

"… Wouldn't it feel better if you made an honest living?"

Clank. Cringe.

"What? You mean, like, a… job?"

"Yes!"

…

"Don't give me that look, Garfield."

"Alice, I have a job!"

"I wouldn't call committing arsons and thievery a job of honest living."

She's got him there.

"… So?"

"So, what you're doing is wrong."

He's tempted to ask what brought this up, but thinks better of it. What if she's on her monthly? No, no. They went through that ordeal almost two weeks ago from today, he remembers, so it can't be because of that.

"I'm sure someone would be willing to hire you. That is, as long as you promise them that you won't end up burning their store down. And you'll also have to promise them that you won't let Mr. Merkel and Drury steal from them."

He refuses to add anything more to the subject because this conversation is getting out of hand.

And so she's lets him enjoy the silence for a total of five minutes.

Then, when she sees the tension seep from his shoulders, she tries a different approach.

"I could get a job."

Clank, clunk!

"No way, nu-uh, forget it. Not gonna fly."

"But—"

"No, Alice. And that's final." He returns back to his jetpack, wincing a little at the damage the he himself caused, because he knows he doesn't need to wait for her to give a response. She knows that she won't win this argument. Maybe she would, if they resided anywhere but Gotham City. The streets aren't safe to begin with; no matter what time of day, but come nightfall its worse, especially now that Zsasz is out on the loose again.

Yeah, it may not be for a long period of time since the Bats is always on the prowl to take them down and return them to Arkham. But still. It's out of the question.

Behind him, off to the side, he hears her defeated side.

"… Fine…"

…

"You could at least do what the Batman does and help stop crime rather than committing it."

It comes off more as a whine than anything else, "Alice."