Alrighty! Here it is! Hope you all enjoy!

I know I told several of you that I would have it up a few days ago, but in an effort to show me that although I'm 19 years old and I bought this computer myself, my parents decided to take it for the weekend. :) (and by the way, it was not out of punishment. They just wanted to do it.)

Thanks to my reviewers! You guys are amazing, and the motivation for me to continue writing this story!

Hope you all had a great Easter weekend! :D


"Well. That went better than I expected." Joker says casually.

"What?" I turn to him. His eyes are glazed a little, and he is chewing one of his scars absentmindedly. His head swivels in my direction, and he smiles.

"Oh nothing you need to worry about now Lane."

"What do you mean? You can't start to say something, and not finish it."

"Oh yes I can. And I did. I finished what I was saying. I just didn't explain why I said it." He clicks the 't'.

"Whatever."

I look back out the window, but he continues talking.

"So Lane? What are we gonna do first?" He laughs.

"What do you mean?"

"You're my teacher. How am I going to become a, uh, good guy, if I don't know how? Hmm?" He licks his bottom lip and I shiver a little.

"I'm not really sure what you want me to do..." I pause. "It's not like there are... steps."

"Hmm. Well than we will just have to keep you around for a while to uh, help me out when I need it." He laughs. The sound is still a cackle and whether he thinks himself good or not, and my stomach churns.

I take a moment to observe him. His purple suit gleams without defect, along with his shoes and gloves. It's obvious that he takes extremely good care of himself, and so he can't be completely mental. His paint appears fresh, although it's faded in the creases of his face because of his constant smiling. He darts his eyes around quickly and I notice that they really are somewhat glossy. I try to think of a reason and wonder if he is on some sort of medication. He tilts his head, and his greasy green hair covers part of his face, blocking my view of his eyes.

The car stops at a red light, and that's when I hear it. The sound of high acceleration of a vehicle behind us. I turn my head, and see a large bulky motorcycle weaving through the cars behind us. Joker laughs happily, and says,

"Now. The fun can really begin!"

He grabs the handle of his door, and I cry out, "No!"

He pauses for a moment. "No? Why not?"

My mind races for an answer and after a moment, it hits. "Because that's not what regular people do. They don't fight against Batman. They let him fight for Gotham."

"You fought against him. Why can't I?" He chuckles darkly.

"Expressing Free Speech isn't fighting. It is an opinion. Stay in the car." I say firmly.

He seems to think for a moment, at war with himself.

"Fine." He spits. His hand releases the handle, and he sits back in his seat with a huff. "I didn't think that trying to be a respectful person would be so boring."

"It's not boring. It's just fine. And we can have fun."

"Oh boy!" He drips sarcasm. "Let's go window shopping, and buy a cotton candy! Woo!" His face is a scowl.

"That's tame. There are lots of other ways. But... you'll need to take off your paint."

"What?" His eyes go dark, and his lips turn down in a scowl.

"Well, you're kind of er...Conspicuous. You know?" I say quietly.

"No. No, I'm. Not." He crosses his arms, and I can tell he's not going to make that step yet.

"Okay." I say, raising my hands in front of me. "We don't have to do that yet."

He licks his lip, and looks at me darkly. My stomach drops, and I look down. I begin thinking that this was a mistake. But what other choice did I have? It's not like anyone could save me back there.

The motorcycle passes the window loudly.

Batman. He could save me right now. I just need to get out of the car. My hand reaches for the handle slowly. I don't want to catch the Joker's attention. I grasp it gently, and pause. I don't want to go back to Bruce Wayne. I don't want to go back to the GCPD. Sure I got out once before, but the odds were I probably wouldn't have been able to without the Joker. I guess in a way I owe him.

And who knows? Maybe if he really is trying, he will just let me go after a while. It's my only real chance.

I sigh, and let go of the handle. They say good things happen in time, right?

The motorcycle turns and comes spinning back toward us. The light turns green, and as the car pulls forward, Joker's driver asks, "Uh, Boss? Whaddo I do?"

"Turn. Get out of here." Joker says, still sulking.

The car lurches to the left, and we almost sideswipe a Ford. My head slams into the window, as Joker's body lurches into mine. He laughs hysterically, and I shove him off roughly. My head hurts, and tears form in my eyes as a reaction.

The Joker looks at me and his emotions cloud into something unrecognizable.

"I'm supposed to be good now, right?"

"Um, yeah." I say, rubbing my head. "That was the plan."

"Then why are we running from Batman?"

"Because... I don't know. That's what we are supposed to do." My tone is harsh because f the pain in my head.

"But good people don't run. They volunteer and turn themselves in." He starts smiling. "And that's just what I am going to do!"

"No!" I don't know why I want him to stay, but my arm reaches out impulsively toward him. "That's not a good idea!"

"Oh, on the contrary Lane, it is a marvelous idea." He laughs, and grabs the handle of the door.

I don't know what to say to him as I look at his hand.

"Oh well." He says, looking sadly at the floor. "At least you tried, Lane. But justice needs to be served, and well. I've been a bad man. They'll probably be nice, and just give me the lethal injection to do it; although the electric chair might be more entertaining."

He throws open the door and rolls backwards out of the car. I hear his laugh echo, and turn backwards in my seat. He is rolling on the ground, and Batman's motorcycle swerves to miss him. At first, Batman continues after the car, probably intent on my rescue. But gunshots ring out, and I that Joker has stood up, and is firing wildly all over the place. Batman turns around, realizing that Joker is the bigger threat, and speeds in his direction.

My view is cut off however, as the van turns again, and we are on a new street. One of Joker's men has reached out, and closed the door, and I hear the click of the locks.

"Where are we going?" I ask quietly.

No one answers me, and I repeat myself a little louder. With no answer a second time, I give up, and turn out the window. Why didn't Joker's men turn back? Why did they just let their leader give himself up like that? What if he doesn't come back?

What if they kill him?


We get back to the warehouse, and I walk inside in a daze. I'm still in shock, thinking about his last words about the death sentence. They wouldn't really kill him though right? He's criminally insane! They don't kill insane people. They aren't in control of themselves.

I feel dizzy, worrying about it. My vision blurs a bit, and I stumble trying to keep my balance. I'm seeing double, and I look at my hand. It blurs in and out of focus, and I dimly notice how slick and red it is.

Am I bleeding? How did that happen? Oh right, I hit my head on the window. Ouch.

I look back up and take another step. Wow, the world is spinning, and I can't see straight. I see a table a few feet away and try to walk to it. It rushes toward my face, and suddenly my vision turns black.

Sharp, hot pain slashes across my face and I grab it instinctively. My eyes fly open, and the lights above me are all I can comprehend. They are blinding me with their swaying brightness. I feel nausea building up inside me, and the last conscious thought I have is curiosity as I feel arms pick me up.


I wake up in a bed with a pounding headache. I don't know where I am, or how long I've been asleep. I'm just focused on the pressure on my head. It is the worst behind my left ear.

Boom Boom Boom... In time with my heartbeat.

I open my eyes slowly, and am happy to see that I am in a dark room. The darkness allows my eyes to adjust, and I lay in silence for a moment. I reach up and put my hand over my eyes.

I feel something on my right cheek, and remember the Joker. Oh no! How long have I been asleep? Is he back?

Curious, I feel my cheek even more. Whatever it is, it's rough and hard and starts from the edge of my cheek, and reaches almost to the bridge of my nose. After a few seconds of touching it, it starts to hurt. My memory seems foggy, and I realize I must have hurt myself somehow.

I sit up slowly, and it increases the pounding in my head so much that, for a moment, it's all I comprehend. When it subsides a little, I try to collect my thoughts.

The Joker may, or may not be in Arkham right now. In fact, there are so many possibilities of his whereabouts that I decide to save that one for later.

I am in his warehouse-hideout place right now.

Thump.

I am not sure when I can leave.

Thump.

I don't know if Bruce and Alfred are alright.

Thump.

I don't even know if they are hurt.

Thump.

What is that noise?

Thump.

It is coming from somewhere close by, and I close my eyes to try and hear it better. Is someone else here?

"Hello?" My voice is scratchy.

Thump.

"Can you hear me?"

Thump.

"Does that mean 'yes'?"

Thump.

I shake my head, confused. The pounding of my headache is making this all questionable. I don't even know what to do right now.

I lay back down, and close my eyes. I don't even have the energy to try and figure out what the noise is. Or if it is even real.

Maybe I'm going crazy...


Okay, I know the Joker just got back, and now he's gone again, so my bad, I'm sorry. :) Don't kill me!

Hope you all enjoyed it!

What do you think she's gonna do next? What was the Thumping noise?

Reviews are awesome! ;) Just saying...