"Got someone waiting at home for me, staring at the door…"

The Joker walked between the containers, knife out, a mixture of humming, singing and whistling as he stalked his prey. Or was he the prey, stalking out the predator in a futile attempt to get revenge?

Jonathan thought he was.

"Tomorrow she'll probably disown me, happy no more. Keep falling into shadows…"

He felt something strange in his chest for the second time that night. The first was when he heard that Batman was down, but now that thought only brought him rage. He spun the knife, it needed a target, it was looking for its victim.

It had been too long.

"I'm playing in the shadows, all night long. So good to play with bad girls, I'm still young. They keep on saying… Hal-lo."

Bane was right there in front of him. Sitting on his arse, staring into a shipping container full of stuff like a dog who had been left outside but really wanted to be in. The Joker didn't blame him, it was cold and rainy, his impressive coat drenched, the fog sweeping over them and hiding him from view as he was on the river side. He was at an advantage, providing he could keep quiet. He liked to think Bane didn't know he was there.

"I know what they want. You'll find me in the shadows," he muttered, suppressing a giggle that wanted to force its way out into the tension. He felt like the whisper alone had cut through the night like his knife wanted to cut through Bane's muscles. He wondered whether they'd pop if he stabbed them, and didn't manage to suppress the laughter.

Stupid reflex.

Bane turned round, his huge body practically creaking from the strain of having to move. The Joker could see every bit of sinew and every prominent vein twitching and felt slightly nauseated. He didn't move, staying motionless behind the veil of fog.

"Who's there?" Bane asked, his voice rumbling like thunder through the silence of the night. Maybe he felt the tension too, the Joker thought, gleefully. Maybe Bane wouldn't feed on it like he did.

He was definitely a big guy, the Joker mused, Jonathan was right about that, and the pipes sticking into his back were fairly… wrong. He was more intelligent than he'd counted on too, by the looks of it, he still hadn't turned back to stare at the container. Maybe that was just the fight or flight mechanism.

"C'mon. Show yourself. If you're cops you know I can beat you hands down."

The Joker chuckled to himself and hung his coat up on one of the shipping container doors, his gloves in one of the pockets. He didn't want to fight in that. He wanted to feel Bane's blood on his skin. He then walked forwards through the mist, pulling his shirt sleeves up against the cold air.

"Not cops, no. Just me."

Bane narrowed his eyes, and then relaxed slightly. Bad move, the Joker thought.

"Joker?"
"M-hm."
"Nice to meet you, finally."
"It is?"

Bane didn't detect the sarcasm in his voice and nodded. The Joker rolled his eyes.

"Come to congratulate me?"
"Something like that."

…

Jonathan dug his foot into the wire links of the fence and climbed up, easily swinging himself over and jumping down. He landed feet first, his knees bent absorbing the shock effectively so he could stand up and walk without issue. He wondered how the hell the Joker had managed that with his dodgy hip, since he'd not land well at all, just throw himself over the top and down to the ground on the other side.

Jonathan was cold, his feet, his arms, his legs, his chest, his face… His eyes were peppered with rainwater and he was glad for the contact lenses so he didn't have to keep wiping his glasses clean, his lungs felt like they were freezing inside. Some hero he was gonna be. Not that he'd ever wanted to be a hero. He was always, if anything, the other end of the spectrum.

He wished he'd thought to wear something better than that suit. It was not in any way adapted for foul weather. And his shoes were leaking.

He shook himself from this train of thought, remembering why he was here and what could be happening beyond him. All was quiet, and that was strange. Unless… Jonathan gulped. It was better not to think about what could have already happened to the Joker. He didn't want to see the green haired figure lying in a puddle somewhere covered in blood.

He wouldn't get the same reception from the pubic, anyway…

Jonathan followed the path he'd taken to the shipping container and committed to memory through the mist to where he imagined the Joker to be. Maybe Bane wasn't here. Maybe he could convince him not to fight.

"Something like that? I took down Batman! Gotham's yours for the taking."

The Joker growled, and Jonathan froze, mixed joy at him being okay and fear at what was coming next. He was close, close enough to see the Joker's coat hanging up on one of the container door handles.

"You broke the Bat! Why would I ever be grateful for that?" he shouted. "I didn't want Gotham, I ne-ver wanted Gotham! I wanted him, corrupt, down to my level!"
"But he's… evil."
"He's not evil. There's no such thing as evil! There's just a ridiculous delusion in your head about a demon bat that you've personified as Batman. Hah. And they call me crazy."

Bane stood up, Jonathan could see the figure clambering to his feet, he could feel the metal of the containers shaking as he did so.

"Ooh, you think that's scary? Hmm? I'm not scared of you, Bane. I never will be. So come on then. Lt's see if you can take me down as easily. But just remember, I have no rules."

Jonathan didn't know whether to laugh or cry when the Joker flicked a playing card at Bane and it embedded itself into his upper arm, narrowly missing one of the tubes buried in his flesh. The thing went deep, and Jonathan had to admire the Joker's sick sense of humour when he created them. Thin, light, and yet with every movement it dug into the sinew further. Bane howled and the Joker laughed, a sound Jonathan had never heard before. Something feral and mad. He wondered whether he should step in or not, whether the Joker needed his help, whether the Joker wanted his help.

And then Bane lurched forward and picked him up by the shoulders, about two foot wider and a foot taller than the Joker, still laughing in his grip. Bane reached for the Joker's throat and Scarecrow took over.

A/N: The song in this (and the previous chapter) is another Brit recent-hit. Although I don't think it was ever released as a single... Not yet, anyway. It's called Playing in the Shadows by Example and it's fairly atmospheric and pretty incredible for a chapter like this. :). If you're ever bored, check these things out. It's amazing what you miss when you're in another country. I've listened to some incredible stuff via American fanfic.
Also, this and the next chapter were going to be published together in the same chapter, but I had to split them up because 7 pages on Word is *way* too much for a chapter on here.