What Goes Around, Comes Around

Pairing: Joker/OC

Rating: K+

Warnings: Cursing. Or not. I'm not sure what qualifies anymore.

A/N: I had the entire story planned when I first started writing it back in the day. I don't know if I've mentioned this but I lost the entire folder a while ago before getting a new laptop. So from around chapter sixteen or something, I'd been writing everything from scratch. Since I lost my planner. It has occurred to me that I'm reeaaally good at losing stuff. Oh well. Anyway, the other day I was going through my One Drive and guess what I found? THE OLD STORY PLANNER. And the original plot was so good that I'm going back to it. Not sure how I'll do it but I am. So yes, ladies and gentlemen, after nine or so chapters not being part of the original storyline, we're back to the original storyline. With a bijillion edits, of course. ENJOY! Plot twists are afloat!

P.S IMPORTANT! We need to decide if Misha and Jack are having a boy or a girl. I'd originally decided on twins but that seemed too cliché. Suggestions are welcome.

P.P.S I BECAME A GOD MOTHER. AGAIN. BUT TO THE CUTEST BABY BOY IN THE WORLD.

Chapter Twenty Four- Negligible Aspiration

The next few weeks went by slowly. Wayne Manor's reconstruction was almost complete and Bruce was awfully busy with that. Apparently he wanted everything to be the way it was. Needless to say, Misha found herself dividing her time between doing actual office work and scheduling appointments with interior designers for Bruce. There was a lot to do but Misha had it under control.

Jack, on the other hand, didn't think so.

"You're working too hard," he told her as he watched get ready for work one Saturday morning.

"Huh, no I'm not," she replied immediately.

"You know, now's a good time to take a break," Jack went on as though she hadn't said anything. "What do you say?"

Misha rolled her eyes. Ever since she'd told him, Jack had become even more protective of her than before. She hadn't thought that that could be possible. But it was. And she hated it.

A lot.

"I say no," she said, "I'm only a month along."

"Two months."

"What?"

"You're two months along," Jack scoffed.

"Whatever." Inwards she was wondering how she'd forgotten that. "I'm not going on a break right now," she told him, "I plan on going on maternity leave in a few months and I don't want my application to be rejected."

"As if it will be," he retorted.

Misha chose to ignore that. "It'll be up to HR to give me maternity leave. Not Bruce," she informed him.

"Aren't you part of HR?" he asked her honestly.

"I am," she agreed, "but there are twenty other people. I can't slack off and then ask for a leave. That's just pathetic."

Jack grinned. "Only you would have such rigid principles, Mish," he told her.

"Eh, what can I say? I'm one of a kind," she responded.

"That you are," he agreed before kissing her. "I'll see you at five."

"Yes you will," she agreed, "I've got nothing but tax returns to file today."

With that and a quick good bye, she left their apartment complex and made her way to work. Since it was a Saturday, traffic was relatively less than it was on a week day. That certainly helped with her patience. Misha was particularly impatient when it came to traffic and that was one of the reasons why Jack didn't let her drive often. Something to do with her blood pressure but Misha never focused on that bit.

She was almost at work when she got a text- well, a series of texts- from Bruce.

"Can you come at the Manor? Thanks. "

"P.S I got Bart to do the tax stuff."

"Did you know that he's a tax lawyer?"

"Anyway, Wayne Manor. Would appreciate it."

Even though she found it a little annoying, Misha grinned. She didn't have it in her to be mad at Bruce. For long anyway.

"I'll be right there," she text back before driving to the new venue.

After an hour's drive, she arrived at Wayne Manor. Which was supposed to be complete. Or so, Bruce had claimed. It didn't look very complete to Misha as she got out of her car and walked into Bruce's house. It looked empty. And haunted. Granted, the walls were rebuilt and the place didn't look charred anymore but still- it looked ancient. Make that, very ancient.

Misha reminded herself that there were far more things to be worried about in the world than the manor.

"Anybody here?" she called aloud as she got in.

"Back here!" she heard Bruce's voice. She walked further into the manor, past the entrance lobby thing and the dinning room and the parlour (who the hell had a parlour in this day and age?!) until she reached a big, empty, unpainted room with a massive fireplace.

"Hey," she greeted Bruce and Alfred.

"Great," Bruce said after nodding a hello to her. Alfred was more vocal about his greeting. "Now, you must be wondering why I called you here."

"No shit," Misha scoffed at his observation.

"Anyway, Alfred knows but I reckoned it was time someone else knew about this anyway," he stated before walking towards the fireplace and pulling at one of the panels. Slowly, and strangely quietly, the fireplace began to fall inwards.

"What is that?" Misha asked immediately. The scene reminded her of the Chamber of Secrets scene in Harry Potter.

"Secret passage to the Bat Cave," he informed her. "But that's not all. There are six more passages throughout the manor which I wanted to show you. One of them leads to Wayne Enterprises and another to the docks. Also, I was thinking of adding two more. What do you say, Alfred?"

"I say, it better be a good one. These passages have been a secret for a quite a few decades," he responded immediately.

"Okay," Bruce agreed, looking around in what seemed to be deep thought. "I wanted to build a safe house in case something happened. Two safe houses to be safe."

"Paranoid much?" Misha quipped.

"What? No! Just being cautious. Now, help me look for a new secret passage location."

"That's literally the silliest thing I've heard all day."

Bruce rolled his eyes at that one.

Jack didn't know what to do which in itself was strange since he always had something to do. Lately he and Gordon had been scheming together and had (successfully) managed to bust a few (read: forty two) relatively minor and common criminals. It wasn't much-at least to him- but Gordon made a huge deal about it. Of course, the police station in general didn't know much about it apart from the fact that Gordon just happened to what was going with the criminals but he and Jack had a little private celebration at Gordon's place. A little whiskey and cigar.

Jack didn't like the latter much.

It was strange because he used to be a heavy smoker before.

He reckoned it was one of the things the Joker explicitly preferred that he himself didn't really like.

Speaking of the Joker, it had been several weeks since he'd seen the Joker's old gang. He'd been spinning them in circles, distracting them long enough so Gordon could get the job done. He hoped it would end soon. He dreaded meeting them. These days they frightened him even more. Jack reckoned it was because he was finally becoming saner.

He hadn't had to play Joker in weeks. He could meet them on his own terms without the madman.

After weeks of plotting, scheming and planning, everything had finally paid off and Gordon had decided to take it slow. They were going after the big guys now. The Joker's gang and the mob.

Personally, he wanted the gang in before the mob but Gordon thought so differently.

Jack wondered how he'd convince him otherwise.

Of course, he understood why Gordon wanted them in last. If they realized what was happening before they took the mob in, there was a high chance that the crazies would leak information to the mob which would ruin everything. As it was the mob was questioning Harvey Dent's authority and the laws they'd enforced in his honour.

Harvey Dent.

Jack sighed. Although he was normally able to not think about most of the Joker's victims, the impact of the madman on Dent's life often haunted him. He'd not only manipulated the man so badly that he'd lost his mind but he'd also killed Rachel, his fiancée.

Also known as the woman Bruce Wayne loved.

According to Misha.

He hadn't exactly been able to confirm it from anyone else because, well, it was a sensitive issue.

Needless to say, it made him feel even more guilty about what he'd done to the man.

If only he'd never gone back...

He'd had it well with Misha. If it hadn't been for his stupid comeback, they would've been better off. Maybe Misha wasn't wrong about wanting to move cities after all.

There was just too much baggage in Gotham.

For both of them.

It wouldn't be an easy choice thought. Misha had only mentioned moving once or twice a long time ago (read: two to three months ago) and he wasn't even sure if she wanted to go ahead with it anymore. He knew they'd have to talk about it eventually but for now it was just one of those topics. The ones they ignored that is.

He had no idea how to bring about the topic. He did, however, know that Misha had in fact been job hunting for a while for a few weeks after she got pregnant before stopping. He had also seen the letter she'd received from one Jefferson & Finch in Metropolis, offering her a job but she hadn't said anything yet and so he had let it be. He also knew that she wouldn't pick Metropolis because it was too close to Gotham. New York wasn't high on her list either. Misha wanted a fresh start and none of the cities he'd ever been seemed to appeal to her. He didn't really have to worry about deciding a city though; it was only a matter of time now before they talked about it and he had already decided that he'd respect her decision. No matter what it was.

That didn't stop him from making the most of Gotham though.

He liked Gotham.

Even though it was a shit city- according to Misha.

And Gotham was particularly kind when it came to promotions of goods and stuff. And yes, Jack was totally going overboard with the baby shopping. He'd even started converted their guest room into a nursery which Misha absolutely hated because it was "too early." He didn't think so and so he'd already painted it a nice, bright shade of yellow and had already started picking out furniture.

Misha wasn't amused.

But then, she often wasn't and Jack knew how to get her on board. Besides, between work and herself, Misha didn't have time to shop for baby stuff and so Jack had gladly taken over the responsibilities. It was perfectly OK. Every parent shopped for their kid.

Jack tried reasoning with himself but he couldn't shake off this feeling that he was being watched and that made him cautious. The last thing he wanted was his enemies finding out about the new person- because that's how he referred to their baby since he didn't know the gender yet- in his family.

That would ruin everything.