According To Plan

A/N: Ah, it's been so long! I'm so sorry! School started and I've been so stressed out. I hate to keep you guys waiting. It's currently five in the morning and I havent slept at all -_- I promise to reply to your reviews in the next chapter my dears. A friend of mine bet 20 dollars on the fact that I wouldnt reach 300 by chapter 30...Help me prove the bastard wrong, I want to see his defeated face :D Anyway, here it is! Bare with me it's not my best, as I said before school stresses me out and Im sure it shows in this chapter. Enjoy, my dears!

A black Escalade made its way down a lonely road. The gravel beneath the tires crunched as the truck picked up speed. The occupants inside were nodding off due to the several days they had gone without rest.

The Joker closed his eyes briefly and leaned against the back seat. His legs were stretched out in front of him. He disregarded the comfort of the goon who had the clown's shoe digging into his ribs. He could hear his bones popping as he rolled his shoulders and neck. The men around him shuddered and kept their distance when they noticed how tense he was.

"I heard he took down the Nazis yesterday," Chuckles, one of his goons, whispered looking out of the window. The Joker ignored the man and clenched his jaw; he could feel his teeth grinding against one another. The last thing he wanted was to hear of Bane's latest accomplishment. His headache seemed to return full force as soon as the man in question resurfaced in his thoughts.

"Took them down? He practically blew the place up," Happy added. The clown bit down on the scars on the inside of his cheeks when he heard his men. There was no way Bane was going to take his place in Gotham, he didn't care how many people he had to kill to get his point across. He was the one who blew things sky high, not a masked…freak-ah. The Joker chuckled to himself when the word rang through his thoughts.

"He practically has control over the Narrows now," Blade commented catching the Joker's attention. The clown's eyes snapped open and shot over to the young goon warningly. The men who had been sitting near him drew away instinctively. They knew how unpredictable the clown was by now. The Narrows belonged to him, they always would.

They flinched when the Joker pulled out his knife and clicked it open. Blood sprayed onto their black jackets and the tinted windows when the clown drove the blade into the neck of the goon who had been near him. He twisted it in and grinned maniacally when the man choked on his own blood.

Chuckles found himself inching away from his boss discreetly. The last thing he wanted was to draw attention to himself when the clown was maiming another man. Happy cleared his throat nervously and looked away when blood splattered onto his lips. He wasn't going to open his mouth and protest, he wanted to live another day. They watched in horror as the clown continued to slice the unlucky goon's neck.

The Joker started to cackle as the sound of his knife slashing away at flesh and bone reached his ears. An image of Monica yelling at him flashed through his mind briefly before he felt himself snap. He pictured it was her he was slicing away at instead of his goon. He wasn't going to have her yelling at him when he was one of Gotham's most feared criminals. The clown merely wondered why he hadn't killed her then and there. He shrugged the thought off, no matter; he would kill her sooner or later. Her death was the last thing he should be concerned about.

He growled in the back of his throat before driving the knife into the man's chest. The goon's body convulsed, barely alive, as the blade cut down his body. The Joker's vision blackened as blood sprayed onto his exposed teeth. By now the crimson liquid had drenched his coat and gloves, giving them an eerie gleam whenever they passed a street light. The metallic taste heightened his senses and shook away the feeling of sleep that had been bothering him before.

The goon that was driving glanced at his boss through the rearview mirror with a disturbed expression on his face. When the goon was beyond recognition, face slashed and torn, the Joker reached behind him and opened the back door to the Escalade. He saw no point in continuing when the man was dead. He wouldn't feel a thing anymore; there was no point in wasting his energy if the goon couldn't register pain. With a brief push of his hand the dead body fell out of the moving truck and landed harshly on the streets outside. He hummed in content; he would do the same to Monica once he was done using her.

The Joker smiled to himself and slammed the door shut with sadistic pleasure. He would enjoy himself greatly when it came time to finish the young tattoo artist. He brushed his hair back into place with a bloodied hand leaving behind a crimson trail on the side of his face. His goons were pressed up against one another in an attempt to keep themselves as far away as they possibly could from him.

The clown considered killing another just for the thrill of it. He somehow managed to restrain himself when his mind reminded him of the task at hand. The Joker motioned for Blade to sit next to him after a brief moment of silence.

The young goon hesitated, afraid of his boss's fury at the moment. He found his body moving despite his mind telling him to jump out of the truck while he still had the chance. His body froze next to the clown when he felt the man lean towards him. The blood on the seat he was sitting stiffly in stained his clothes and made him shudder.

Blade's breath hitched when he felt the blade pressed up against his cheek seconds after it was clicked open by the clown. Happy glanced nervously at the Joker when he saw his knife near the younger goon's lips. The clown's dark eyes never made contact with Blade's; they were directed at the goons behind him.

"Mention Bane again…and I'll gut all of you and leave your bodies out in the streets for all of Gotham to see," the clown whispered in Blade's ear. The rest of his goons heard the menacing tone he had used and flinched when they saw the clown drag his knife across Blade's cheek. The young goon forgot to breathe when the Joker wiped off the blood on the blade over his skin.

The goons around them sighed in relief when they noticed he hadn't carved Blade's face. In fact the Joker went out of his way to avoid cutting him and leaving a mark on his cheek. He wasn't going to have a doppelganger of himself running around. The Joker pulled away, content with the silence that he got in return from his men. He realized how long they were taking in getting to their destination. A sigh escaped through his scarred lips, waiting had never been his strong point.

"If I don't get there in the next minute you're next!" the joker barked warningly looking at the driver. The goon nodded nervously and increased the speed drastically looking at the clown through the mirror nervously. The psychopath turned away from his goon and clenched his fist in anticipation. He was going to take Bane down tonight, he had to. The masked man had become a problem that he could no longer ignore; he couldn't afford to have him interfering with his plans.

"Shit watch the road!" Happy yelled bracing himself when he saw the spike strip that had been thrown out to stop them. The Joker turned sharply and cursed the stupidity of his goons when he saw the trap. Of course Bane would be expecting them; he had been surprised they had made it that far without being ambushed. He wrapped an arm over the headrest of the seat in front of him to steady himself as the tires went out and the truck spun uncontrollably.

The rest of his goons grabbed whatever they could in desperation before the Escalade tipped over and flipped several times. The sound of breaking glass and metal being scraped on the pavement was the only thing that could be heard before the truck skid to a halt.

The occupants all crashed down onto the roof of the car upon finding it upside down. The Joker shook his head and tried to get air back into his lungs. The collision had certainly done a number on his body; he could feel blood trickling down the side of his head. A light laugh escaped through his lips, Bane sure knew how to greet his enemies.

He clawed at the pavement outside of the window and crawled out slowly despite the pain that was shooting through his body. His gloved hand grasped the shattered glass around him in his attempt to get out of the wrecked Escalade. Blood dripped down from his spilt lip and left behind a trail as he dragged himself away from the truck.

The clown flipped over onto his back once he was out and groaned when the familiar taste of blood filled his mouth. He turned his head and spit the foul liquid out with displeasure before hissing in pain. A shard of glass that dug into his upper arm was pulled out harshly after he got a good hold of it. He threw it aside and managed to sit up with a pitiful laugh. He was amazed that he was still breathing.

His hand reached up and wiped across his forehead before he brought it down and looked at it grimly. The white makeup had mixed with the red in his blood. The Joker braced himself before standing; his legs gave out as soon as he started to walk. He stumbled and fell over once more, he grit his teeth in irritation. Wave after wave of pain assaulted him.

Happy and Chuckles both managed to get out of the Escalade with minor injuries. They reached inside and managed to drag Blade's unconscious body out in order to get a better look at him. After making sure that he would live their attention was brought back to the clown a few feet away from them.

"Boss, are you ok?" Chuckles asked with worry once he saw the amount of blood that the clown had coughed up. The Joker's vision blurred for a brief moment as he stared down at the black pavement. His arms shook uncontrollably when a sudden chill settled over him. He had probably broken rib or two; with his luck it had punctured a lung. That would have explained the blood he kept coughing up.

"Peachy," the clown replied through clenched teeth. He attempted to stand once more but gave up when his body refused to move. Shuffling came from a nearby alley which he ignored completely. A pair of black boots appeared in front of him moments later.

"You're a hard man to locate," Bane's deep voice informed him. The Joker smiled despite himself and continued to stare down at the ground. The arms that had been supporting his weight gave away. Bane pulled the clown up by the collar of his shirt and held him in place to see the damage that he had sustained from the crash.

"You could have asked me to pull over nicely instead of ruining my car," the clown chuckled lowly. Blood continued to run down the side of his face and chin. Bane seemed oblivious to this; he continued to study the man in his hold intently.

Chuckles stood to help his boss only to find himself surrounded by Bane's men. He turned to look at Happy who remained next to Blade and noticed he was in a similar predicament. With guns pointed at them there was no way they were going to be able to help the clown a few feet away.

"How many times have you tried to kill me?" the masked man asked refusing to let go of the other out of pure hate. The Joker's eyes locked with Bane's for a brief moment before he smiled at him. His bloodied Cheshire smile mocked the other man and tried his patience.

"Too many to count," the Joker replied clicking his tongue. Bane ignored the clown and nodded briefly at his men. The Joker heard the familiar rustling of clothes and guns being raised before two thuds reached his ears. He resisted the urge to sigh; his men had been rendered unconscious by being hit with guns?

What was the world coming to?

"You're ruining the suit, sunshine," the clown snapped noticing the way Bane's hold increased on his clothes. The masked man returned his attention to the clown before resisting the urge to growl at him. The Joker was irritating to him, more than he had giving him credit for.

"Your blood has already 'ruined' it," Bane pointed out hearing the familiar sound of police sirens in the background. They had to leave soon; he didn't feel like dealing with Gotham's police force at the moment. The Joker merely spit the blood in his mouth onto Bane's vest.

"Now we're even," the clown pointed out with another cackle. The Joker took note when he noticed Bane's muscles tense with aggravation. To say that he wasn't enjoying himself would have been a lie. He took pride in the fact that he was able to unnerve the other man with such ease.

"Let's go," Bane snapped turning to look at his men. The clown in his hold sighed when he realized what he was about to do. Without a second through Bane pulled his hand back and clenched his fist. The blow that he delivered to the Joker's face was enough to render him unconscious and break his nose.

Bane merely threw the clown over his shoulder and walked over to the van that was waiting for him. He hurled the man in his hold onto the metal floor of the truck. The Joker's three surviving goons were tossed in after him rather unceremoniously.

The drive to Bane's current hideout was silent and uneventful. The masked man walked in with the Joker over his shoulder before he let him fall onto the floor beneath him. The small thud that followed didn't seem to faze Bane. He disregarded the blood that still oozed out of the other man as he wrapped chains around his ankles and slipped a hook onto them.

Bane merely stepped back and watched as his men hoisted the clown onto a hook before pulling him off of the ground. The masked man stepped away and headed back outside to carry out the rest of his plan. Having the Joker in one place came with an advantage, Bane knew exactly where he was.

The clown's body remained upside down, swinging back and forth slightly before stopping all together. A puddle of blood had accumulated beneath him by the time he started to stir. He opened his eyes in confusion once he noticed he was hanging from a hook in an unknown warehouse.

A soft groan escaped through his lips when his chest constricted in pain making it harder to breathe. One of his hands rested above his lower ribs in an attempt to soothe the pain. His eyes clenched in pain when he finally found the source. Three of his ribs were broken; one of them was particularly more painful than the others.

"You're pretty banged up, aren't you?" one of Bane's men commented when he noticed the clown had finally regained consciousness. The Joker turned to look at him with a murderous look in his eyes; he was in no mood to be mocked by a hired gunman.

He noticed his goons were nowhere to be seen. Perhaps Bane had killed them already, he wouldn't have been surprised. His mind didn't hesitate to point out that he wasn't getting out of his predicament any time soon unless he came up with a plan.

"Would you let me down from here?" he asked the man turning his body to look at him once more. The man looked at the clown with a blank expression. Of course he wasn't letting him down, what did he think he was, a fool?

"I bet you'd like that," he replied shaking his head at the psychopath. The Joker sighed and nodded in fake understanding.

"I guess I'll just, uh, use my knife to pick the lock," he informed the man reaching into his coat. The guard panicked instantly upon seeing this and motioned for the other to lower the clown. He thought they had searched him before hanging him on the hook.

The Joker had to hide the smile on his face as he felt the pair of idiots lowering his body. Of course they had stripped him of all of his knifes. He was amazed that the guards had fallen for his little act. As soon as he was able to he reached over and snapped the neck of the first guard. The other panicked and rose his gun to shoot the clown. His face paled when he noticed the Joker had taken the handgun from the fallen guard and had it aimed at his head.

"Nothing personal," the clown told him before he pulled the trigger. The shot rang out through the warehouse before the Joker shifted. He looked up at the lock around his ankles before aiming carefully. He shot it and laughed triumphantly when it gave away before it faded into a groan. His body crashed down onto the floor irritating the bruises and broken bones that he already had.

He hissed in agony and clutched his side while he grit his teeth. A smile spread through his face despite the obvious pain that he was in. He had never felt that alive, not even when ran into the Bat. He stood shakily still holding his side before tossing his green hair back with his bloodied hand. His neck cracked when he tilted his head and shrugged his shoulders.

"Now…where's the exit?" he asked himself while looking around. "Ah, there it is!" he exclaimed dramatically when he noticed the bright red sign above a door a few feet away. He shuffled over to it pausing from time to time to catch his breath.

He pushed the door open with difficulty before a bright light blinded him and guns were pointed at him. The droning of radios and car engines informed the clown that it was none other than Gotham's police force. He had to give Bane credit; he had thought this out well. The masked man had left him in a warehouse on purpose. He wanted the clown to be found by the police.

"You're under arrest," a police officer snarled walking over to him and slipping on the hand cuffs. The Joker grinned at the man finding something familiar about him.

"Have we met before?" the clown asked mockingly as he was hurled onto the hood of one of the police cars. The police officer seemed to want to inflict as much pain as he was allowed to. The Joker glanced back at him with apparent amusement.

"Dante, take it easy," another officer warned the man who held the clown. The Joker's eyes gleamed when he heard the name, it ran a bell. He couldn't place where he had heard it before.

"This bastard was the one who kidnapped my sister, don't tell me to take it easy," Dante snapped back. The Joker laughed when he heard the man, so that was where he knew him from. He wouldn't have guessed he was related to Monica. The two seemed to be complete opposites.

The flashes of red and blue lights around him did little to ease the clown. He sighed in irritation as another officer searched him. Not that it mattered; he didn't have anything on him due to Bane's previous inspection.

"Clean, that's odd," the man commented as Dante narrowed his eyes and peeled the clown off of the hood. He shoved him towards the back of a car and resisted the urge to kick him inside just because it would have been unprofessional of him. Truth be told, all he wanted to do was beat the clown to a bloody pulp. He held back for the sake of his title and his sister. He would have to inform her of the clown's capture later.

"Can I use my phone call?" The Joker asked turning to look at Dante, smiling from ear to ear. The police officer shuddered at the bloodied smile the clown was offering before noticing how beat up he truly was. Blood covered every inch of his vest and coat.

"I'll see to it that you don't get one," Dante replied slamming the door shut with disgust. The Joker chuckled despite himself when he noticed the young officer storm away. He was surprised he was related to Monica.

His thoughts were cut short when he noticed three of his goons being dragged out of the warehouse. So Bane hadn't killed them after all. They were all thrown into different cars much like him.

The Joker snapped his head up when another police officer entered the car and turned it on. The rumble of the engine soothed the clown for a brief moment.

"Are we going back to the police station?" the clown asked with pure glee, "Did you fix the hole in the wall that I blew up last time?"

The response that he got was the one that he had wanted to hear. For once everything was going according to plan; he had Bane to thank for that. He ran his tongue over his bottom lip in anticipation; Gotham would finally fall into chaos.

"You're going home," the police officer commented hoping to unnerve the psychopath with his answer, "You're going to Arkham Asylum."

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