Bruce had just been sitting in his penthouse for the last few days. Alfred and everyone had returned and Bruce had ignored whatever Alfred had to say about the Joker. It hadn't been much and Alfred had left him alone when he realized that Bruce hadn't been listening. Bruce had kept his eyes on the news to see if the Joker had been captured, but there had just been a lot of crime unrelated to the Joker. The Batman hadn't been showing up, so the criminals ran wild, giving the police force something more to do. Which was probably why Gordon hadn't come knocking at his door. He was too busy to make Bruce Wayne a suspect.
He tried thinking of ways to get in contact with the Joker, but nothing showed for it. He had even put in a call at Arkham Asylum, but the Joker wasn't there. What gave him the idea that the Joker would actually turn himself in? Jack would have, but as the Joker had said, he was no longer that same person. Bruce tried to accept that, but that was the hardest thing of all. He still wouldn't give up on Jack whether or not the Joker was in Gotham anymore.
Every moment he always expected to turn around and see the Joker there, but he remained alone. He got to his feet and headed upstairs to his bedroom for a quick shower, needing something to do. Once he was dressed, he left the penthouse, still expecting the Joker to pop out of some hiding place and things would go back to the hectic way it had been the last week. And if the Joker did pop up anywhere, Bruce knew he would immediately run away with him.
If the Joker still wanted him.
He sighed as he got into his car, checking the backseat, but it was empty. He sighed once more as he looked forward. He started the car then drove off, finding himself driving out to Arkham Asylum. He headed inside, trying to think of a reason why Bruce Wayne would be here when someone asked, but couldn't think of anything that would make sense. He stepped up to the front desk, ringing the bell for the receptionist. She came out a few minutes later, pausing when she saw him.
"Hi," Bruce said with a slight wave of his hand. "I just came here to ask about a patient that might be here." He had already checked here, why did he need to do so again?
"Okay," she said, sitting down at the computer. She looked at him. "Name?"
"The Joker."
She didn't even have to check on the computer. "We don't have anyone here by that name," she said. "Sorry."
"What about Jack Napier?" Bruce asked, knowing that that would be a dead end.
She checked on the computer. "Yes, we have someone by that name," she said then looked at him. "Arrived just this morning." From the way she spoke, she didn't know Jack was the Joker. And by her reaction of hearing "the Joker," she clearly didn't even know who that was. Was she that oblivious to what went on in Gotham? "You'll have to have a guard to escort you."
Bruce nodded then thanked her. She went to get him the escort and a few minutes later he was on his way to see the Joker.
As they walked down the halls, Bruce was puzzling over why the Joker was here. It hadn't been that long since the Joker hadn't wanted to be here. Had he really changed his mind that fast? With the Joker it was possible, but why turn himself in all of a sudden? It didn't make any sense to Bruce and hoped the Joker would clarify things for him.
The guard stopped at a cell then left him there. Bruce watched him go then turned to the cell, seeing the Joker stand up and walk over to the door, not looking surprised to see Bruce here.
"What are you doing here?" Bruce asked. Even though he had said that this would have been for the Joker's good, he didn't want the Joker to be here and he was pissed that the Joker hadn't talked about this with him. "Kind of out of the blue and out of character, don't you think? The way you walked out-"
"I love you."
Bruce was taken aback by that and didn't say anything for a long moment. He looked around then back at the Joker. "Excuse me?" he asked, unable to say anything else. He didn't know how to react to this. This was a sudden change of everything.
"I'm broken without you," the Joker said. "And before you start thinking I turned myself in, I didn't. Gordon picked me up last night. Spent the night in jail then got shipped here." He looked around his cell. "It's worse than I imagined." He sighed.
"I'm getting you out of here."
The Joker looked at him. "I'm supposed to be the crazy one here."
"The problems aren't you or me," Bruce said. "It's Gotham and everything it represents to us. Around every corner there's a reminder of what we once had and that pisses you off because of the way I broke things off between us."
"You're just now figuring that out?"
"I want to run away from Gotham with you," Bruce said, trying not to think about his responsibilities here. But hadn't Gotham done just fine before Batman? Other than the Joker, there were no threats to the city. Everything would be fine if he left. Some people would even be happy that the Batman was gone. "And that'll be hard to do with you locked up in here." He paused for a moment when something just occurred to him. "You're listed here under Jack Napier. Gordon found out who you are?"
"Kinda not hard once you put the pieces together," the Joker said. "After all, it wasn't that hard for you to find out."
"Because I know your history."
"So does a criminal record."
Bruce pushed it aside since it was unimportant. "I'm gonna go talk to someone and get you released," he said, turning and starting away.
"Like you did at that other hospital?"
Bruce stopped and turned back. "Joker-"
"I can already picture that meeting," the Joker said, leaning against the door of his cell. "You walk in, all prepared to argue your point across until someone listens, but they stop you from saying anything by convincing you that this is the best thing for me. That it's safer for everyone. In your heart, you'll argue, but you'll be convinced and agree that I should stay. Then you leave without seeing me ever again."
Bruce walked back over to the cell. Without a word, he knelt down and started picking the lock. Even as Bruce Wayne, he hardly went anywhere without some gadget on him. He needed to be prepared for anything, after all. He got the lock open in record time. He stood up and stepped back as he opened the door. The Joker just stood there, speechless.
"You were saying?" Bruce asked, but the Joker didn't answer. "Let's get the hell out of here."
"How?" the Joker asked. "Are we just gonna walk right by the guards?" He stepped out of the cell, but didn't look like he was ready to go anywhere. Was this place getting to him? It was eerily quiet.
"I can handle the guards," Bruce said then started walking. The Joker hurried after him, staying silent. Surprising. He must be worried if he wasn't jabbering all of the time.
They headed down the hall, Bruce keeping an eye out for any guards. "There wasn't that many guards that I saw around," he said, peeking around one corner then looked at the Joker. "If we're careful, we'll be able to just walk out."
"What about the cameras?"
Bruce hadn't thought about the security cameras, but it wouldn't be hard to erase the footage. That evidence would be gone before the police even realized that the Joker was gone. "I'll take care of that later," he said then turned and started down another hall.
"How exactly?" the Joker asked, following after him. "Are you some computer genius?"
"Yes, actually," Bruce said, thinking that that was a rather dumb question. He looked at the Joker. "How smart do you think I am?"
"Average?"
"Try a little above average."
"I'm not complimenting you."
Bruce rolled his eyes then looked forward once again. He grabbed the Joker and pulled him into a room when he heard footsteps and voices. Guards talking about lunch. It would be great if all of the guards went on break right about now.
"Are we gonna take our time?" the Joker asked after a moment of silence. "And if you really want Jack back, how can you be okay with this?"
Bruce looked at the Joker. "I know what goes on here in Arkham," he said. He hadn't been able to keep track on Crane, but there was always the possibility the doctor was hiding somewhere here, continuing his experiments. "I should never have even thought about taking you here."
"So you're technically giving up on Jack."
"No," Bruce said, stepping out of the room. He looked around, but the hall was empty. He gestured for the Joker to follow. "I just know there's better ways of getting to you."
"Kinky."
Bruce looked at the Joker, who just grinned. He shook his head then started down the hall, getting closer to the exit. The Joker was right behind him and Bruce was actually surprised he hadn't said more about what Bruce had said.
The receptionist was still sitting at the front desk, not looking their way. Bruce moved a little closer and saw that she was reading a book. He waved for the Joker to go by but to stay low. He glanced over his shoulder once and saw the Joker obeying. He walked over to the front desk, making sure to position himself where she wouldn't be able to see past him. He didn't know how well this was going to work out.
She reluctantly looked away from her book and at him. "Done already?" she asked. "You just got here." She seemed incredibly bored and didn't care one way or another about anything that happened. He wasn't going to test that by just walking the Joker straight past her, though.
"I didn't see the point in staying any longer," Bruce said, wondering how much time the Joker needed to get out without being seen. "The place is awfully quiet. I'd've thought someone would be trying to get the place up and running again."
"The police would rather lock everyone up in Blackgate," she said. "Personally, I agree with them. This hellhole is falling apart everywhere. I'm glad there was finally an excuse to shut the place down."
"But not for the Joker," Bruce said. "Why do you think that is?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "He's too dangerous?" she guessed. "Nobody wanted him around anyone. Blackgate might be too easy for him to escape from because the guards are easily manipulated."
"And they're not here?"
"There's not enough of them and they haven't been here long enough to hate the place," she said. "They like it here, so they're gonna do their best to be the best. The Joker's not going anywhere for a long time. If ever." She looked back at her book.
"I'm glad for that," Bruce said. "Gotham will finally be safe." He looked around then turned and headed for the exit. He didn't see the Joker anywhere until he got to his car. The Joker was in the passenger's' seat instead of hiding in the back.
Bruce got into the car and looked over at the Joker. "I'm not driving out with you right there," he said. "Someone might see you."
The Joker ducked down so his head was in Bruce's lap. "I know how to hide," he said, his hand moving along the inside of Bruce's thigh. Bruce squirmed and the Joker sat up with a wide grin on his face. "Let's get out of here."
Bruce looked away from the Joker then started the car up and drove off.