"Hey! You're not Batman!" Ollie said, swallowing the fear that welled up inside of him from this intruder.

"No, I'm much worse. You have been charged with vandalism. How do you plea?"

"Charge? We were just hangin' out, that's all. Ain't that right guys?"

One member managed to mutter a yeah, but that was all the support that Ollie could get from his "gang". A couple of them began to back away from the scene.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going? This guy has nothing to do with the Bat! We can easily take him!" shouted Ollie.

With renewed confidence, the Skulls started to advance towards the Judge. The Judge calmly stood his ground. One of the braver boys decided to take on the Judge. He threw a punch at him, but the Judge easily dodged it. The Judge struck him down with the mallet. The boy fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Anyone else want to take a shot?"

"I've got your shot right here, you creep," said Ollie, pulling a gun from out of his jacket.

He aimed the gun at the Judge. The Judge quickly threw a pair of manacles at him. They clamped tightly around his hands, making him drop his gun. Then the manacles became magnetized, pulling Ollie's hands together. The Judge walked to where Ollie was standing and swung the mallet at his knees. The mallet connected, making Ollie fall to his knees.

After witnessing this, the rest of the Skulls ran away. The Judge now stood before Ollie as imposing as ever. The Judge leaned forward a little to continue.

"It appears that you'll be facing this sentence alone, Ollie. In addition to the vandalism charge, I'm now adding attempted murder. I ask you again. How do you plea?"

"N...nn....not ...gu...guilt..t..ty...?" Ollie stammered.

"I thought as much. The court finds you guilty of both charges. Your sentence shall be death," replied the Judge coldly.

The Judge raised the mallet to his shoulder and swung it at Ollie. The mallet slammed onto Ollie's head, knocking the boy out cold. As Ollie fell, the Judge peered into the shadows as if looking for something. When Ollie's head hit the ground, blood splattered out of his nose. The Judge simply stepped over Ollie, interested in the person that he had been following.

"Hatter! I know you're out there! We need to talk!"

The Mad Hatter stepped out of the shadows, quickly walking towards the Judge. The anger was visible on his face.

"Why on earth did you do that? Sure, he was committing a crime, but did you have to be so brutal?"

"He should have known better than to mess with the law," replied the Judge.

"Alright, since everyone else has an interest in me, why don't you tell me what yours is?"

"I need your help in bringing justice to the Joker."

"You have got to be kidding me."

"I was at your party. I saw the disgust you displayed for him wanting to use you again for his horrible purposes. With your help, I'd like to get him."

"And if I don't help you?"

"Then I will be forced to find another way. All I'm asking for is a little help from someone on the inside."

"Well, since you're not going to threaten me, I will say no thank you to your proposal!"

"Very well then, Hatter. I hope you realize that you don't stand a chance against the Joker. At least if you side with me, you'll have some sort of protection."

"If I wanted protection, I would have asked Batman!!!"

"Does Batman help out anyone during the daytime? What if the Joker decides to strike then? Batman can't protect you AND keep an eye on the rest of this city."

"You do have a point," replied Hatter.

After a moment of thought, he agreed to the Judge's proposal.

"Alright, I'll help you get the Joker," said the Hatter reluctantly.

"Excellent. We'll set a trap for him. The next time he comes after you, I'll be ready and waiting."

"You had better hope that Batman won't be around as well!"

"I will NOT allow Batman to interfere with the law again!"

"Good. Let's hope you can keep that promise."

"You'll hear from me tomorrow night. We can discuss it then."

The Judge turned and left Hatter standing over the unconscious body. Hatter leaned down towards the body and checked for a pulse. It was weak, but at least there was one. Hatter looked up to see if the Judge was still around. There was no one except for him and Ollie.

"Come on. I'll take you to my place, we'll see if you can't live through this," Hatter said to the unconscious boy.

He picked up the boy and draped him over his shoulder. He carried Ollie to his apartment, which was only a few blocks away.