AN: So, I guess doing a website makes my profile cleanup pointless? I won't remove everything, but I will remove one shots and stories than I plan to re-write. I will keep Imprinting Isn't Every Wolf's Dream and a few others you guys really enjoy.

With that being said, this will be the last story to be updated to FFN. If I manage to get the site running before this story is finished, which is a high probability, then the remaining chapters will be moved to the site. Current works are not on hold, but I am working on them in my WORD documents and once the sight is up and running, they will be updated on the site. I hope to see most of you or even some of you there when I get it put up.

With the site, you'll be able to get notified when I update things, comments, etc.

Chapter 1

It was late, everything was quiet. Joker's thoughts however were anything but. He's sitting up against the headboard, staring into the semi-darkness, mulling over the next course of action.

The body next to him shifts, and he looks down, licks his lips, and lays a resting hand over her forehead, swiping back her hair. He didn't have any words for her. She leans into his touch, her brows furrowing. "Jack?" She whispers, turning on her side, but otherwise kept her eyes closed. "Shhh sweetheart," He replies softly. She takes in a deep breath, moving closer to him. "You'll find him," She whispers, blindly reaching for his hand. He lets her take it, feeling her lips press against his knuckles. "Until I do….don't trust me," He states, looking down to meet her tired eyes. They're wary and reserved.

She wants to protest. He narrows his eyes at her, shaking his head. "There's only room in this world for one Joker,"

4 months ago

Gotham's most notorious psycho was gone, the once protector of the city dead, and like any other place, it had its own issues. Los Angeles was pretty, a breath of fresh air. For her. For him, it was his playground. It was his to see, build, and destroy. He wanted to do things a bit differently this go round. Reputation earned his name in Gotham, and it would do the same thing here.

He couldn't go around calling himself Joker of course, and he couldn't look the same, but he knew how things would go. How he wanted things to go. But first, there were a few things to do. One being getting the missus settled in. Their loft-like home sat on a hill like many others, just a little ways out. It gave the semblance of privacy and gave him the base of operations he needed. On the front property was the main house, while on the back was a separate building. It was like an industrial building. It would need some work, but it could be done. It was one of the reasons why the home wasn't as expensive as it could have been. The price was made up with the surrounding foliage, but it was a steal. It was large enough for him to keep his business out of the main house.

The main home was fully furnished, and he was pleased that Bella was as impressed as he was. When she first entered the two story, she turned around in a wide circle, her eyes wide. The doors opened into a wide room with a spacious living room to the left, a winding staircase to the right, and the kitchen straight ahead. Hanging in the middle was a large light fixture which of course had green and purple light bulbs much to her amusement. He simply watched her explore, following behind her. "When did you have time to…you bought this?" She asks as she goes into the kitchen, turning around like before, finding him right behind her. He easily twirls her around, his head resting on top her hers. "I can do legal things…illegally,"

She just snorts. "Right. It's amazing, really. What's that?" The kitchen had patio doors that overlooked the back yard, and she's pointing towards the large mass of a building. "Base," That's all he called it. She just nodded and leaves his arms to explore more. He opens the patio doors, looking around the grassy yard that needed some serious tending to. He takes in a breath of the fresh air, looking around the property, eyeing places he'd install his security cameras. He'd need men, good ones, ones willing to work. Then, he'd need to as he likes to say, corrupt them. "Holy shit!" He looks up at the second story, chuckling to himself as he could hear her echoed surprise. He walks the perimeter of the building, already having an eye of what he wanted done.

It was kind of like the building became abandoned, and then someone built a grand house not too far from it. It took a good 2-minute walk down a beaten path, and he stares upon the black, peeling paint. This would do. When he took a step inside, it reeked of mold and mildew. He never had a chance to step inside when he came down to handle business the first time. To the left of him were stairs that led to the second floor. He carefully starts to make his way up, one of the metal steps creaking heavily in protest. Everything would need to be redone in here. At the top was a room at the right which he could make into his office. Right outside the office was a small strip that allowed for room to get a 360 view of the place at once.

"Joker?" Bella calls, curiously stepping inside of the building. "Up here," Bella uses the top of her shirt to cover her nose as she looks up the stairs. She carefully starts her way to the steps. "Don't touch the railing, and watch your footing," She heeds his instructions and makes her way up, taking his outstretched arm. He pulls her to his side, and she looks around. "What are you going to do in here?" She questions, leaning her head back to look up at him. He wraps his arms around her, looking down to meet her curious gaze. "I've got ideas," She turns around in his arms, wrapping hers around his neck.

She simply smiles as he lifts her from the ground, her legs wrapping around his waist. "Finished exploring?" He asks, taking one hand to bush her hair from her face. She nods, her eyes lighting up in excitement. "It's beautiful. The bedrooms are huge, and the bathrooms are amazing," Joker hums, nudging her chin up with his fingers. "And the kitchen? It is up to your standards?" She nods enthusiastically, and he dips his head down to kiss her lips, her fingers threading through his hair.

He bites down on her lip eliciting a small squeak from her. He was in the process of unzipping his pants when a loud, irritating, high-pitched voice echoes throughout the building. "Hello! You must be our new…oh!" Joker pulls back a bit, looking over Bella's shoulder to see a short redhead dressed in what he would call church clothes. She was beet red as a tomato, averting her eyes with her hand. Bella turns her head, her face too turning a dark red, and she unwraps her legs from around Joker, lightly hitting his arm for him to set her down.

She zips his pants, and he stares down at her annoyed. It wasn't like they hadn't had sex in front of others before, though that was a one-time thing, and as erotic as it was, he wasn't sure he liked sharing very much. The woman steps out, apologizing profusely. "I thought you said we had no neighbors," She mutters, straightening out her skirt. He runs a hand along her thigh, making her skin tingle. "We don't. Not really," He responds. They carefully walk down the steps and outside to see the woman waiting for them.

"I am so sorry, I didn't mean to intrude, I'm Shelly. I live right there under the hill," Shelly looked to be in her 40s, a little plump in the face and ankles, slightly tanned skin with bright green eyes. Bella smiles, reaching out to shake Shelly's hand, her preppy nature a nice change. "Nice to meet you. I'm B…." Joker pinches her thigh as a reminder, and she clears her throat. "I'm Marie, and this is Jack," Joker has no intention of shaking her hand, and he just stares at it for a few seconds before meeting her eyes.

"Sorry, uh Jack isn't a very social person," Bella leads Shelly back down the beaten path, turning to give Joker a look. He simply shrugs with a wave.

About two hours later, Bella closes the front door, peeking through the she small curtains to make sure Shelly got into her car. "Thank god," She murmurs. "Is she going to be a problem?" She almost jumps as his breath tickles her ear, unaware that he had even come back in the house. "I don't think so outside of talking your ear off to death," Joker snorts, placing a kiss on her neck. "You can't use your name anymore, neither version of it," He reminds, nipping at the skin. "I know, it's habit. What about you though? You're using your first and last," She leans into his chest, his arms coming around her. "No one has ever separated the Joker apart from Jack. They knew everything about you," He reminds gently, running his hand along her thigh.

He can feel her pulse quicken beneath his lips and he chuckles, the sound sending goosebumps down her spine. "Can I inquire something?" He asks, skimming his nose down to her shoulder. She nods, closing her eyes at the sensation of his fingers. "Is there a reason you didn't introduce me as your husband?" He teases her skin with his nose, licking the shell of her ear.

Bella swallows, brows furrowing for a moment. "I thought labels don't matter to you," She replies. He shrugs, grabbing her left hand, holding it up for her to see. She opens her eyes, the ring on her finger staring back at her. "They don't," He responds. "Then…why the inquiry?" She wonders, turning around to face him. "It's more to me than property. The only physical resemblance of any affection I have towards you," He states simply, causing Bella to softly laugh.

"I think you show me a lot of affection," He simply raises a brow. "You married me, something that is highly uncharacteristic for someone like you, killed the man you've been obsessed with for years, when in reality, you could have killed me instead. Why didn't you?" She wonders. "I mean we lost…and you had the opportunity to do so…to eliminate all the variables. Why didn't you?"

He swipes a finger across her lips, meeting her eyes. "Jack and I…we've come to a simple understanding. He loves you, and I care about you enough to keep you around. It's like tether ball sweetheart. You're in the middle, tugging on two sides of the same man. We both love you equally in our own ways. Now less talking and more of touching," His eyes almost roll back into his head as she laughs, peppering kisses along his neck. "I knew you loved me, and just to appease your inquiry, Shelly and her husband are dropping by tomorrow…I'll introduce you properly then,"

Fucking neighbors.

"Is this necessary?" Bella asks, taking the gun from his pants. Joker easily takes it back, slipping it back where he had it. "Yes, because if they so much as annoy me then this will surely shut them up," Bella rolls her eyes. "If you keep doing that, I'll give you a reason to do so," Bella hits his chest, and side steps his wandering hands. The doorbell rings, and Bella gives him a look. "I know this whole domestic thing isn't your rodeo, but it's just two people who think we are a normal married couple, who do normal things, like normal people,"

The doorbell chimes again. "Coming!" Bella calls, turning to look back at him. He just gives her the okay to open the door, and she smiles before going to do so. Joker follows along behind her, watching as the door opens, and in comes Shelly, followed by her husband. He was a bit bigger than she, with what Joker could clearly tell was a toupee on his head. He was dressed like a teller at the bank, and that's what piqued his interest. "Marie. Thanks so much for inviting us over. This is Michael," Michael shakes Bella's hand, and she smiles.

"Nice to meet you. Shelly was telling me a lot about you. This is Jack, my husband," Joker's smile was eerie at most, and he runs a hand along Bella's back. "Oh yes! Michael, he's not very social so don't be upset if he doesn't strike up conversation," Shelly giggles this little hiccup-like laugh, and Joker almost rolls his eyes. "Come in, the living room is right here," Bella moves to the side, and shows Shelly and Michael to the living room. "I've prepped some sandwiches," Joker watches the two for a moment as Bella goes back to the kitchen. He silently slips from the couple's awed gazes, and into the kitchen. "Are you sure you made enough?" He asks, looking at the tray. "Joker!" She hisses quietly. "That's not nice," She berates, unable to hide her chuckle.

"I'm not nice sweetheart," He kisses her cheek as she passes by. He wasn't sure what to do with himself as this really wasn't his area of expertise. He stuck around for Bella's appeasement, but he was getting bored. He sits through the painful story of how Shelly met Michael. Michael just kept stuffing the miniature sandwiches into his mouth. As Bella goes to show Shelly the kitchen, Joker stares at Michael for a moment. "Michael, is it? What is it you do at the bank?" He asks, throwing an arm over the back of the couch, his lips pulling into a mischievous smile.

The next day, now free of bubbly guests, left Bella alone with the security company, while Joker was out back with a local contractor and his crew. "We want one at every entrance, including the sliding doors," Bella leads the man and a few of his guys to every place they wanted the cameras placed. They were small, practically invisible, motion activated, and could be watched live from any device. Joker wanted to know about anything and everything. These people were different, and he didn't know how they operated as of yet.

The security company went to work, and Bella hovered not too far away making sure they were doing their job. It was a warm day, and she had made a few pitchers of lemonade and iced tea. She poured each into plastic cups before passing them around to the men around the house. She then took a cup out to the gardener who was tending to the weeds. With a tray full of cups, she walks down the path to 'base', eyeing Joker or 'Jack' as she was to refer to him now, pointing to different things he wanted done.

He knew when she was close, mainly by the way the construction worker's eyes shifted behind him and a look of stupidity flashed across his face for a few seconds. "Jack, thirsty?" He turns around, raking his eyes over her almost immediately. She was dressed in a simple purple t-shirt and short, almost daisy duke's jean shorts, converses on her feet. Her hair was up in a bun, keeping the heat off her neck. She was oblivious of the attention of course. He waves her over, and she lets him place an arm around her waist, grabbing a cup. "Very. Marie, this is Derek. He's going to be helping us get this operation up and running," Bella smiles, offering Derek a cup. He winks at her, taking the tray and passing it around to the rest of his crew. "How's the inside coming?" He questions her, watching over her head at everyone. "Fine. They'll be done soon. Are you going to….invite them?" She whispers.

He chuckles in her ear, "You don't invite people dear. You give them an offer they can't refuse," She hums in response. "Just be careful alright?" She asks, feeling for the gun on the side of his pants. "Mhmm," He hums, patting her rear as he can see one of the security workers coming up the hill. "Go see what that's about will you?" She stands on the tips of her toes to kiss his cheek before taking the empty tray from Derek. Once Bella is out of ear shot, and Derek is back ready to get started, Joker pulls him to the side, staring out at Bella's disappearing form.

"You stare like that at my wife again, I'll gouge your eyeballs out. Now, these stairs…" Joker pulls a flustered Derek along into the building, showing him what he wanted done. As Joker went throughout the day making sure the crew was aware of what he wanted, Bella made sure things were to her liking. The security company showed her how to access the system, and she got herself acquainted with using the tablet. They would be back to do the same installation in Joker's office once he had it up and running.

It was well into the night when Joker finally emerged from outside, the oven light being his only source of light. He taps his fingers against the marble counter, eyeing the tablet. He picks it up, turns it on, eyeing the multiple screens. He can see himself in the kitchen, and he quickly swipes through the screens. He stops as he gets to the master bedroom, his brows raising.

Bella was undressing, clearly about to shower. "Mmmm, slow down…there you go," He murmurs, tilting his head a bit. He narrows his eyes as she turns towards the camera, fully naked at this point, making a come-hither motion with her finger. He sets the tablet down, locking it before heading upstairs. He takes his time, hearing the water start. He chucks off his shoes, and undoes his belt, closing the bedroom door behind him. He lets it drop to the floor, letting his pants drop as well, before heading to the bathroom. He just watched her for the moment through the fogging glass.

She was clearly teasing him by the way she was running her hands along her sides, her hands disappearing momentarily between her legs. "Someone's being naughty," He murmurs, removing the rest of his clothes. She just meets his eyes, a small smirk pulling at her lips. "Are you going to do something about it?" He just stalks further into the bathroom, his dark gaze showing promises to come.

AN: So just a first chapter to get things going. Sorry if it's short. The domestic lifestyle is definitely going to be a challenge, but I am ready. Let's see how Joker…I mean Jack plans to take over Los Angeles…see ya!