If Alex Bates had to say, he figured his life was pretty normal. And boring. He had a boring job. A boring apartment. An average life for anyone in Gotham city. He was a thirty something guy, not bad to look at but not gorgeous. He did have a therapist but didn't everyone nowadays? His life hadn't always been normal. He used to be a patient at Arkham Asylum briefly. He didn't think much about that confusing time in his life. His therapist said he should focus more on the future. And that's how Alex lived his life anyway.
His day started the same way each day. He woke up early, rolled out of bed and got ready for the day, as he glanced at the news playing on his small tv. There was always something happening in Gotham. It was never a boring city. Once he was ready, he'd put his headphones on and listened to some music as he made his way through the city.
He always stopped at a local coffee place and bought his super sugary butterscotch latte for himself and headed to his classes at Gotham University. He never thought he'd get the chance to go to college. And quite frankly, had no idea why his employer Mr. Wayne was helping him pay for it. He was a lab tech at Wayne Enterprises at the moment, part time as he went to college. But Mr. Wayne was helping fund an engineering degree. It seemed a bit embarrassing to Alex that he was already in his thirties and didn't have his degree yet. The few times he's talked with Bruce Wayne, he's seemed interested in Alex's future at his company. Alex wasn't going to lie and say he didn't think he was smarter than his coworkers but he wasn't sure why he had Mr. Wayne's attention so much. Not that he was complaining. His life was going well because of the man.
His classes were interesting and he did well in them. He didn't really interact with his classmates much. He was there to learn, not to make friends.
In the afternoon, he'd have lunch at the same diner he always did. He'd get the same booth and wait for his lunch date. He'd smile as she walked in. His girl, Angie. The most beautiful girl ever. They had been dating for a few months now.
"Hey, Alex. Have you been waiting long?" Angie said, sitting across from him.
"Nope. Just got here. How was your day?" Alex asked.
"Ok so far. A little behind. Writers block. But I'll get over it. I always do." Angie said smiling. She was a writer. A mildly successful one too. But no one really knew who she was since she went by a pseudonym. "How has your day been?"
"Same as everyday." Alex said. "A bit boring really."
"Sorry that I'm boring you then." Angie said jokingly.
"You know I didn't mean this part of my day was boring. It's one of the highlights." Alex said, smirking.
They would talk for an hour as they ate their lunch and then parted ways. Angie went back to her apartment to work on her latest book. And Alex headed to his job at Wayne Enterprises.
Alex's coworkers were nice enough and his job wasn't uninteresting. He didn't have any complaints. He would do his work diligently until it was time to go home. As he was heading out for the day, Mr. Wayne stopped him.
"Alex. I was wondering how you were doing lately?" the rich man asked as if he was actually interested in the answer.
"I've been doing fine, sir. No complaints. Can I ask you something?" Alex asked.
"Sure."
"Why do you care so much about me? Before I came to work here, we didn't even know each other." Alex asked.
"You just seem to have a lot of potential to do good things. I'd like to give you the ability to do them. How's college?" Mr. Wayne asked.
"It's going great. Thank you so much for all you've done for me. Even if I still don't understand it." Alex said.
"It's no trouble at all, Alex. I can afford it. And like I said, I'd like to see you succeed in life. I'm glad to hear that you are doing well. If you have any issues, come to me, ok?" the man said.
When he walked away from his boss, he didn't miss the way that the man stared after him with an unreadable look on his face. He would never figure out his rather eccentric boss.
At the end of the day, he'd go home and crash. He'd smoke a blunt while watching tv. Watching Clockwork Orange while high was a fun trip. He loved Stanley Kubrick. And he especially loved the movie of his that had Alex's namesake. Alex Delarge. There was just something about the guy that appealed to him.
Sometimes, as he relaxed, he got the odd feeling that someone was watching him. But his apartment was on the fourth floor. He rarely bothered closing the blinds because no one could see him from the road. But he still felt like someone was watching. You'd think it would bother him, but it felt comforting almost. Like he knew whoever was doing the watching. But that sounded insane so he rarely dwelled on it.
"So how have you been lately, Alex? Any nightmares?"
"I've been fine." Alex said to his therapist, Dr. Edwin Matthews. "I can't complain. Life seems pretty good."
"Good." the older man said as he wrote something down. "Any side effects from the new dosage of your medications?"
"None that I know of...well I do feel a little emotionally flat at times. Is that normal?" Alex asked, sitting on the couch during his weekly therapy session.
"That's normal. How are your classes at college?"
"Good so far I guess." Alex said. "Doc, why do I feel like there's something missing? I just feel...incomplete. And I have no idea why."
"People often feel that way at times. It's normal. You need to discover what you want with your life now. You've made so much progress."
"I suppose. I guess I just didn't want to be in Arkham anymore. So I had to pull myself together a bit, like you said. I do have a good life now. I have no reason to worry about my life at all. But that's just weird to me. Why is my boss so interested in me? He's not funding the education of every employee he has, so why me? Why am I special? It doesn't make any sense."
"I'm sure Mr. Wayne has his reasons. You are intelligent and creative. And Mr. Wayne is known for helping those in his company that show that kind of promise."
"I guess that's true." Alex said, still not entirely buying that.
"Now we need to do a standard psych eval. Just the normal stuff. You should be used to it by now." the therapist said.
"Oh sure. Why do we do so many of these, doc? Is that a normal therapy thing or is it because I was in Arkham?" Alex asked.
"We just need to know if you've relapsed at all. That wouldn't be a good thing. So we need to keep track of it so we can catch it early." the therapist said.
"Oh. Gotcha. Then, lay it on me, doc." Alex said, finding it annoying but it was preferable to Arkham.
Alex knew there was something his doctor never told him about his time in Arkham. He didn't really remember his life during and before Arkham but knew it wasn't pleasant. Now that he was out he was determined never to go back. His girlfriend, Angie, knew about his time in Arkham and didn't care. It only made him love her more. The fact that she accepted him, flaws and all, was better than he could ever hope for. He was seriously considering asking if she would marry him.
Grades for the semester came in and Alex was in the top three of his year. He was in a very good mood as he walked into Wayne Tower that day. He had just celebrated with his girlfriend for lunch. He took her to a nicer restaurant that day. They enjoyed some really good burgers and then some amazing apple pie ala mode. He had a spring in his step when he went to Mr. Wayne's office to hand tell him about his great grades. The man had wanted to know, and since he was fitting the bill, Alex wasted no time. Mr. Wayne's secretary greeted him.
"Oh hi, Alex." the secretary said, as she didn't bother hiding that she was watching tv on her phone.
"Hey. What's on? You seem real interested in whatever's on tv." Alex asked.
"It's Batman on the news again. Some thugs are rallying together to avenge Joker's death or something. They just held a fundraiser hostage. Batman's trying to save the hostages. Pretty exciting."
"I'll bet. Hey, is Mr. Wayne in? I'm not going to interrupt a meeting or something?" Alex asked.
"Well, he might be in one of his moods. He told me to hold all calls for awhile. But he should be in there. Probably should wait until later though, if he's in a mood."
"Well, I was just going to tell him I got one of the top three highest grades for my year. I figured he'd be happy to hear that. Plus I have the paperwork for it that he asked for. I know he wants to keep track if he's paying for it." Alex said.
"Oh congrats! He was hoping you were doing well. I shouldn't let you but if he's in a mood this might cheer him up. So go on in." the woman said, smiling.
"Thanks. If he's too busy I can leave this on his desk." Alex said, holding the piece of paper with his grade report on it.
Alex walked into the very large office and noticed that it was empty. Odd. Why would his secretary say he was here if he wasn't? Oh well. Alex could still just put the paperwork on his desk and they could talk later. He walked up to the desk and went to put the stuff down when he noticed a folder on the desk. It had his name on it and his Arkham patient serial number. He knew he shouldn't pry. But that was his information anyway. And why was it on the desk? Why was his boss so interested in him? His time in Arkham was none of his boss's business. He went over and glanced at the folder. He saw his face in a crappy photo asylum nurses take for records. It was paperclipped to his information. The first page seemed normal enough. His name and personal info. It was weird but some of the information seemed wrong. His birthdate was way off it seemed. He flipped to the second page and he saw something that made his eyes widen. What was all this about experimental plastic surgery? He had never had something like that done...had he? Nothing prepared him for the next page though. There was another photo. A photo Alex couldn't process as to why it was in his files. Why was there a photo of Joker in his files? Then some photos of the surgery fell out. His face before and after. That was his face in the after photos. And Joker's face in the before. Did that mean...was he the Joker? He flipped through a few more pages in a frenzy, and the more he read, the more he realized...the files said he was the Joker. They had given him a medication that had actually worked surprisingly and so they also fixed his chemical burns. His hair. Everything. And then messed with his head until he couldn't remember the truth and finally released him as a job well done. The notes had the doctor pompously saying that if he could cure the Joker, he could cure anyone. He had made his doctor's career. And that doctor was still his therapist! Alex's life was a lie. He left the office feeling overwhelmed.
"What's wrong?" the secretary asked.
"Nothing." Alex said smiling at her, trying to pretend he was ok. "He wasn't there. I'll just talk with him later."
"Alright. I'll tell him you were here."
Alex didn't know what to think. His mind was reeling. He tried to work but couldn't concentrate so he told his coworkers he felt sick and took the rest of the day off. He called Angie and told her to meet him at his apartment.
When Angie got to his apartment, Alex let her in with a worried look on his face.
"What's wrong? You sounded so odd on the phone. I can tell something's up." she said sitting down on the couch.
"Oh, Angie. I don't know how to deal with it. I know you are busy this time of day but I didn't know who else to call. You're the only friend I really have right now." Alex said, his face in his hands.
"Alex, I'm here for you. Whenever you need. Now tell me what's wrong." Angie said.
"I saw a folder on Mr. Wayne's desk. Normally I wouldn't be nosy but it had my name on it. I shouldn't have looked. I didn't want to know that. I can't even wrap my head around it." Alex said with a devastated sounding voice.
"What was in the folder?" Angie asked.
"I told you about my stint in Arkham? That I was getting treatment for something I didn't even remember?"
"Yeah. You told me. I don't care. No one is perfect. And it's not your fault for all of that." Angie said.
"It's not so simple, Angie. Apparently, I looked much different about a year and a half ago. I was a completely different person. I can't figure out how that could be me. How could I get to that level of crazy? I don't feel that bad now. It's just hard to wrap my head around. Not to mention how I was ever allowed out of Arkham, if I was that person?" Alex said.
"It's ok. You can say who you were. It won't affect what I think of you." Angie said, putting a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't make promises you can't keep. I don't want to say. Because I was awful. You would look at me differently. There's no getting around that." Alex told her sadly.
"Look, I'll say what I do and don't see differently. I already figured you probably had quite the backstory if you were in Arkham. That's ok. This is Gotham. You get used to people like that. You're better now. That's all that matters." Angie said. "Now tell me. Please? I'd like to know."
"I don't want to lose you." Alex said and then sighed. "Ok…Alex isn't my birth name. I don't remember my birth name. I made Alex up since I hated the John Doe that my doctors called me. I must've known deep down what the truth was, naming myself after Alex Delarge. From Clockwork Orange. In that movie, this cheerful young nihilist gets convicted of murder and sent to prison and then subjected to a experimental treatment to 'cure' him of his violent impulses. My subconscious must've just always known. I'm just like Delarge. I am that cheerful nihilist. Or was. These medications...I wonder what I'd act like if I just stopped taking them all. Which one of these was the one that changed me?" Alex rambled as he sat and stared at the pill bottles.
"Cheerful nihilist?" Angie said as it sank in what he was implying. Her eyes widened when she finally realized. "No way. But you'd have to be in your forties by now. You're only in your thirties at most."
"The plastic surgery that fixed my burns was experimental. It also made me appear younger. According to the files." Alex said devastated.
"Wow. I suppose this explains why no one can figure out where the Joker has been for more than a year. The news was all over that. The doctors must've hushed it up." Angie said. She didn't seem freaked out. Mostly just fascinated.
"You're not worried about the fact that I used to be a psychopath?" Alex asked, very surprised.
"Of course not. I have known you for several months now. You have never treated me like shit or put me in danger. I do remember the rumors that you beat the shit out of Harley on several occasions, but that was the old you. You have always been a perfect gentleman with me. If the old violent urges of yours come back, we'll deal with them as it happens. Together. Because you are not shutting me out because of this. I will kick your ass if you do, no matter what you decide to call yourself. I don't care if you were the Joker. I'd still kick your ass."
"Angie... I don't deserve you." Alex said, smiling at her gratefully.
"Just because you are mentally ill doesn't mean you aren't deserving of love too. Don't beat yourself up about all of this. So you were the poster boy for crazy. So what? You aren't now, are you?" Angie asked.
"I...don't think so. But I'm not sure how I would even know for sure how sane I am." Alex said.
"This must be why your boss is funding your education. If you have a good career then you're less likely to relapse." Angie said. "I wonder what Batman thought of this. Do you think he knows?"
"Oh... he knows. I thought it was just my imagination when I felt someone watching me in the evenings ever so often. I live on the fourth floor. But he must stay on the roof of the building across the street. He knows. And has been keeping an eye on me ever since. I think I used to be obsessed with the guy so I can tell it's him." Alex said, thinking about that unseen presence he had felt nearly every night at some point. "What am I going to do now? How am I going to deal with this information? My boss probably knows. My therapist definitely knows since the bastard was the one bragging in the notes that I made his career. My life is a lie... But isn't that bad really. At least I'm not stuck in Arkham. It could be worse, given who I was."
"I don't know. You could just ignore the information. Maybe they didn't tell you because they thought it would affect your recovery if you knew?" Angie said. "But to deliberately destroy your memories... All of them? That's unethical. That kind of thing is shady even with consent of the patient. And I'm fairly certain you were in no condition to consent. I went to school for Psychology. I know these things even if I haven't done anything with them other than a few references in my books. I'm not saying it would be smart to do anything. It's likely to be dangerous for you if you do."
"I know. I know they'd just throw me back in Arkham if I said anything. If I did anything unexpected. I'm not even sure if I can leave the city. Would they just stop me and commit me again?" Alex said depressed. "But I know that leaving might be my only option. Just so I can feel a little less like a bug in a jar."
"And if you left they'd have a warrant out for you. Let's be real here. You are still considered a very dangerous person to the general public. If you were to suddenly disappear it would make people nervous. People already are because the cops and officials won't tell anyone why Joker hasn't escaped Arkham yet when it's well past time he usually manages it. It makes people nervous when things don't go on schedule. Even when the schedule is awful."
"I know. I've seen all the same news. There's actually that large group of people that think Joker's dead or destroyed and want revenge for him. This situation is so weird. I started this day thinking I was just some normal mentally ill guy. And now I'm the fucking Joker? And people are actually rallying together to avenge me thinking I'm dead? Could this day get any weirder? Don't answer that. I don't want to know. I know it could get pretty damn weird given my former life. I guess this explains why whenever I see Joker on tv I actually like his sense of style. No one else seems to like his style. I suppose that's the point."
"Oh plenty of people like his sense of style. That Wild Card gang that's trying to avenge him for one, just loves his style. But that's beside the point. What we need to do now is to make sure you are in a good enough state to go back to your routine tomorrow. If you deviate from your routine, they'll get worried. Just act like nothing's any different. You didn't see a thing. I'll get a friend of mine in the meantime, and we'll figure a few things out to help you in the long term. He's a friend of a friend who might be able to help and might care enough to do so I think."
"Ok. But I don't see how I can do that. Just act normal? I don't feel normal right now. I don't know if I can pull that kind of emotion off. Not in front of my boss. I went home sick. He'll be concerned and probably call me into his office. I don't know if I can face him right now and pull off normal."
"You are not going to just lose it in front of him. Remember, you are still on medication that's helping with that."
"Yeah but it's not a total cure. I don't feel ok. At all." Alex said. "But I'll try."
"Good. I'll be by my phone the whole day tomorrow. Call me anytime. I can even pick you up if you want to leave. You'll be ok." Angie said, holding his face in her hands. "I love you. I want you to know that. Whatever you decide to call yourself. However bad you get, I love you. We'll get through this. Together."
"I love you so much, Angie." Alex stared at Angie with an almost desperate fond look. "I'd be lost. I don't think I could've handled this without you."
They kissed tenderly. Angie pulled away and got her bag. "I've got to swing by my place to get some stuff, but I think I'm going to stay here for a few days if you are ok with that."
"Of course. I'd actually prefer it if you stayed for a few days. I don't think I should be alone. I'm not sure that my thoughts wouldn't lead to some rather negative things right now." Alex said.
The next day, Alex woke up at his normal time. He got ready as usual.
"Breathe." Angie said, hugging him. "You'll do fine. Just hang in there for a bit."
"You have much more confidence than I do right now." Alex said. He grimaced and did his normal walk to his coffee place. He sipped his butterscotch latte much less enthusiastically than usual. He barely paid attention in class. He had a brief respite at lunch where he got to see Angie again. And then the part of the day he had been dreading. Going to work.
Alex walked inside Wayne Tower making sure to seem like everything was normal. He smiled at people. But inside he felt nervous. There were cameras all over the place. He couldn't relax. He went to work and tried to lose himself in it and for awhile that worked. But then his phone rang.
"Alex, speaking."
"Hello, Alex." Mr. Wayne's secretary said on the other end. "How are you today? Mr. Wayne would like to speak with you in his office when you have the time."
"Oh. Sure. I have some time now. I'll come up." Alex said, trying to sound cheerful.
"I'll tell him to expect you."
Alex stood in the elevator very nervous. Would his employer be able to tell he knew? He got off on the floor, Mr. Wayne's office was in. The very top floor. He went over and the secretary smiled at him.
"He's expecting you. Go on in." she said.
Alex walked into the office and Bruce Wayne was sitting at his desk. The man looked up at Alex and smiled when he saw him. "Alex. How are you today?"
"Fine as usual." Alex said as nonchalantly as he could manage at the time.
"Good. You came up here yesterday. My secretary told me. To tell me about your grades. I'm sorry. I was... called away. My secretary didn't tell me the details. I think she wanted to let you do that. So, come on then, tell me. How'd you do?" Mr. Wayne asked lightheartedly.
"Oh. I did great. I got one of the top three highest grades for my year. So that's pretty good." Alex said as enthusiastically as he could manage, which wasn't nearly as much as he had originally planned this reveal to have.
"That's great." Mr. Wayne said smiling. "Thanks for trying your best. I really do want you to succeed in life. Oh one more thing. I heard you went home from work early yesterday. You weren't feeling well? Are you feeling better now?"
"Oh I'm feeling ok now. Probably just ate something that didn't agree with me. Angie and I went out yesterday to celebrate my grades." Alex said.
"Oh. That's good. How is she doing? How's the latest book of hers coming along?" Mr. Wayne asked, genuinely seeming interested in the question.
"Oh she's fine. The book's almost finished." Alex said smiling. Inwardly he was grimacing. Was his boss going to try having a casual conversation with him? This was really not the time to get chummy with his boss.
"I'm looking forward to it. I've read some of her stuff. It's really good." the man said, smiling.
"Wow. Didn't take you for the psychological horror kind of man." Alex said, trying to be conversational. "I can see if she'll sign a copy of her newest book for you when it's out."
"I'd love that, thanks." Mr. Wayne said smiling. "And I have a very broad range of interests, I'll have you know."
"You learn something new everyday." Alex said as lightheartedly as he could manage.
Alex was exhausted by the time he dragged himself home that night. He entered his apartment and Angie was there sitting on the couch, but she wasn't alone. There was a man sitting in the armchair. The man eyed him up and down with wide eyes. "Damn. They did do a number on you. I barely recognize you, looking the way you do now. That surgery must've been top notch."
"Sorry, but if I know you, I don't remember, so could you at least start with telling me who you are?" Alex said, sitting down next to Angie who held his hand to comfort him.
"Really? Am I really this unrecognizable to the public without all the green and question marks? I was trying to be a bit discreet at Angie's request so no green but still... I'm the Riddler." the redheaded man said, sighing. "I want to make this very clear to you. I don't like you. I have never liked you, Joker. I am here as a favor to Angie. Nothing else. So don't start thinking that we're friends now. At least right now you seem reasonably sane according to Angie. At least enough that it wouldn't be annoying to talk to you."
"The Riddler?" Alex turned to Angie. "How do you know the Riddler?"
"You know the friend of a friend I told you about? Well this is him. It's a really long story. But that's not what's important. What's important is he's agreed to help. With whatever you decide to do."
"Precisely. If you decide to flee the city and move somewhere that won't extradite, I can help with that. Never having to hear your maniacal laughter at random times in the middle of the night when at Arkham, would make me thrilled." Riddler said. "Or there's the second option, which is exposing the police, the doctors at Arkham, and Batman for unethical behavior. That's a fun one too. Or the third is you go after them yourself and make them pay. And act a bit like your old self. I can still help if you are rational during all that. Scheming with a sane you would be interesting. You aren't unintelligent even when psychotic so I can imagine a sane you would be a difficult enemy for Batman to beat. And if we worked together..."
"Sorry, but the third option isn't really an option I'm going to consider right now." Alex said quickly.
"Wow. You really have changed. It's almost sad. Oh well. Option one and two are still good. Both will take some time though. I need time to forge some documents for you and plan an off the books flight out of here. If that's your option, you'll need to let me know what country you want to end up in soon so I can lock down a schedule. Or if you are picking option two, I need to gather the evidence together. Some of that I will have to hack into records for."
"I don't know what to do. Do I even want to bother with exposing them? Even if we expose them, the public will probably just take their side. I was that bad." Alex said.
"That's true. So option one then? Get back to me with the non extraditing location you want in the next day or so so I can plan things." Riddler said, getting up. "Even if you get away from Gotham and away from this country, Batman will probably go looking for you. Because it's you. So even if I help you now, you won't be completely safe from him forever. Keep that in mind."
"I know. Even if I don't remember being Joker, I know that Batman and Joker were a whole different thing when compared to most enemies. It was personal for them. For us. I can feel that. He would never just let me go." Alex said. "But I'm not sure if I'm interested in going off the medication that's making me this way yet and they probably don't make it in whatever country I might flee to. So I don't think I can leave either. Not right now."
"Well, damn. I was hoping you'd pick option one. What then do you want to do? Because they aren't just going to let you walk around knowing what you know about yourself. If they ever found out, you'd be back in Arkham. Look, I can give you some options. Some places you could flee to if it comes to that. I can also do a bit of option two. I'll send a location to pick up the information I find when I get it. In the meantime, I suggest you brush up on your acting skills so you don't make them suspicious. I'll be in touch." Riddler said, getting up and leaving
When Riddler was gone, Angie and Alex continued talking. "You do know that he's going to leave a clue to the police and Batman as to how he's helping us, don't you? Because that's what he does." Alex said.
"Yeah probably. He said he'd try his best not to but it does tend to happen. He can't always control that. We'll just have to get ready to leave here as fast as we can if we need to run from cops or something." Angie said.
"We? You're not the one they'll be chasing." Alex said.
"Remember what I said about me not viewing you differently and you not shutting me out? You need to remember that. Because I meant it. I've already made my choice. I'm right beside you. If you want me to be." Angie said.
"Of course I do. But who's to say what I'd be like with you without my meds? What if I can't get them where we are going if I run? I'd be dangerous to be around. Just ask Harley." Alex said.
"The meds. We need to figure out what all of them do. We need to figure out the one you absolutely can't go off of if you don't want to go back to normal. Or normal for you anyway. We need to do this fast. If we can't find the meds in a different country, then that might be an issue if you like the way you are right now. But it's up to you if you even take them. Like I said, I'm in this for the long haul, good or bad."
"Well, there's these. I think they're for bipolar disorder?" Alex said, not knowing for sure as he looked at a pill bottle. "I don't think these are the important ones. It would be an experimental one. Probably one we won't find online."
"Wow. The dosages on these are way higher than is usually safe. That chemical imbalance must really mess with your ability to medicate. One or two of these is nearly at a lethal level. They probably had to nearly kill you every time they put you unconscious for something back in Arkham." Angie said. "This one is just to deal with the side effects of this one. And this one is to deal with the side effects of this one. Geez, you have a whole pharmacy here and most of it is just to deal with side effects."
"Bingo. This one. I actually did find information about it online but it's still in the experimental phase. It's a powerful antipsychotic. This says it has not even gone through human trials yet. I must be the human trial I guess. It's the one that's preventing my old self from coming out. The others are just to support it and deal with all my other little issues. Like the bipolar stuff. I must have the whole list of disorders if I'm getting this many medications."
"Do you want to continue taking all of it? I doubt that they make this experimental drug in some far off country. If we leave, you may have to resign yourself to going back to being insane. But then you wouldn't want to leave the city anyway, because Batman is here. And you'd be the Joker. This is a hard one."
"I don't know if I want to go off of any of them. Overall I don't feel crazy right now. I don't know if I ever want to know what it was like to be the person I was before. But I don't know if I can deal with all the stuff I know I've done. Even if I don't remember doing any of it. I've seen it all on tv. The news loves to cover Joker. Especially now he's gone...but what if he's not entirely gone? What if I wake up one day and I'm just him again?"
"I don't know. We'll figure out what to do when and if it happens. But who knows if it ever will?" Angie said. "We've got to stay positive. Do what you do best, act happy when you're not. You just have to act normal a little bit longer. I'll beat some sense into Eddie to find a better way. I don't think we really need to leave Gotham. We just need to figure out how to get them to leave you alone."
"It's awful. Now that I know what I know, my day at work was agonizing. I am fairly certain my boss knows. Still doesn't explain why he's so relentlessly helpful to me. I'd think most rich people would be all for sticking me in a deep dark hole and bricking up the entrance. It doesn't make sense why he would pay for my schooling. In science of all things. Teaching me...more dangerous ways to destroy the city. In the public's minds anyway. That's the conclusion he would've normally come to if Mr. Wayne was at all normal. So why didn't he? He paid for everything. Even my apartment for the first few months. Why help the Joker? ...Holy fucking shit!" Alex said, his eyes widening as he realized something really big. "Bruce Wayne... I think he's Batman!"
"What? Really?" Angie said amused. "Him? He's a trust fund corporate twit. I don't see it."
"Why else would he help me of all people? Only Batman would go to those lengths at getting rid of Joker in a mostly kind way if he could. You're right. He's helping me because he wants to help me not relapse. He feels bad and wants to see I have a better life. The guy is so relentlessly goody two shoes, who else in the city could he possibly be? He has the means to buy anything he wants. Including all that high tech stuff Batman has. And who else would have the means and time and leave to do anything he wanted, like train relentlessly his whole life to become some vigilante? If Batman had parents he wouldn't have become Batman. Because no parent is going to let their kid nearly kill themselves with that much training. Bruce is an orphan. Has been most of his life. No one to tell him no. And he's not a twit. He's incredibly smart. That's what most people don't see. He must hold most of it back so they don't see the truth. It's him. That's why he hired me so he could keep an eye on me! I know it's him. I can feel it. Holy shit, how am I going to be able to go back to work now? Knowing that he's there? Knowing that he's keeping an eye on me even at work?"
"Woah. This is big. I don't think even Eddie knows this secret. I don't think we should tell Eddie though. I'm not even sure he'd be happy to just be told something like that. It would rob him of the chance to figure it out on his own." Angie said with wide eyes. "If it's Batman, he's probably not in this to hurt you. He just wants to see that you are safe to be out in public."
"I don't know. I don't know anything anymore. I hope Eddie can figure something out soon because I'm not sure I can take much more of any of this." Alex said, holding his face in his hands.
Alex only had to go do his normal routine a few more times until Riddler got back to them. He wasn't going to hand the information he had found off to them in person. They'd have to find it. He was Riddler after all. So off they went to the Natural History museum to find the information Riddler had hidden there. They supposed him giving them clues and riddles was better than him doing it to the cops or Batman and putting Alex and Angie at risk of exposure. They were there for a few hours trying to find the envelope. Riddler's clues weren't exactly obvious. Alex started cursing letting Angie go to the Riddler for help. But then as they passed the ancient botany exhibit, they found the geology exhibit and their goal. Riddler had hidden it behind a bench. It was obvious what it was, because it had a green question mark on the envelope. Alex grabbed it and hid it in his coat. It wouldn't do to have anyone see them messing with anything Riddler related. They smiled at each other and started making their way out. But as they were passing the new exhibit on some ancient plant seeds that someone had found intact and growable in an ancient ruin, things went a little crazy. Honestly, when thinking back later, Alex was surprised no one thought something like this incident was going to happen if they put ancient plant seeds on display instead of planting them. In Gotham city. Alex and Angie had to duck a few quick growing vines as Poison Ivy and her girlfriend Harley decided to 'liberate' the seeds. The museum was in chaos. People were running and screaming as the two rather colorful women broke in dramatically, likely in order to 'punish' the museum for holding the plants 'hostage'. Angie and Alex were trying to stay out of the way. Of all times they could do this, they pick the same time two villains decide to attack. Alex wondered if Riddler knew and planned it this way to mess with them.
"This museum will pay for imprisoning these beautiful innocent seeds and not letting them grow! You will all pay for your indifference!" The angry green red head screamed at the crowd as Harley started enthusiastically beating up security guards with a bat.
Alex really hoped Harley didn't somehow recognize him. That would be an awkward conversation. I mean, he did look younger and totally normal so maybe she wouldn't notice? Alex and Angie managed to edge their way to the entrance but before they got there, Harley noticed them trying to get away.
"Hey! Don't be rude. You're leaving before the show has started." Harley said, grinning at them. Poison Ivy's vines caught them and Alex struggled in his binds. "There you go. Nice and snug." She said looking them over. Then as she was glancing at Alex's face her eyes suddenly got wide. "What the hell?! I thought you were dead!"
Alex had a sinking feeling Harley now knew who he was. And he couldn't get away. He grimaced as he realized he was not in a very good situation at the moment.
"You look so normal. That doesn't even look like makeup!" She said. She didn't look happy. She looked like she might want to kill him.
"I don't know what you're talking about! Why are you talking to me like we know each other?" Alex said frantically, trying to pretend he had no idea who he was. Batman was going to show up. He couldn't show any indication he knew. But he doubted it would work at this point. Damn it Harley!
"Because we do! I'm not imagining it! I know your face even when it's not pale and clown-like! I've seen you in flesh colored makeup before! But what's odd is that doesn't look like makeup. You look so average. It's so weird." She went up and touched his face, trying to smear the makeup that wasn't there. "They fixed you. Even the look in your eyes. You look...sane." she had a shocked look. She looked over at Angie and back at him back and forth a few times. "You became sane...and I still don't get to have you. You know how many daydreams I had of you suddenly becoming sane and us settling down and having a life together? I'm not blind. That girl is your girlfriend now. You moved on without me." she looked at Angie. "You got to have a healthy relationship with him! You got what I've always wanted. I don't think I can ever forgive you for that." Harley said dangerously.
"I've never met you before! You have me confused with someone else!" Alex said desperately. He really hoped Batman was on his way soon.
"Don't give me that bullshit! You know who you are! I can see it in your eyes!" Harley snarled. "Tell the truth or I'll make you watch as I skin your girlfriend in front of you!"
"Ok!" Alex yelled. "Ok. So I do know. I found out recently. But I can't remember my life as him. I swear! They messed with my head. Made me forget my whole life. I'm not the Joker! Even if I used to be him, I'm not him now!"
"You never just stop being crazy! Medication can only do so much!" Harley yelled. "I should kill you for all you've done to me!"
Suddenly, Batman broke through the museum skylight. Alex randomly wondered as it was happening, who paid for that kind of damage? Did buildings in Gotham have Batman and villain destruction insurance? The dark cowled man fought the vines and defeated Poison Ivy but Harley kept dodging him. She quickly pulled Alex out of the vines and dragged him out onto the roof. Alex struggled but was still partially wrapped in vines.
Batman ran after them and met her on the roof.
"I'm going to kill him and you can't stop me!" Harley screamed at Batman as she dragged Alex along.
"Stop, Harley. He's not the Joker." Batman said.
"He used to be! He's still responsible for all that he's done! For making me fall in love with him and then throwing me away! How dare you take away his memories of all that! He should have to face it all!" Harley said desperately.
Suddenly, Robin surprised Harley from behind and tackled her to the ground. He knocked her out while Batman walked over and released Alex from his binds. Robin grabbed Harley and grappled back to the ground with her to give her to the cops. Batman looked at Alex like he knew Alex knew the truth. Alex stood there staring at him.
"You know I know, don't you? You heard me telling Harley. I still don't remember anything. I want you to know that. I just saw the folder on my boss's desk. It told me everything. Why? Why did no one tell me? Why did they take away my memories? I can't even remember my childhood or my life from before all the crazy. I don't know how to deal with all of this."
"You were never supposed to find out. I didn't know about them taking away your memories. I was only told about it afterwards. After they released you. I only went along with it because you seemed genuinely happy in this state. Ironically, you never really seemed truly happy as the Joker. I knew that if you knew, you would feel guilt. Perhaps that is what your doctors believed as well. You don't have to feel guilt for what you've done. You were not in your right mind at the time." Batman said.
"But I wasn't given a choice in any of this. The surgery. The memory wipe. Wouldn't it have been better for me if I faced what I did instead of not even remembering it? I'm not saying I hate the way I am now, but I think it would've been better if I was able to remember who I was. Instead, the doctors lied to me. They changed me into a completely different person. How am I ever supposed to get over that?" Alex asked, upset.
"If it were up to me, I would've left it up to you whether or not you wanted to remember. But it wasn't. I'm not sure we can fix the memory loss. I'm sorry." Batman said. He never hated his enemy. No matter what awful thing Joker did, he was severely mentally ill and Batman knew that. He couldn't hate someone for what they couldn't help.
"Is that why you've been helping me? Paying for my college and all?" Alex asked, implying he knew the connection between Batman and Bruce Wayne. Batman looked at him in surprise. "Yeah. I know. I used to be obsessed with you, right? That combined with a sane me in a job where I see you all the time? It was going to happen if we were in a room long enough. What other person at your socioeconomic level likes the level of psychological horror my girlfriend writes? The really dark and broody stuff. You kind of gave yourself away."
Batman didn't look very happy Alex knew who Batman really was.
"I feel ya. That look? I understand where you're coming from with that. I know it's not exactly a safe thing for me to know that info. If I were to go back to my old ways? That might be dangerous for you. I'm going to try to forget who you are. But that might be an issue. But who knows? Maybe I wouldn't even care. I have no idea how I, myself, would act. That's just weird. Not to know." Alex said. "What's going to happen now? Now that I know and all? I don't want to go back to Arkham."
"It may not be up to me. You know that." Batman said.
"Please, don't take him back there." Angie said running up. The police had arrived around the building and were loading both Harley and Poison Ivy in an Arkham transport below. Harley was hurling insults to people and babbling stuff. Poison Ivy was just shaking her head in exasperation. "He doesn't deserve that. I know what he's done. But someone with insanity can't legally be responsible for his actions. It's a legal defense. He's not crazy right now. In almost every case I've seen, the doctors release the patients they cure. They already did that with him. He has not broken any laws since his release and therefore cannot be legally committed without his own permission."
"I wasn't going to take him back there. I want him to have a good life. I think he still can. Even if you know the truth. You can make it past this finally. I know you can." Batman said. "But I can't stop the police or the mayor from finding some way to recommit you. I will try my best to make sure they don't find out that you know. But if they do find out, I'll try to convince them that you just need time to work through it. You are not the Joker. You shouldn't be treated as such."
"Thanks. But do you really think Gotham is just going to let me be happy even if you talk to them?" Alex asked. "I may not be the Joker now, but I was."
"The public still doesn't know. I can talk with the mayor and the commissioner if it comes to that. And your doctors. I won't give up on you. I never did when you were the Joker and I won't now." Batman said.
"I can sort of see why my old self liked you so much. Nothing breaks through your convictions. Nothing. You should hate me but you don't. You are something else." Alex said. He turned around to leave the roof and then looked back at Batman. "If you think Harley won't make this public, you don't know her very well. I don't even remember dating her and I know that. So I don't have very long before people know the truth. So I'm going to go enjoy my sanity for a little bit longer, because I doubt Gotham will let me have it for long when they find out. That's just how these things work. Thank you for caring but there might be little you can do to fix this." Alex left the roof. Angie followed him and they made their way out the back entrance so they wouldn't get caught by news reporters. He wanted the anonymity for a little bit longer.