Disappointment.
That was the adjective that described Joker's expression. That so called 'Poison Ivy' had definitely caught the Clown Prince of Crime's attention. Not only was she a beautiful young thing, she also had been able to make every single man in the Asylum fall on their knees, quite literally. But now, while they walked away from that huge dark prison for the insane, Joker spotted their vehicle. It was a beautiful Volvo from 1971. A classic, Joker liked old cars…but that one was pink. A light pink colour covered the beautiful car. Now, Joker had nothing against that colour. Nothing at all. But that car had, at least it looked like it, a huge red rose on the top. The pale man licked his lips before getting closer to Ivy and pointing at the car with both hands. "Doesn't that often make you…the centre of the attentions?" He asked, whispering to her ear, like he was afraid the trees would hear him. Both of her seductive eyes stared at Joker while her pink lips gave a small smile.
"And here I thought you liked grasping people's attention."
The green haired man rolled his eyes and his shoulders shrugged while his red lips gestured a small Duh. "Of course I like attention…but this…" He pointed with disgust at the huge rose. "…This is just sad." The last word was said slowly, like he was underlining it. This didn't make Pamela very happy. Her smile quickly disappeared. Every second that passed, Poison Ivy seemed to despise that man more and more. "Now calm down Ivy. This guy is the only one who can actually kill the Ba…" Suddenly his pale hand was holding Ivy's shoulder tight while pointing in her car's direction with one long finger. "There's somebody in your car, Itchy!" Both of her beautiful eyes seemed to forcibly close, like she was about to explode. His hysterical and mocking voice seemed to hit some kind of nerve, making both of Ivy's hand close into fists. But suddenly Joker's hand was hurting her. His nails were sinking in her skin making her wince. The Clown was now much more serious.
"You better not be up to any kind of Joke, Itch."
The red haired gave a small nervous chuckle, trying to not show the pain she was in. "You still don't trust me, Mr. Joker? That man inside the car is my employer. The one who asked me to rescue you." His eyes blinked a couple of times and he finally released the woman's shoulder, walking quickly, like he wanted to get to the car first. His pale hand quickly opened the car's door and peeked inside. He had to title his head to its maximum, making his ear almost touch his shoulder. But when he looked inside he saw just a dark silhouette. A quite short and fat one. Joker narrowed his eyes while twitching his nose to the side. The dark figure's head slowly turned in his direction, and the mad man could swear he saw a smile shining. "Mr. Joker! It is a pleasure to finally meet you!"
The voice was terribly amusing. The man sounded like he spoke with his nose. It even reminded Joker of an animal. "Allow me to introduce myself…" Joker scratched his chin. What was that bird's name again? "I am the Penguin." The green haired man's eyes widened to their maximum while he snapped his fingers. "Exactly!" A man with a huge nose and disturbing teeth looked at Joker from behind his monocle. That character was quite ugly and disturbing…not to mention he smelled like sardines. But either way, Joker quickly sat down next to the short man and placed his arm around his shoulders, smiling widely.
"Penguin, my good man, has anyone told you that you look a lot like Oswald…" His fingers snapped three times while he looked up, trying to remember the second name. "…Cuddlepot?" Joker asked, looking fixedly at the short and disgusting man, his arm around his shoulders, like they were best buddies. The Penguin narrowed his eyes once Joker got the second name wrong. "It's Cobbelpot." He mumbled without moving his mouth. "Right! That rich bastard with the big nose and the umbrella; you look just like him." The pale man's smile never disappeared, his nose was almost touching Penguin's…but it seemed to only make the short criminal upset. "I happen to be that rich bastard. PAMELA!" His voice shouted her name loudly, making Joker's right ear hurt.
The beautiful red haired woman entered inside the car, still rubbing her shoulder. Joker's eyes shifted in her direction for a short second. He knew she hated him. It was so obvious. The way how her pretty eyes seemed to twitch every time he smiled at her. Such a serious and elegant young thing, ready to blow up at any second. He liked Ivy. Pamela quickly started the car, and soon they were driving through the dark road. The Joker gave a small snort while nudging Penguin's arm. The short man didn't seem as bubbly as the green haired man was. "You've kept yourself busy haven't you Ozzy? I must say, I always loved that little club you own on the East of Gotham! Fa-bu-lous!" Joker's eyes rolled, making him sound like some blond teenager all of a sudden.
The Penguin's eye twitched a little. It was getting hard to believe that that…that clown was the only one who could bring the Batman down. But who could blame the Dark Knight? Even Oswald Cobblepot was beginning to loose his marbles just by sitting next to him. Yet he was able to breathe in and give a small friendly (but still creepy) chuckle at the Joker. "Yes...Mr. Joker, you must know a busy man like me wouldn't just set you free from Arkham for feeling generous!" The bird man said, a large disturbing smile on his face. The Clown Prince of crime had now decided to keep a little distance between both of them. He wanted to listen…although he already had a small idea of what was going inside the little man's head.
"It seems we share an enemy...a small pain in the neck that keeps coming back." A moment of silence came up while Oswald leaned closer; like that name gave them bad luck. "…The Batman." Both of Joker's eyes widened while his mouth opened. A terrible laugh seemed to invade the car. It was the Joker's laugh. That sound seemed to cause chills through everyone's spine. Even the Penguin and Ivy seemed to feel slightly intimidated and glanced at each other with interrogative expressions. "Batman and I? Enemies?" The pale man's head fell back while he laughed. He suddenly looked back at Penguin with a much more serious look. But, once again, his scars made it look like he had a constant smile upon his face. "Why…The Big Bat is my other half, Ozzy. He completes me…" The Penguin's eyes were wide open while looking at the Joker. His serious eyes seemed totally absorbed while he spoke about the Big Bat. He believed in those words…it kind of disturbed him.
"Either way…He is constantly making our lives much more difficult. And it's not just you, me and Ivy's; this town is…is…" The Joker blinked lazily while clacking his tongue. "Changing?" The Penguin nodded with a frustrated expression. "Yes! I used to be like…like some kind of King around this place! I owned almost every single business in Gotham! Until that Goddamned Batman appeared. Now what do I have? A shabby club and numerous invitations for reality shows!"
The Joker widened his eyes while showing a small smile. "Ouch." He said amused by that last sentence. The Penguin shook his head while giving a small depressed sigh. "Men like us won't survive for much longer if we just sit back and watch the Bat take over Gotham…" His small fat hands were suddenly grabbing a bottle of champagne, letting the sparkling drink drop inside of a perfect crystal glass. The Penguin suddenly looked at Joker with a serious expression. "We need to get rid of him!" But the man couldn't help but to let a small chuckle escape from his red lips. Of course they needed to get rid of him! Joker had said that since the first day he saw the Dork Knight running around the city! His hand quickly grabbed Penguin's glass and nodded at him with wide eyes. "Yes, yes you do!" And he quickly drank the champagne inside of the glass, like it was water.
While watching the mad man drink the expensive drink, Oswald narrowed his eyes slightly while giving a sigh. That man…That man who seemed to be constantly mocking about everything and that seemed to not give a damn about the consequences of his acts…That was Batman's nemesis? Either way, all of the Penguin's teeth clinched while he glared at the Joker. "We need your help…" The Clown Prince of crime suddenly looked at Penguin, his eyes wide and his mouth full of champagne that he quickly swallowed. "Excuse me?" He said quickly placing his hand near his ear, trying to hear better. The Penguin seemed to twitch his nose before saying it again, a little bit louder. "…We…need your help." He admitted.
A bright yellow smile spread across his face. The Joker seemed to love hearing that from one of the richest men in Gotham. He sat back and crossed his legs while placing both hands behind his neck. It was in moments like those that Joker understood how powerful he actually was. He quickly licked his lips while looking at Ivy's back. "Do you need my help to, Pams?" The red haired seemed to ignore him. But the Joker could see her hand grabbing the wheel tighter than ever before. A small chuckle escaped from his red lips. "Of course you need my help, Oz! And I, being such a fine gentleman, will help you out…" The man paused while leaning forward and poking the Penguin's nose. "…For cash!" The short man didn't like that physical contact. But he chuckled at the man's words. "I thought you didn't care about money."
The pale man rolled his eyes while shrugging his shoulders. "Well, I am starting a new life, ain't I?" For a moment, Joker could swear even Pamela was smiling. A sudden cheerful mood seemed to surround him. Everyone was satisfied…at least for now. Joker didn't know if he'd just get bored. It could happen. Although this team of his was rather interesting, he didn't see himself working under their rules. It had to be the other way round. Suddenly an immense light seemed to surround him. It made his eyes narrow. It was like everything was turning white. Whatever it was, the Penguin and Ivy also saw it. But Pamela was the only one who seemed to understand what it was. "Who the…?" Before her voice could finish that sentence, something hit the back of their car, making all of them move forward.
The Penguin's fat hands held tight to his seat. His eyes were wide open and his big hat had fallen on his lap. Poison Ivy quickly turned the wheel, trying to avoid the car behind them while the Joker simply sat there, rolling his eyes while fastening his seat belt. The Penguin tried to peek over his shoulder to see who was the person inside the car that fallowed them, his eyes showed more frustration than anything else. "Who is that?!" The Joker looked at him with a snobbish look up while he shook his head lightly. "Oh, c'mon…who else could it be?" A moment of silence came up…Penguin and Ivy switched a look of panic and suddenly, everything was upside down.
Joker blinked his eyes in a lazy way when feeling his head being pressed against the ceiling of the car. His feet were hanging in the air. For some reason it reminded him of Alice in Wonderland, falling down the rabbit hole. Except Joker wasn't falling. And he certainly wasn't an annoying and stupid teenager whose hormones seemed to affect her every way of thinking. A small moan made Joker's eyes blink a couple of times. He looked to his right. Penguin was sleeping like a baby. He poked the short man's shoulder with strength, but he didn't react. More like unconscious like a baby…So the moan had to be from young and lovely…
"Oh fuck…!"
…Ivy. The Joker chuckled when hearing her angry voice. He quickly opened the door with a strong kick. "Now, now Pam, watch your language!" Joker dragged himself out of the car and a wave of cold hair seemed to slap across his face, making his eyes close tightly. Was it this cold when they came out from the Asylum? He calmly got up, almost falling to the side due to a small hole on the road. Joker looked up, in the car's direction. A big and large black tank stood now lifeless in front of him. His red smile grew wider while he pointed at it. "You're a hard fellow to reach…I was in Arkham for five months and not one visit!" He placed his hand over his heart while he shook his head. "It broke my little heart." Joker's voice had a mocking tone on it. But there seemed to be no response.
Instead, a huge noise came from behind him. Another door from the pink car was wide open and from it came out Pamela. Beautiful and angry Pamela. The Joker's smile seemed to curl when seeing that pretty face of hers burning with rage. Even like that she was a gorgeous sight. Her green eyes glanced at her car. The rose that was once on the top was now next to the car. Small red pieces all over the floor of what was once a beautiful sculpture. Oh, it made her angry alright. Not only that, her pink car was ruined. The Penguin could have brought his limo, but no! "I can't let the public know I'm working on this for now!"
Her hands became green fists. "That stubborn little creep…" Suddenly ,from the door that Joker had opened, crawled little Oswald. His small eyes shifted nervously to the sides his hand grasping his black umbrella tight. The Penguin quickly stood up and stopped next to Pamela. Her green eyes ignored him completely; they were too focused on the huge car in front of them. But Ivy's furious expression seemed to make the Penguin swallow with nervousness. That woman could be even more dangerous than Batman when annoyed.
Something suddenly seemed to crawl from out of the dark transport. It moved slowly and in a threatening way that made all of the three villains widen their eyes. Penguin gave a small step back, Pamela stood there like hypnotized and Joker gave a step forward his entire body shaking with excitement. It was him. After three months without any idea what he was up to, he was finally there. Joker's lovely friend. The kid who made his job fun. His straight man.
The Batman.
First of all, sorry about my grammar folks. English isn't my first language, and I'm still learning how to handle this language (heh).
Second, my Joker suddenly changed…in the beginning he was a comic-like Joker…but after watching the Dark Knight…well, I couldn't help it. Heath Ledger made a great Joker!
BeppoMagicBicycle: Tom Waits rules
Capitan Deadpool: Thank you very much! You gave me strength to finish this chapter!