Notes: I'm a little surprised by how this chapter ended up coming out, but I'm pretty happy with it.

Chapter Nine

Things seemed to have quieted down at Arkham by the time Batman drove back. He pulled in where he wouldn't obstruct the police cars that were still driving back and forth over the bridge and got out, quickly hurrying over to where Yin was speaking into a walkie-talkie next to her police car.

She looked up as he approached. "The staff is all either in custody or relieved of their duties," she reported. "Temporary staff is coming in now. We're running a patient count."

"You won't find Ethan," Batman told her. "I got him away in case Portman or Crane would decide he was a liability."

Yin nodded. "I was hoping that was the case. But speaking of Portman and Crane, we can't find either one of them."

Batman's eyes narrowed. "That's not good."

"That's an understatement. And I was kind of surprised Riddler didn't do anything with the computer mainframe." Yin put her walkie-talkie on her belt. "Scarecrow beat him up tonight; I knew he was hurt worse than he tried to make me believe!"

Batman considered that. "Maybe he didn't think his services were needed. Or maybe . . . maybe he decided to use them in a different way."

"How?" Yin wondered.

"After what Crane did to him, do you really think he would sit back and let the police arrest his enemy without at least trying again to get back at Crane?"

Yin slapped her forehead. "So Crane might be at Riddler's place? Augh! That man is going to get himself killed!"

"Who—Crane or Nygma?" Batman grunted, turning around to go back to the Batmobile.

"I was thinking of Riddler." Yin barked an order at another police officer and chased after Batman. "And after he promised not to get himself physically involved in this mess!"

"Maybe he kept his promise." Batman kept walking, not looking at Yin. "We don't know what other secrets he has at his office."

"And one of them might be an obstacle course or deathtrap in the building?" Yin clenched her fists. "You're probably right."

"Try calling him," Batman encouraged.

Yin was just taking out her phone when it rang. Quickly she put it to her ear. "Hello?"

"The Riddler wants you to come," the Riddlewoman announced. "He's keeping Scarecrow in the basement."

Yin gripped the phone. "Oh, I'm coming, alright," she said. "You can tell him that. And Batman's coming too." She paused. "Tell me honestly. Is he in danger?"

"Not unless Scarecrow plays through the whole course and gets out."

"There's no way out unless he plays?" Yin demanded.

"Well . . ." The Riddlewoman hesitated and Yin's heart skipped a beat. "There are emergency exits. You know, like if the Riddler himself ever got trapped and the place was being used against him for some reason, he wanted to know he could get out."

"Are they easy to find?" Yin kept talking as they reached the Batmobile and she leaped in. Batman got in as well and started the engine.

"Not really. He didn't want anyone else to find them."

"I bet Scarecrow might," Yin said darkly. "Don't leave your boss for one moment. Is anyone else there?"

"One other. He usually has us around in shifts of two, unless he wants us all at once for something."

"Get the others if you can," Yin instructed. "We're leaving right now. It should take us fifteen or twenty minutes to get there."

"You'll probably get here before I can reach everybody," the Riddlewoman retorted. "But Scarecrow's only one man."

"So is the Riddler," Yin replied. "I know he has lots of tricks up his sleeve, but Scarecrow has his fear gas and who knows what else. He already overpowered two of your friends and beat up your boss. Think about that." She hung up.

Batman was driving at the absolute speed limit. Although he continued to stare ahead, seemingly focused completely on the road, Yin was sure he had heard every word of her part of the exchange.

"It's funny, you know," Yin said after a moment. "Several months ago, if this situation was going on, I'd figure they were equal madmen and it wouldn't matter much which of them came out of it alright. And now I know they're not equal and I don't want Scarecrow to win. I'm worried about Riddler. At the same time, I want to punch him out for pulling this stunt and for making me worry." She rubbed her forehead. "But I don't really want to hurt him."

"You've been getting to know him well," Batman commented. "Of course, by luring Crane out there and trapping him in the basement, he's technically breaking the law right now."

"So are you, every night," Yin replied dryly. "Scarecrow is such a danger to everyone in the city. I don't think most people here will mind too much on how Riddler is detaining him. He really might have escaped if Riddler hadn't called him. Anyway, I bet Scarecrow knew Riddler was planning something. He probably deliberately went out there to finish him off. Why else would he go as Scarecrow when Riddler called Crane?"

Batman nodded. "I agree with you. I'm sure Nygma wasn't trying to and didn't fool him."

"So now we have to figure out how to get Scarecrow without putting Riddler in any more danger," Yin said.

"We might have to go through Nygma's obstacle course ourselves," Batman said.

"Or maybe surprise Scarecrow at one of the emergency exits," Yin suggested.

"Or at the end of the course. It depends on what's happening by the time we get there."

Yin gripped the armrest. It wouldn't take long to drive there, but in a tense situation, even a few minutes could be an eternity.

Hopefully the Riddler would be able to control Scarecrow until then.

xxxx

The Riddler was on high alert. It had been amusing putting Scarecrow through the paces and giving him riddles, but he could tell the madman was restless and constantly looking for a way out. In an attempt to slow down his progress, the Riddler dimmed the basement lights as much as he could.

"Now, Jonny, tell me," he purred. "What has leaves but no branches?"

If Scarecrow objected to the Riddler switching to using such a familiar nickname, he didn't show it. Instead he unfurled his chain with a maniacal grin. "A tree that's been chopped to pieces," he hissed. The chain flew, hooking around the camera near the ceiling. With one sharp pull, the camera sizzled and crackled and the picture faded into snow.

The Riddler cursed in his mind. "He's trying to escape," he informed his lackeys. "He doesn't want me to see him do it."

As if on cue, an alarm abruptly echoed throughout the building. The Riddler leaped up, while his Riddleman and Riddlewoman jumped a mile.

"He found one of the emergency exits," the Riddler noted. "He'll be coming back up here." He looked to the computer screen, which had switched to showing which exit had just been used. His employees, seeing it as well, rushed through a door into the corridor beyond. Taking up his cane, the Riddler followed.

Scarecrow burst through a hidden door almost as soon as his enemies arrived on the scene. Half-expecting it but still angry, he shot out his chain and caught hold of the Riddleman's staff, pulling it to the floor with a clatter.

Next, the Riddlewoman lunged, managing to shock him with the taser on the end of her staff. He stumbled back, crashing into the wall, and the Riddler limped forward.

"Well, congratulations, Jonny," he said darkly. "You managed to find one of several possible ways out. Unfortunately for you, this is as far as you're going to get—until you're taken back to Arkham as a new patient."

Scarecrow held a hand over his chest, still recovering from the mild shock. "You realize I could probably sue you for putting me in this hostage situation," he said.

"Yes, you probably could," the Riddler replied. "And with a shady lawyer, you'd manage to win. You'd just have to avoid mentioning that you came here of your own free will, already knowing I was out for vengeance, and that you were planning, unlike me with you, to quite literally spill my blood." He leaned on his cane. "I'd say that a truly fair judge would have to consider us both at fault, you perhaps moreso."

"There aren't any truly fair judges, here or anywhere else," Scarecrow said.

"I can think of a few who would be very adamantly opposed to that statement," the Riddler said.

Scarecrow pushed himself away from the wall. "In any case, you're right about why I came, Edward." He pulled a shiny object out of his pocket and unfolded it into a deadly blade, which he snapped onto the final links of the chain. The Riddlewoman and Riddleman tensed.

"If you're going to kill me because I know who you are, there are others who have figured it out too," the Riddler warned.

"I don't have any such mundane motivation in mind," Scarecrow said. "You know how much I enjoy vengeance. I killed every one of the people who tormented me when I was growing up." He sneered. "And I relished every moment of it."

"Your thirst for vengeance is far greater than mine," the Riddler said, admittedly disturbed. "I left most of my tormentors alone."

"And that is why I will win, Edward. I don't hold back and I don't leave anyone alone." Scarecrow leaped into the air, flinging his modified chain ahead of him.

The Riddlewoman dived out of the way, as did the Riddler. The Riddleman met Scarecrow head-on, trying to touch the electrified end of his staff to the blade. It worked, briefly, and Scarecrow shouted in pain as the electricity coursed into his body. He collapsed to the floor and the Riddleman started to push the now-limp chain away from its owner.

Suddenly Scarecrow came to life, wrapping the chain around the Riddleman's legs. He went down and Scarecrow struggled up, cackling madly. He swiftly unwound the chain, enjoying the sound of the blade tearing into the Riddleman's clothes and flesh as it went. With another swoop he cut into the downed man's back, reveling in his shout of pain.

The Riddlewoman gave a cry, flying into action. She attacked Scarecrow from the side, striking him with the force of the staff. He fell back but almost immediately recovered, kicking her hard in the stomach. She crashed into the wall near the Riddler and slumped to the floor, unconscious from striking her head.

Scarecrow sneered. "So now it's just you and I once again," he said. "Only you're too injured to be a challenge. Not that you were challenging earlier."

"We'll see." Shielding his eyes, the Riddler activated the bright green beam in his cane. Momentarily blinded, Scarecrow yelped in surprise and turned away.

"Conceding defeat so quickly?" The Riddler lunged, pressing the button to release a cloud of sleeping gas.

Scarecrow covered his nose and mouth. "Not until your lifeless body is lying bleeding at my feet!" He attacked without warning, attempting to wrap the chain around the Riddler's neck.

The Riddler held him back with the cane, raising it to protect himself and suddenly swinging it right at his enemy.

Scarecrow jumped back. "You're thinking rather fast on your feet, considering what I did to you earlier," he said. "But I can't help but notice that you're reluctant to do anything other than let that cane fight for you. I hurt you enough that physically fighting me is an impossibility for you right now. And if your pathetic hired hands can't help you, it won't take me long to engineer your death."

"Wrong, Scarecrow. Drop it! Now!"

Both Scarecrow and the Riddler started and turned to look. Yin was standing in the doorway, her gun clutched in her hands and pointed at Scarecrow. Batman was right behind her, holding a Batarang.

Instead of being intimidated, Scarecrow started to laugh. "So now the gang's all here," he observed. "You came to rescue your friend. Or maybe I should say, you came to see to my defeat and arrest. After all, that's all that really concerns you. You don't really care about Edward."

"You don't know anything about me," Yin said coldly.

"I know that caring and love are illusions created to make people feel good about themselves. You try to convince Edward he means something to you. Maybe you even believe that yourself right now. But someday, you'll wake up to the truth and then you'll leave him high and dry."

"You think that because you know that's how you are," Batman said. "Maybe someone hurt you so bad in the past that now you can't believe that there isn't anyone who isn't selfish. But that doesn't mean it's true."

"I already said I know Yin cares about me," the Riddler said. "It isn't an act."

"What about you for her?" Scarecrow replied without skipping a beat. "Maybe she's just a convenient way for you to get what you want."

"That isn't true either!" the Riddler shot back. "I don't use anyone who genuinely cares about me."

"Are you sure you don't presume a lot on this supposed friendship?" Scarecrow said cleverly. "Getting her to come out here, for example."

"That didn't have anything to do with friendship," the Riddler insisted. "She would have come anyway. I knew she wanted to see you arrested. And I felt she would have her own score to settle with you."

"So you were giving her a chance to do that. Isn't that nice."

Yin was annoyed. "This analysis has gone on long enough. We don't owe you any explanations for anything." She stepped into the room. "Come on, Crane. Put the chain down."

Batman followed her in. "Do what she says or you'll regret it."

"Oh, pardon me." Scarecrow lowered the chain to the floor. At the same moment, he deliberately threw a vial at the tiles and let it break. An all-too-familiar cloud immediately filled the hallway.

"Fear gas!" Yin choked. Her eyes watered and she tried to cover her nose and mouth with a shaking hand. It was no use.

The Riddler laughed at her, sneering, straightening to his full height instead of leaning on his cane. "You know, Jonny's right," he said. "I've just been using you, Yinsey. You've always been my perfect bait to get to The Batman. He was the one who interested me. Matching wits with the Dark Knight has added spice to my life that wasn't there before. I have to thank you for opening the door to that privilege. Unfortunately, you really mean nothing to me except for that."

Batman was reaching for his breathers, but he froze as the horrible visions began to creep over him again.

His parents were disappointed in him. . . . They didn't understand. . . . Or maybe they were right; he hadn't saved anyone. Gotham was being destroyed. Yin and Nygma were lying dead at his feet, two more he had failed to save. Up ahead, Alfred, Robin, and Batgirl were dead as well, sprawled helpless on the sidewalk as their blood stained it a deep and accusing crimson.

The Riddler coughed, falling heavily against the wall.

His father was beating him again, berating his failure to stop Scarecrow. . . . Then suddenly Yin was there as well, observing but not stopping the assault. Instead she turned her gun on him. "Riddler, I was wrong about you. I really knew that, deep down. I never should have trusted you. I'm not going to trust any criminals again, ever. I'm going to adopt Chief Rojas's No Tolerance For Freaks policy. And you're going to be its first fatality." She fired.

"No," Batman gasped. "This isn't real. None of what we're seeing is real. We all know that. Fight it! Fight it!"

Yin and the Riddler were each already struggling against the false images. Yin snapped to first and ran at Scarecrow, even as she coughed from the lingering gas. "This is it, Scarecrow! You're going down!" She sprang into the air, kicking him hard and sending him flying backwards, right into Batman's waiting arms.

The Riddler coughed again. "He's . . . afraid of . . . bats," he rasped.

Batman glowered at Scarecrow, who was tensing in his grasp. "Well, Dr. Crane? How does it feel, to be caught by a giant bat?"

"It feels terrifying." Scarecrow straightened, his eyes wild. "And that feels marvelous!"

Caught off-guard, Batman gasped as Scarecrow's chain blade dug into his chest. Scarecrow tore himself away in the next moment, whirling to face Yin. In one swift movement he had the chain wrapped around her, binding her arms to her sides.

"I'd really like to keep this experience going for as long as possible," he said, pulling it taut. "I can never get enough of the rush that comes with tormenting my enemies."

Yin clenched her teeth in pain, the links pressing against her clothes and into her flesh. "And then what, Scarecrow? You can't torture us forever. Riddler and I and Batman all have backup coming."

"By the time they arrive, you'll all be dead." Scarecrow produced a pair of garden shears and aimed at Yin's heart. The sharp tips cut into her jacket and shirt and started to draw blood as her skin was reached.

And then the Riddler was leaping out of the darkness, sweeping his cane across Scarecrow's neck and pressing it down. "I got us all into this mess because of my desire for vengeance," he growled, stepping backwards and drawing a choking Scarecrow with him by force. The garden shears clattered to the floor. "No more of this. I'll make it right."

In a moment he had Scarecrow on the floor and was straddling him, still keeping the cane against his throat. "It's one thing to endanger myself," he said darkly. "But I've also endangered people who care what happens to me. That is unforgivable."

"Riddler!" Yin called, running forward. "Let him go. Don't do something you can't take back."

The Riddler never looked away from Scarecrow, his eyes narrowed, as he replied, "Really, Yinsey, nothing in life can be taken back. Once it's done, it's done. Even this." He pressed a button on the cane, releasing the sleeping gas.

Scarecrow coughed and started to go limp. The Riddler eased the pressure, moving to back off of the other man's body.

"Wait!" Batman exclaimed. "That won't work, Nygma. He's . . ."

Without warning Scarecrow sprang to life, the Riddlewoman's fallen staff in his hands. "My mask protects me from all gasses," he crowed. "But I'm afraid, Edward, that nothing will protect you now." He shoved the staff point-blank at the Riddler as he held the button, releasing a powerful and lasting blast of electricity directly into his former student's body.

The Riddler screamed.

Yin screamed as well. "No!" She leaped onto Scarecrow's back, pulling him away. At the same moment, a Batarang sent the staff flying several yards. Batman ran forward, seizing Scarecrow's wrists while he struggled with Yin. With a flourish Batman snapped on the handcuffs.

Yin left the madman in Batman's care for the moment. Instead she rushed past him, falling to her knees where the Riddler had collapsed on his side. "Riddler! Riddler, no. You are not doing this to me. You are not dying this time. No." She turned him onto his back and bent down, listening frantically for a heartbeat.

"I'm alright, Yin."

She looked up with a start. He was watching her with half-open eyes and a slight smile, which turned into a smirk. "I've been electrocuted so many times by now, I must be starting to get used to it."

Yin wasn't sure whether to laugh or yell. Finally she opted to help him sit up and then pull him into a firm embrace. "Don't let that happen again," she ordered.

Stunned at first, the Riddler slowly brought his arms around Yin. "I don't plan to," he said. "Certainly not because of a desire for vengeance. I never should have involved you."

"You wouldn't have, if you hadn't thought you could hold him until we got here," Yin said.

The Riddler paused, considering her words. "You're right," he admitted.

Scarecrow scowled. "Of all the preposterous . . . !"

"You would think that was preposterous, wouldn't you," Batman said as he hauled Scarecrow up. "People caring about each other is something you just can't comprehend. In that respect, I feel sorry for you, Doctor."

"Don't, Batman," Scarecrow snarled. "There isn't any true kindness or love in the world. You'll learn that eventually. So will they."

Batman watched as Yin helped the Riddler up, letting him lean on her as he wobbled. "I don't think they're in the mood to learn that lesson. They're too busy worrying about each other."

And he smiled a bit.

xxxx

Twenty minutes later, a squad car arrived to take Jonathan Crane, a.k.a. the Scarecrow, into police custody. The Riddler was again lying on the bed in his tech room, while his Riddleman and Riddlewoman, also recovering from the fight, were sprawled on the assorted couches.

"I'm alright, really," the Riddler tried to assure a concerned and watchful Yin. "I couldn't have been unconscious for more than a minute. I think the worst thing I did was to aggravate these bumps and bruises again." He winced.

Yin sighed. "Maybe from now on, you shouldn't equip your henchmen with electrically-charged staffs."

"Any weapon could be used against me," he answered. "I won't have them unarmed."

"Yeah, I guess they really shouldn't be," Yin said wryly, "if you don't plan on giving up your current line of work."

"Oh, but Yinsey, I just consult," he purred.

Yin rolled her eyes.

Observing from the doorway, Batman was deadpan. "Dr. Crane's on his way to Arkham," he announced.

"What's going to happen to Ethan?" Yin wondered. "And Penguin?"

"Ethan's case is going to be reviewed to see if he needs to continue treatment," Batman said. "Penguin will be in protective police custody until the hearing and trial."

"And there hasn't been any sign of Dr. Portman," Yin frowned.

"There hasn't. Crane admitted to assaulting her with his fear gas in a secret tunnel the police already found empty. I suspect he may have used a strong enough dose that he hoped to drive her even further out of her mind, if not to outright kill her." Batman narrowed his eyes. "But she must have had enough presence of mind to escape."

"I hate to think where she might end up," Yin said. "She's hurt more than enough people as it is."

"You know the police as well as I do," Batman said. "They won't give up until they have her in custody."

Yin nodded. "I don't like to think how Chief Rojas is going to react to everything that happened here tonight," she sighed. "Especially Riddler luring Crane out here."

"I don't think Rojas will cause any problems for Nygma," Batman said. "At least, not this time. As you said, Crane probably would have escaped just as Portman has, if Nygma hadn't given him the idea to come over. Crane did come of his own free will, and with murder on his mind. No one was seriously hurt, and for his part in causing Crane to end up attacking us, Nygma paid a price."

"Anyway, I think Commissioner Gordon will probably give Rojas his spiel about how I helped bring in a dangerous criminal and it isn't wise to arrest a hero," the Riddler smirked.

Yin folded her arms. "He'll probably also give you a spiel about not doing something like this again," she said.

"It won't happen again," the Riddler assured her. "Anyone else I've managed to subdue without calling in the police until after they're ready for arrest. I called you and Batman in on this because you both had a stake and an interest in Scarecrow's capture. He'd attacked both of you and that was personal for you as well as for me." He hesitated. "And maybe I wanted to be sure that you knew I wasn't out for blood, as he was."

Yin shook her head. "You look at the world a lot differently than Batman or I do," she said. "I don't think of things in terms of getting personal satisfaction after a wrong is committed against me. For example, I just wanted Scarecrow brought down, no matter who did it."

"Perhaps, but don't tell me you didn't want to personally bring me down the first time we met," he smiled. "You may have let Batman go after me without a fuss, but I'm quite sure you wished you were going after me and not my employees. They told me you said as much."

"You've got me there," she said. "Yeah, I wanted that."

"And I wanted to take you down both because I didn't want to put Detective Yin in that danger and because you'd made things personal," Batman said.

"So you both understand what I'm talking about, at least to some extent. I'm sure you both feel some level of satisfaction in knowing that you were part of bringing Scarecrow down."

Yin considered that and nodded. "You're right. And as far as you wanting us to know that you weren't bent on murder, I didn't think you were." She smiled a bit. "But I kind of like that you wanted to be sure that was clear."

Batman nodded in approval and turned to go. "My business here is done," he said. "I'll see you both later."

"Alright. Goodnight," Yin said.

"Goodbye," the Riddler added.

Batman left the room, his cape sweeping against the doorframe.

Yin looked to the Riddler once they were alone. "I was surprised about what you did back there," she said. "Realizing that maybe getting vengeance wasn't the best way to go about things, I mean."

"At least not if it's going to hurt other people as well," the Riddler frowned.

"The thing about taking vengeance is that it's always going to hurt other people too, if they care about you," Yin pointed out. "They won't want to see you like that."

"That's a good point," the Riddler nodded. "I'm sorry for involving you. And Batman too, really."

"Well, maybe in the end, it took all of us to bring Scarecrow down," Yin said. "Maybe just one person wouldn't have been able to do it."

"Batman probably could have," the Riddler said. "But I'll admit it's much nicer to think that we played an important and necessary part." He leaned back into the pillow, closing his eyes.

Yin regarded him in slight bemusement. "Riddler . . . do you ever take that mask off?" She only knew his eyes had closed because of seeing the black of his eye shadow through the white of the mask's eyeholes.

He opened his eyes again. "Occasionally, when it's necessary."

"You didn't always wear it on the Friday Night Killer case," Yin noted. "But ever since your return from the dead, you've kept it on—at least that I've seen."

"Do you wish I didn't?"

"If you feel more comfortable with it on, that's fine." She paused. "I guess I just find that kind of sad. And I wish that you'd feel comfortable enough to take it off at least sometimes."

He reached up, pulling it off and revealing his blue eyes. "Like this?"

Yin smiled. "Yeah. Like that."

"I don't mind not wearing it. Sometimes. I guess I'm just more used to it now. Being without it reminds me of being powerless. Or in Arkham. Or both."

"Do you feel powerless now?" Yin asked.

"Strangely, no," the Riddler mused. "Maybe because you've already come to know me so well, it feels like the mask is pointless around you."

"You'll always have your mysteries," Yin said. "But I'm glad I solved at least a few of them."

"If anyone was going to, I'm glad it was you," the Riddler told her.

They remained there in silence for a few minutes, pondering on how things had changed between them, before either spoke again. "So I'm guessing you're not planning on changing the way you do your 'consulting' business any time soon," Yin remarked.

"Naturally not," the Riddler answered. "Why change what works? That's all business, anyway. With Scarecrow, I was getting too emotionally involved."

"I don't know," Yin mused. "I think you handled things pretty calmly. I can't say I agree with you getting him out here, but you did try to plan it out instead of just being reckless about it."

"Hmm. True," the Riddler agreed. "Although I'm surprised to hear you admit that."

"Honestly? So am I," Yin retorted. "I thought coming to accept Batman challenged my views more than anything else ever could." She paused. "Maybe instead, coming to accept him helped prepare me to accept you."

The Riddler fell silent, absorbing that information. "Then I'm glad," he said.

Yin smiled. "Me too."