Disclaimer: No matter how much I want them to be mine(sobs) they never will be.
Bruce raced down the dark labyrinth of alleyways. He was lost. Lost in his own city.
A familiar scream pierces the night.
'No!' is all he can think as he races towards where he knows the woman will be.
Arriving he sees a familiar sight: two dead adults and a small child crying. As he watches the familiar scene he notices something different about the villain of this nightmares.
The man was hanging upside down, suspended above the alley by one of his grapnel lines! And the Batman was standing in front of him, bloody knife in hand and staring at Bruce.
"This is how you make the nightmares stop." he said.
A pressure in his hand made Bruce look down. The bloody knife was now in his gloved hand!
Looking into the frightened eyes of the man who had traumatized him so long ago, he began to laugh.
And laugh.
And laugh!
As he laughed he worked until the man was unrecognizable.
Sitting up with a shout, Bruce looked around his room. When had he been moved here?
And why was he no longer strapped down?
Had he escaped his confinement?
Had he killed the Joker and Alfred while escaping?!
As he began to panic over what he might have done he didn't notice his door opening until strong arms wrapped around him and began to rock him in a soothing manner.
"It's alright Brucey. Shhh. You didn't hurt anyone. Relax. There you go." Letting himself relax into the madman's embrace, Bruce tried not to think too hard about why it felt so safe and comfortable.
"What happened?" He finally whispered. Why had he been released? He was a danger to everyone!
"Well... after I got back from Crane's- do you remember that?" Bruce thought a moment.
"I remember laughing about you killing him." As he looked into green eyes so close to his own he had a moment of confusion: why did the Joker look so sad all of a sudden?
"Yes, well..." The Joker turned in face away, but tightened his arms. He continued his story.
"After you passed out I managed to find the right formula Crane used on you- he had tried using you as a test subject for his new stuff, so kept accurate records on what he sprayed you with. That was the only lucky break we got." Taking a deep breath the Joker tightened his hold once more- Bruce only now realized his arms were immobilized by the hold- and once more looked Bruce in the eye.
"I was able to clear the chemical residue out of you system, but it had already done significant damage." Bruce began to struggle.
No! He wouldn't hear this! He would kill this clown before he could say it!
The Joker just held him securely, he had lost muscle mass while strapped to the table he realized.
"I'm sorry Batsy, but you are permanently brain-damaged. You're going to have to learn to live with your new urges." Bruce struggled more, and then began to laugh.
"I'm you! I'm finally you! You must be so happy!" He gasped out through his loud guffaws.
As he began to sob uncontrollably he leaned into the strong arms of his greatest enemy- and his best friend he now realized.
Who else would have stayed by his side, and not judged him for what he had done?
Only Alfred.
Alfred and Joker, his only friends. But where was his old mentor?
As if reading his mind, the Joker supplied an answer.
"I convinced Alfred to take a vacation, so he's visiting family in England for the next month. I'm to call him everyday with updates on your condition, and once you feel up to it your to talk to him yourself."
"Thank you." Bruce felt exhausted, but he truly was thankful for what the Joker had done and needed the clown to know that.
"No problem Brucey. Know you need to rest some more. I'll check on you again later, okay?" Nodding, Bruce settled back into his bed.
Just before the green haired man left the room Bruce asked a question that had just come to mind.
"I'm going to need therapy now to learn to control myself, won't I?"
"Yes." Joker turned to look back at the vulnerable looking man in the bed. Vulnerable is better than homicidal, right?
"Don't worry about it Batsy. Dr. Joker is here and he isn't going to let you suffer through this alone." Making it out of the room before the laughter started, he leaned against the wood until it stopped.
His poor Batsy was right. He could easily become just like the Joker now. But he didn't know one thing though, and that was that the Joker would never let him. He would never let his Batsy turn into him.
As his sudden laughter died down Bruce curled up under his blankets. He hated how he couldn't control his reactions anymore!
As he fell asleep he thought about the Joker's eyes, how sad they looked. He hated seeing him look so sad. Closing his eyes he drift off.
Bruce raced down the dark labyrinth of alleyways. He was lost. Lost in his own city.
A familiar scream pierces the night.
'No!' is all he can think as he races towards where he knows the woman will be...