SoraMalfoySlytherin- Oh a couple of them will appear… soon…
Corroded, Ch. 3
"So just take those and you'll be fine." Ed said, dumping a small pile of antibiotics into the Joker's palm. The criminal popped them into his mouth with no problem, and Ed turned away at the sight of his yellowed teeth. He was exhausted, Harley had kept him up and at the Joker's beside for hours, if not days. The windows of the motel were completely boarded up, so he couldn't gauge what time of day it was from the light outside. They'd given him some food and time for bathroom breaks; but the only time Ed was able to sleep was when the Joker was knocked out on painkillers, which wasn't often.
"Get me a drink." Joker ordered. Edward scowled and turned back to his patient, who was gesturing theatrically with an outstretched hand.
"Get your-"
"Ah ah, Eddy. Remember your lovebird back in Jump." The Joker reminded him warmly. Once again, Ed's anger was immediately drained and wrested from him. He stormed off to find a vending machine, with one of the bodyguards following closely behind him. When he finally found one, Ed realized that he didn't have any money to buy a drink and pressed all the buttons frantically until he huffed and turned back, ready to face the Joker's wrath. A loud crunch startled him, though, and he turned to see the henchman pulling his hand out of the shattered vending machine with a few drinks clutched in one massive fist. The crony smirked and dumped the drinks into Ed's arms, then followed him back to the Joker's room.
"Here." Ed snapped, tossing a soda can onto the foot of the bed. The Joker stared at it blandly, then quirked an eyebrow.
"Do they not have this in diet?" He teased.
"No." Ed replied. "Drink it." Joker gracefully swept the can into his hand and popped the tab, avoiding the fizzling foam that dripped onto his sheets. He took a long sip from the can and smacked his lips, while Edward grit his teeth.
"You should watch your tone, kid." He said, taking another sip before rolling the can over to read the back label. "Most people wouldn't be as forgiving with you as I am."
"Most people don't kidnap somebody and keep them hostage in the middle of nowhere." Ed retorted. The Joker cackled.
"Well, you're not really a hostage, are you?" He asked, "There's nobody on the other side I'm trying to manipulate; your boy in Jump City is the hostage if we're being honest." He coolly took another sip of his drink and smiled. "And you're not in the middle of nowhere. If you looked outside you'd be surprised at where we are."
"I'd take you up on that; but the boards on the windows make it a little tough." Ed said icily. "If I'm not a hostage, when can I go home?" The Joker purposefully spluttered in his drink. When he wiped the foam off his chin he sat up and leaned forward menacingly.
"Oh you're so cute, Eddy. Here's the deal- you're sort of my personal physician now, like it or not."
"Not-"
"I'm not finished." Joker growled, "You get the luxury of staying with me, the coolest cat in Gotham-"He smirked, reverting back to levity. "-And in return, you and your loved ones don't end up in unfortunate accidents."
"That doesn't answer my question. Do I get to go home, ever? Once you're healed? Or to maybe get a change of clothes?" Ed pressed. The Joker sat back on the bed and folded his arms like he was seriously considering the plea.
"Harley, how long has the good doctor been with us?" He asked. Harley perked up from her seat by the door.
"About a week and a half, Mister J." She cooed. Instead of feeling terrified, Ed felt the tightness in his gut relax a little. A week. He wasn't allowed to leave Gotham via Gordon's orders, and he'd promised to call Dennys if the Joker wasn't caught. No doubt his boyfriend had already called the GCPD and alerted Gordon, and Gordon had probably deployed his forces to search the city. Hell, maybe he'd call the Batman in.
Ed allowed a small smile to grace his face as he thought of all the magnificent ways the GCPD could rescue him. He'd be able to explain everything, and maybe they'd take the Joker out when they retrieved him. It was a win-win situation on all sides.
"Hey, Eddy." The Joker whistled, snapping his fingers impatiently and bringing Ed back to the present. "I've got a deal for you. You're starting to look a little pale, so we'll let you go out, get some sun, and go back to your place." He said. Edward immediately felt suspicion brewing in his chest.
"And?" He prompted. "What's the second part?" The Joker cackled.
"You know me so well, doc. The hitch is, we'll bring you back every once in a while to check up on me. The infection has almost completely healed, so now it's just a matter of the bullet wound healing up nicely." He winked. "And you don't have to worry about scarring, I'm not picky." Ed frowned.
"And once you're healed?" The Joker raised his hands and blew air out of his cheeks.
"Whoosh, you'll never see me again." He said. "I can pinky promise if you want." Ed narrowed his eyes.
"Yeah, you'll forgive me if I don't believe you." He said coldly. Harley made a disapproving noise in the corner, but Joker threw her a cruel look before turning back to Ed with a smile.
"It's understandable; but I'm a man of my word. Always." He stuck out his hand, and after a moment of hesitation, Ed shook it. The Joker had a terrifyingly strong grip, and his skin was still cold like a corpse. As soon as they'd shaken, Ed reclaimed his hand and shoved it into his back pocket. The Joker licked his lips and grinned.
"I'm glad you're so open to making deals, Dr. Wheeler. It makes my job a hundred times easier. Harley, why don't you put him back where you found him?" He said. Edward could hear Harley spring from her chair.
"The same way, J?" She asked, her voice warbling with excitement. Joker's grin grew even wider.
"Of course."
No sooner had the words left his lips than a rough bag cloaked everything in sight, and Ed instinctively reeled backwards. As he stepped back, something hard hit him from the side and sent him sprawling into blackness. The last thing he heard before he lost consciousness was the Joker's maniacal laugh as he enjoyed the show.
. . .
When Ed woke up, the first thing he saw was the crack in the plaster ceiling. After a brief moment of panic, he realized that he was in his bed with his covers tucked up under his chin. He bolted upright and stumbled out of the bed, searching for the place where he'd last seen his phone. After scouring the apartment twice, he admitted that the Joker must have taken it. When he returned to the bedroom, he saw a small dollar store flip phone resting on the bedside table with a note.
Here's your new phone. I'll be watching. –J
Ed crumpled the note up and hurled it against the wall; but it didn't do much to ease his anger. He threw a disdainful look at the phone, then snatched it up and dialed Dennys' number.
"Hello?" Dennys sounded like he hadn't slept in days. "Who is this?"
"Den!" Ed said, "Oh thank God you're okay, I-"
"Wait, Ed? Ed? Where the fuck have you been?" Dennys snarled. "I never got a call from you so I called the GCPD like fifty times and they couldn't find you and I swear to God I'm going to kill you. Don't ever run off and just disappear like that again. What if the Joker had gotten you? Why weren't you answering your phone?"
"Den, I'm sorry." Edward apologized. "I-"He eyed the crumpled note on the floor.
I'll be watching.
"My phone broke, and I didn't have time to get another one." He said, "I worked back to back shifts this past week and didn't have enough spare time." Dennys scoffed.
"Edward Wheeler how stupid do you think I am?" He asked lowly. "I called the hospital multiple times and they said that you're on probationary leave without pay. Where. Were. You." Ed chewed on the inside of his cheek, trying to figure out a proper story to fool his boyfriend.
"Don't lie to me, Ed." Dennys said, "Please."
"I can't tell you," Edward said truthfully. "If I could I would." There was a small pause before Dennys inhaled deeply.
"Fine. I'm coming to Gotham."
"No! You can't!" Ed argued. "It's not safe here."
"You just went AWOL for a week and a half; obviously something is wrong." Dennys pointed out.
"Den, I'm fine. I promise." Ed reassured him, "I'm here talking to you, so you know I'm not dead in an alley somewhere."
"That's not funny, Ed." Dennys said flatly. "I didn't know if you were ignoring me, if you'd been shot, or what. I want an answer."
I'll be watching.
Ed's eyes darted around his room, trying to find something to use to distract Dennys. His eyes lit on the remote laying by the TV.
"Ed. Answer me."
"Hey, you remember the week of animal documentaries we watched last year?" Edward asked quickly. Dennys paused.
"Yeah… what are you doing?" He asked slowly.
"I really loved the show about the elephant seals, you know? And one of the younger seals wanted some of the territory of another seal but was too weak, so he threatened the older bull's mate and young to lure him into an ambush?" Ed asked desperately. Dennys was quiet for a moment.
"Ed. What the fuck."
Edward groaned. "I can't tell you, Den. It's too dangerous for you." There was another moment of silence over the line.
"You know what- fine." Ed slumped for a minute, then reevaluated the tone of Dennys' voice. He'd gotten it. At least part of it. "I'll call you tomorrow," Dennys said more gently. Ed slumped again; but with relief.
"I'll text you."
"Alright, love you."
"Love you too, Den."
Ed hung up and stared at his palms. He'd washed them repeatedly to get the Joker's blood off; but there was a spot on the heel of his palm that just wouldn't seem to go away. It bugged him incessantly, as though if he could clean the blood off he could go back to living an ordinary life and forget all about the Joker.
"Fat chance." He muttered to himself. There really wasn't much he could do. His phone was gone, he couldn't contact Gordon, and he was too scared to go through Gotham. So for the rest of the afternoon, Ed Wheeler lounged around his apartment in sweatpants and only slightly paid attention to whatever was playing on the TV in front of him.
After hours of laying around, Ed had almost fallen asleep. He was just starting to dream when he was startled by a resounding crash that sounded like the combined sound of wood, metal, and glass breaking. He rolled to the floor and pressed himself into the small space between the side of his bed and the wall. He could hear heavy footsteps thud across his carpet, and the doctor decided to hold his breath.
"Get up." A gravelly voice snapped. Before Edward knew what was happening, he'd been plucked from the ground and was held in the air by his shirt, staring at the cowl of the Batman.
"H- holy shit." He breathed. The vigilante didn't look impressed with the man dangling from his arm; but he still turned and slammed Ed's back into the wall. Ed coughed and spluttered as the air was forced from his lungs; but Batman's firm grip kept him from drawing a full breath.
"Who are you?" He demanded. Ed struggled against his iron grip.
"I don't know what you mean!" He choked. He'd always opposed the public notion that the Batman was a public menace; but he was starting to believe it. The vigilante tightened his grip on Ed's neck.
"Who are you?" He repeated. "You treated the Joker's wounds. Are you on his payroll?" Edward finally went limp under Batman's hand. That's why. He wanted to know about the night at the hospital.
"I'm Ed Wheeler," He gasped, "New doctor from- Jump City." Spots dotted his vision and he tried to take a deep breath. Batman loosened his chokehold enough for the doctor to breathe.
"Gordon told me you treated the Joker," He growled. "Why?"
"Nobody else would," Ed replied. His pulse was racing, and he wondered if Batman could feel it through his glove. "They broke their oaths." He added breathlessly.
"Do you know what he's done?" Batman snarled, roughly shoving Edward's back against the bricks again.
"I do!" He responded immediately. "I wanted him to live, so he could face trial and pay for what he's done! Everybody else seemed to forget that part, like they thought they could pass judgement on him themselves." Ed couldn't see the Batman's eyes, but he saw his jaw work underneath his cowl.
"And I know you don't kill." Ed added slowly. "Killing him would have made me just like him- a murderer."
"He's contacted you, hasn't he?" Batman rasped. Eddie nodded.
"He wants me to oversee his recovery." He answered quietly, "He trusts me." Batman was silent as he towered over Ed and made his decision.
"Stay in this apartment and wait for my instructions," He ordered. "The next time he comes for you, press this." He handed Ed a small device with a yellow button. "This will send me a signal to track you with." Ed took it, and Batman let him go.
"I can't just stay here under house arrest!" He protested. "I've got a job- a life!"
"Not anymore you don't." Batman retorted over his shoulder. "You're caught up with one of the worst criminals in this hemisphere. He'll get to you and whomever you love- regardless of how far away they are." Ed turned the homing device in his hands, feeling his sweat coat it and make the metal slick.
"Batman-"Ed hesitated slightly, not really sure how to phrase the awkward question to the same man who fought alongside heroes like Superman and Wonder Woman. The slight way Batman tilted his head let Edward know that he was listening, so he spat the words out. "My boyfriend- he lives in Jump City. If I stay here can you at least make sure he's safe? Put a tail on him or send him to another country or something like that?" Batman didn't turn around, he strode to the door and wiggled it on its hinges. It was splintered from where he'd forced his way in; but it was salvageable and still closed and locked. Batman shut it quietly and turned to face the doctor.
"I will if you promise to use that tracker." He said flatly. Edward immediately nodded and slipped the device into the pocket.
"I will, I swear." He said. He could feel himself regaining his usual composure. Batman wasn't a threat, if anything he was the only available ally. Ed's heartrate had long since returned to normal, and he was starting to take things in stride. "His name is Dennys Reid, and his apartment is on twenty-third street in Jump City. Promise me you'll protect him." Ed said. He saw the corner of Batman's mouth move, like he was impressed with Edward's selflessness. In all reality, that's not what it was. Ed wanted to be protected as well; but he had Batman over his shoulder, and Den had nobody.
"I will." Batman said, sliding open one of the windows overlooking the street below. "Remember, if the Joker comes for you or gives you anything- I want to know." His words were strict and firm, and Ed wondered if he was a police officer under the hood. He briefly thought of Commissioner Gordon; but realized that Batman had a much better physique than Gordon and no semblance of a moustache whatsoever.
"Dr. Wheeler." Batman said impatiently. "I want your word." Edward snapped to attention.
"You've got it." He said, "Actually, there was a note waiting for me when I got home. Here." He reached for the note from the Joker and passed it to Batman, who pinched it between his fingertips like it was contaminated.
"Thank you for your help, Dr. Wheeler. Someone will be in touch with you soon." He said lowly.
"Wait, what do you mean 'someone'?" Ed asked. "Oh Batman, hang on, he also took my phone and left me a new one. Do you want that too or…?" When Ed turned around with the burner phone in hand, he realized that his apartment was empty. The only signs that Batman had been there were the splintered door and open window. Ed scowled, then closed the window and checked all the locks before collapsing back onto the bed and falling back into vaguely paying attention to whatever was droning on in the TV.