Disclaimer: I own Scarlett. That's all.

Thanks to everyone who has been reviewing so far. I'm really happy that people like it because I feel good about this version as well as my other.

Without further adu from me, here's the next chapter.

The ride to Bruce Wayne's penthouse was silent. Alberto drove, Emily was in the passenger seat, and Scarlett was in the back seat. Emily and Alberto made small talk with each other, while Scarlett texted her older sister Sofia. Sofia had wanted to see the dress Scarlett was currently wearing. Begrudgingly, she had sent a picture of the dress. When the car finally stopped, a valet opened the door, surprising Scarlett.

"Welcome, Miss."

Scarlett smiled at the young teen and grabbed her clutch before sliding out of the car. Shoving her Blackberry inside, she waited for Emily and Alberto to walk up along side her. Fixing a bobby pin in her hair, Scarlett raised her eyes up to the penthouse that was stories above. She then examined her dress in the glass windows. It was dark purple and had a Grecian flair to it. It was halter neck but also went down lower in the back. The dress hugged her like a glove and the soft material went down to her feet. However, she didn't like that when the wind blew, the dress followed. Feeling a cold hand touch her shoulder, Scarlett turned and smiled at Emily.

"Ready?"

"As I'm ever going to be."

The three then entered the lobby and headed towards the elevator. Various people were drifting around the lobby and Scarlett pushed through them as she reached the elevator. Pressing the button for UP, she waited for her brother and friend to join her. The silver doors slid open and they quickly boarded only to be bombarded by 10 other people. Scarlett scowled as she was pressed towards the back and sighed as the elevator began to move. It smelled like perfume, cologne, and liquor. Looking to her brother, she said, "This is what happens when you decide to be slow."

Her brother flashed her a smile as the doors finally slipped open and revealed the penthouse. People were already milling about and Scarlett had never seen so many people in a tight space. As she exited, Scarlett breathed in fresh air before Emily came to her side and said, "This is so exciting. Where's the bar?"

Scarlett smiled before she pointed to the waiters milling about. Emily smiled before grabbing Alberto's hand and they both vanished into the crowd. Looking around, Scarlett watched for a familiar face and her lips formed a smile when she caught Alfred's gaze. She quickly walked to him and engulfed him in a tight hug. The old man hugged her back before letting her go.

"How are you, miss?"

"I'm fine, Alfred. Just waiting for Mr. Dent and Rachel to arrive. My boss can't go five feet without my Blackberry. I'm his lifeline. Speech notes, dinner dates, dates in general."

Picking up the tray of champagne from the nearby table, Alfred said, "You work for Harvey Dent now. How is that going?"

"Other than the three hours of sleep a night and being constantly busy, it's been great. I made a friend in Rachel as well, so I get something out of it."

Alfred smiled before he offered a glass of champagne to Scarlett. She took it willingly and said, "How are you doing?"

"As well as can be expected, miss."

Biting her lip, Scarlett said, "And how is…how is he?"

"Other than him testing my sewing skills, Master Wayne is fine."

Scarlett gave the old man a small nod before she heard the elevator doors open again. Harvey Dent and Rachel Dawes exited slowly and Scarlett turned back to Alfred and said, "Will you excuse me?"

She then turned and began to make her way over to Rachel. Her friend noticed her quickly and excused herself from Harvey's side. Scarlett watched him panic for a moment before Alfred glided up to him with the champagne tray. She gave a small giggle before Rachel grasped her hands tightly and said, "Harvey's scared stiff by the trust fund brigade."

"Really? Well, if it's any comfort, I don't want to be here either. Emily and Alberto are around here somewhere and I blame them."

Rachel gave her a smile and opened her mouth to reply but was cut off by the sounds of an approaching helicopter. Scarlett turned her head towards where the helicopter was going to land and watched as it did so. The whole room had gone quiet and Scarlett rolled her eyes when Bruce stepped out with three female guests.

"Figures," Rachel muttered.

Unable to comment, Scarlett watched as he pranced through the door. Like he owned Gotham City. He technically did but Scarlett thought he was taking the playboy thing a bit far. He let go of his three dates and said, "Sorry that I'm late. I'm happy to see you all got started without me. Now, where is Harvey? Where…Harvey Dent, the man of the hour"

Bruce walked through the crowd and stopped when he reached Harvey. Rachel and Scarlett stood a few feet away and Bruce clasped his hands together towards Harvey. Suddenly, Bruce's eyes fell on Rachel and Scarlett and he said, "And where is Rachel Dawes? She is my oldest friend. Come here."

Rachel crossed her arms before walking forward. Scarlett stayed in her spot and narrowed her eyes at Bruce. She hoped he wouldn't embarrass Harvey or Rachel, for that matter. His hazel eyes fell on her next and he smiled. Bruce nodded at her and Scarlett took it as her cue to walk forward slowly. She stopped once she reached Rachel's side.

"You know, when Rachel first told that me she was dating Harvey Dent, I had one thing to say. The guy from those God awful campaign commercials? I Believe in Harvey Dent?"

The crowd laughed and Rachel glared at Bruce. Scarlett bit her lip in nervousness and she gulped down her champagne.

"Yeah, nice slogan, Harvey," Bruce said, giving him a thumbs up. "But, it caught Rachel's attention."

Scarlett looked to her friend and she saw Rachel roll her eyes and look away. Turning back to Bruce, she saw the joking smile leave his face.

"But then, I started to pay attention to Harvey and all that he's been doing as our new DA. And you know what? I believe in Harvey Dent. I believe that on his watch, Gotham can feel a little safer, a little more optimistic. Look at this face? This is the face of Gotham's bright future. To Harvey Dent. Let's hear it for him."

The partygoers began to clap appreciably and Scarlett glanced around the room. Emily and Alberto were against one wall and had smiles on their faces. As she smiled at her friend, Emily mouthed, "I love this free booze."

Scarlett turned away in time to see Bruce take a glass of champagne and walk back outside. Turning to Rachel, she said, "Well, that was not so bad."

"Are you kidding? He made fun of Harvey to his face."

"Harvey didn't seem too upset by it."

"I'm about to go ring his ass," Rachel muttered.

Scarlett laughed before she took Rachel's arm and said, "No, you go back to Harvey and go socialize with my brother and Emily. He's your date and I don't have one. I'll go ring Bruce's ass for you."

"Don't."

"He's my boss and Bruce deserves it."

She then put her glass down and walked over to the glass doors. Opening them quietly, she saw Bruce throw the rest of his champagne over the side of the building. Clearing her throat, Scarlett walked out into the night and said, "Harvey may not know you well enough to understand when you're making fun of him but I do."

Bruce turned back to her and watched as she leaned against the glass railing next to him. Her face was set in a scowl.

"No, I meant every word about your boss."

"Was that a bit of distaste in your delivery of 'boss'?"

Bruce gave her a smile and Scarlett couldn't help but look away. He was trying to charm her but she told herself that it would never happen again. She glanced back up at him and held his gaze.

"Do you remember the day that we broke up?"

"How could I forget."

"Do you remember when you told me that when Gotham no longer needed Batman we would be together again? It's coming."

Scarlett looked away once more and said, "Bruce…you can't ask me to wait for that."

"It's happening now. Harvey is that hero. Your boss locked up half of the city's criminals and he did it without wearing a mask. Gotham needs a hero with a face."

Scarlett opened her mouth to reply but a male's voice interrupted the moment.

"You throw a party, Wayne. I'll give you that. Mind if I borrow my sister?"

Bruce and Scarlett looked towards the voice and saw Alberto leaning out of the penthouse door. Scarlett gave Bruce one last glance before she walked towards her brother. Alberto held the door open wider for her as she breezed past him, into the light of the party. Alberto gave a nod to Bruce before he walked back into the party leaving Bruce alone in the dark night.

Back inside the party, Scarlett found Emily immediately and said, "I can't stay. I have to go."

"What's wrong?"

"Bruce is what's wrong. That and a million other things."

"You need to calm down. Tell me what happened," Emily said.

Scarlett fiddled with the bracelet on her wrist and said, "I can't wait for him. I won't. He'll never give up Batman. Not after all the good he's done and all the people he's inspired."

Emily opened her mouth to reply but all of a sudden a large shot fired out throughout the room. The two woman glanced around the room and saw the people beginning to shrink back against the walls. Cursing, Scarlett turned to Emily and said, "Find Alberto and stay with him."

"What about you?"

"I have to find Rachel and Harvey."

Scarlett then turned back to see Rachel rushing over to her. Walking towards her friend and seeing the panicked look on her face, she said, "What's wrong?"

"The Joker's come for Harvey."

"Where's Harvey?"

"Bruce hid him in a closet."

Scarlett's eyes widened and she turned towards the elevators. She couldn't see what was going on. Grabbing Rachel's arm, Scarlett dragged her through the crowd so they could see more closely. Laying eyes upon the man known as The Joker, Scarlett took in his appearance. Stringy green hair, clown makeup and a purple trench coat over purple pants and all around purple. He was twirling in a circle and his first words were, "Good Evening, Ladies and Gentleman. We are tonight's entertainment."

He then grabbed a piece of shrimp from a plate and shoved it in his mouth. He chewed the shrimp and glanced around the room.

"I only have one question. Where is Harvey Dent?"

Scarlett felt Rachel tense at her side and grab her arm tightly. Craning her neck, she saw The Joker asking many of the partygoers if they knew Harvey. Frankly, she had had enough. Something needed to be done and Batman was no where in sight. Taking matters into her own hands, Scarlett stepped through the crowd, causing Rachel's eyes to widen.

"What are you doing?"

Scarlett ignored her friend and said, "Ok, stop."

The Joker let go of the old man he was holding a knife to and turned to her. She stepped out into the open air and crossed her arms as The Joker began to walk towards her. Many partygoers marveled at her bravery.

"Well hello, beautiful."

The Joker smoothed his hair back in an attempt to spruce himself up. Scarlett's eyes narrowed as he said, "You must be Carmine Falcone's daughter, hmm? And you are beautiful."

He then began to circle her and Scarlett began to inch away from him, feeling cornered. He then stopped in front of her and said, "Oh, you look nervous. Is it the scars? You wanna know how I got 'em?"

Scarlett didn't move and she tried to shrink back as he grabbed her face and pressed a knife to her skin. Alberto tried to move forward but was held back by Emily, while Rachel hoped that Bruce would arrive in time.

"Com'ere. Hey, look at me." Scarlett looked up into his rimmed eyes and glared.

"So, I had a wife. Who was beautiful. Like you. Who tells me I worry too much, who tells me I oughta smile more. Who gambles and gets in deep with the sharks. One day, they carve her face," The Joker said, pressing the knife harder into her skin.

"We got no money for surgeries. She can't take it. I just want to see her smile again, hmm. I just want her to know that I don't care about the scars. So, I stick a razor in my mouth and do this to myself."

The Joker motioned to his scars and Scarlett tried to turn her face as he pressed the knife back to her skin.

"And you know what? She can't stand the sight of me! She leaves. Now I see the funny side. Now, I'm always smiling!"

The Joker began to laugh menacingly and Scarlett gritted her teeth before punching him in the stomach. The Joker stumbled back a bit before he straightened back up and smiled at her. He laughed before he advanced on her once again.

"A little fight in you. I like that."

"Then you're gonna love me," a voice growled.

The Joker turned to his left and Scarlett followed his gaze in time to see Batman push him to the ground. Scarlett tried to run back to her friends but misplaced her footing and slipped. She fell to the ground and slid forward a couple feet, near the glass windows. Cursing, and ignoring the fighting and mayhem going on around her, Scarlett got to her knees and began to crawl back towards Rachel. Suddenly, she was stopped, and felt cold metal on the side of her head. The Joker yanked her up and put his arm around the front of her. The fighting had stopped and Batman finally turned back to The Joker. His movements ceased when he saw Scarlett beginning to struggle in the madman's arms.

"Drop the gun."

"Oh, sure. And you just take off your little mask and show us all who you really are."

Scarlett caught Batman's gaze and nodded for him to not do anything stupid. Batman clenched his fists as he saw Scarlett's struggling stop and The Joker's grip tightening on her. The Joker then took the gun from Scarlett's head and pointed it towards the glass windows. He fired a shot and the glass broke, causing his captive to shriek with fear. He then twirled her around and Scarlett's eyes widened as The Joker held her out over Gotham. He was holding on to her forearm loosely.

"Let her go," Batman said.

The Joker smiled and said, "Very poor choice of words."

Scarlett suddenly felt her arm leave his grasp and the next thing she knew, she was tumbling over the side of the penthouse. Sliding down the glass, Scarlett turned so she was on her stomach and held her arms out to try and grab onto something. Inside the penthouse, Alberto rushed forward, with Rachel and Emily on his heels. Batman quickly ran past The Joker and jumped out after Scarlett, while the rest of the party ran towards the windows. As Alberto reached the windows, he screamed, "Scarlett!"

Down below, Scarlett gave a yelp as she felt her legs go over the side. Batman was on his stomach sliding to her but she was not close enough to reach. As she tumbled over the side, Batman grasped her arms tightly and the two of them began to fall. As they fell through the air, Batman grasped her around the waist as Scarlett screamed in fear. He held her to his armor and tried to open his cape so they would just sail to the ground. He couldn't untangle it and Scarlett looked back down at the fast approaching ground and began to scream again. In one quick second Batman maneuvered his body so that he would take the fall and Scarlett would be safe. He then braced himself for impact.

Scarlett clamped her eyes shut as they landed on a taxi cab but she was glad that she was not dead. Batman had taken the impact and Scarlett buried her face in his armor. She stayed still, lying on top of the man that had just saved her life, again. Glancing up into Batman's eyes, she beathed a sigh of relief as he said, "Are you alright."

"Let's not do that, again."

Batman nodded and rubbed her forearms, to take the shock out of her system. Scarlett then shot up and said, "What about Harvey? Rachel needs to know he's ok."

"He's safe."

Scarlett smiled before laying her head back down on his chest. "Thank You."

He saved her. What did you expect? Her to fall and go splat? No. Anyway, short notes from me. It seems that three days into college and my life revolves around it.

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