Chapter 14: Stand By Me

So I realize most of you will hate me by the end of this chapter. So here's a few things:

If you haven't realized, I portray Jonathon Crane with duel personality because I think that fits in more with the atmosphere I have created in this fic.

There is a lot of psychology that is between Crane's and Bagheera's history together that will be more explored in the next story. I've only given little tidbits.

And to make up for you all hating me, I've made a awesome video for you all. I spent two weeks working on it and I hope you like it. It's on my profile on here. Tell me what you think of it when you finish it :)

Bagheera found herself in a small room with cameras at every angle pointed directly at her. She felt as if she had committed a terrorist act as she looked at each camera and then to the two way mirror where she knew men with high ranking stars and government officials stood behind to watch her reactions. The tears that she had cried while in Barba's arms had long since vanished, but the exhausted coldness that ran through her filled her body as she sat completely alone in the room. She sat in the same darkened room that the Joker had inhabited only days before, she sat in the very chair that he had sat in. She could see the cracks in the two way mirror from where the Batman had thrown the clown into.

The door opened with a loud screech as the bottom of the door swept against the tiled floor. She looked away from the cracked mirror and turned to face the scrawny man in a cheap suit that walked into speak with her.

"Ms. Lewis," the man asked as he walked over to the small table to sit in front of her.

"Detective Lewis," she corrected with a bitterness in her voice. She clicked the t's in her words.

"Detective," the man corrected, "I'm Donald Leeks, agent at Internal Affairs. I'm here because Agent Barba has waived a conflict of interest on your case. "

"I don't care who you are," she answered bitterly, she leaned against the table as she glared into the man's green eyes, "I just want to get this over with so I can go home," she shrugged her shoulders and leaned back in her chair casually as she added, "I'm on vacation."

If Donald had watched the hidden camera on the Joker's behavior, he would have noticed that the female detective had picked up on some of the clown's movements under pressure of an officer.

"Tell me what happened that led to you being the madman's, known as the Joker, hostage again," Donald asked.

Bagheera nodded and answered honestly, "I was staying at Agent Barba's home for my protection. My cousin, Dr. Jonathon Crane, had escaped Arkham and I was worried that Harvey Dent had been involved."

"Why were you worried about the district attorney?"

"Because during the attack on the hospital," she informed him as she leaned into the table and laid her elbows against the beat up material, "the Joker came for me. He tried to overdose me on morphine and he took me into Dent's room. The Joker told him the most awful things about how it was Gotham PD's fault on what happened to him and Rachel Dawes," she stopped and shook her head, "the last thing I remember is the Joker handing him a gun."

"And you did nothing," Donald asked.

"Like I said I was drugged," she answered, "but I did try to tell him that everything that the Joker said was a lie. The Joker was a little more convincing than me apparently."

"And you left safety to…"

"I wanted to find where Harvey was so I could have Jonathon taken back to Arkham to continue his treatment," she answered, "I knew that my best shot in finding them was to find the Joker. He set all of this into motion."

"And you were on vacation were you not," Donald asked.

"No," she answered, "I was still on active duty. The deal that was made between Gordon, Barba, and I was that I would be sent on vacation after the Joker was taken into custody. The Joker escaped which put me back on the case."

"So you found the Joker," he asked.

"No," Bagheera replied as anger filled her, "He found me at the gas station just off the freeway. He put a shot gun to my head and told me to drive."

"Did you think he was going to kill you if you didn't?"

Bagheera didn't answer his question quickly. She thought of the many times that the Joker had told her that he had no intention of ever killing her. She felt a shudder move through her body at the need to believe that he had meant what he said. There was very little doubt in her mind that if the moment arose and it was his freedom against her life, he would end her. He had the chance many times, but he had only incapacitated her for a while. He had never used deadly force against her. The Joker confused her on many levels, but his admission of her being so important to him that he could never kill her confused her the most.

She could feel the eyes of her superiors glaring at her through the two way mirror. The cameras seemed to zoom in on her face as she thought of a believable answer.

"Yes," she lied after a moment of thinking her answer over, "There's not a doubt in my mind that he would kill me if it suited his needs."

"What happened on that roof top, Detective Lewis? How did you end up dangling off the side of the roof with the Joker," Donald asked as he checked off his checklist of questions.

Bagheera shook her head as the anger faded from her system and was replaced by lethargy.

"The Batman came for him," she answered.

"And not you," Donald asked.

"He didn't come for me the first time, or the second time. Why would he come for me a third time?"

"Duly noted," the man answered as he scribbled something onto his checklist.

"They fought," she recalled as she placed her hand near her wound, "The Joker had shoved me so hard into the wall that I was almost useless. It had re-opened my stitches; Barba took me to an emergency care before coming here," she licked at her bottom lip as she added slowly in an uncomfortable tone as the man watched her closely, "the Batman threw the Joker off the building. He caught the Joker before he fell to his death."

"It was recorded by a news station that you pulled a gun on the Batman. What was that about Detective?"

"Official protocol is to arrest the Batman on sight," she answered without missing a beat, though she had mentally prepared herself for that question, "I was told that on my first day here. I was just following orders. Plus the Batman was in my way," she shrugged her shoulders, "the Joker was my case, I wasn't going to let some man-child steal my case. I went through the trauma of catching him. All the Batman did was use some fancy toy to find him. I did the grunt work and I paid for it, I deserved to catch him."

Donald shook his head, satisfied by her simple answer.

"You don't like the Batman," he asked.

"No. I have no use for a man that dresses like a bat," she answered bitterly, "He could have gone the normal route of becoming an officer of the law, but instead he decided to put officers and National Guardsmen in danger by dangling them out of a window. If he wants to help, he could help cops. Why not give officers those toys of his? There have been too many cops left dead in the street while he plays cops and robbers."

He didn't say anything in return. Bagheera watched him quickly jot some words down.

"And when he ran away," Donald informed, "that's when the Joker pulled you off with him?"

"I'm assuming you saw the footage," she answered with a shrug, "it's all there."

"He didn't let you go?"

"No."

"And why not? What makes Bagheera Lewis so important to the Joker," he asked as he eyed her carefully.

'Don't tell him.'

"I wish I knew," Bagheera lied as his words echoed in her mind of why she was so important to him, "Maybe you could ask him for me when you interview him."

"And the shooting afterwards," he asked, ignoring her daring suggestion, "it happened right after he shot an officer?"

"He pulled first," Bagheera answered honestly, "I drew faster than the rest. I shot him down," she quickly recalled a civilian screaming during Dent's address to the city over Batman's revelation, "There won't be any more dead cops."

The man nodded as he jotted down her reply. There was a silence that came between them. The only noises that could be heard were their breathing and the sound of the cameras filming.

"Is he dead," Bagheera asked softly, surprising herself for the question that had escaped her.

"No," Donald answered, "He was pretty damned close to death though. If the bullet would have been a few more inches to his left it would have pierced his heart. Somehow you managed to miss his lungs and his heart. He was taken to Arkham for observation. He won't be leaving the observation ward for about three weeks."

She nodded as she took in the information that Donald had given her. She hadn't killed the Joker like she had thought and a strange feeling of relief came over her at that tidbit.

"You're lucky Detective Lewis," Donald informed her as he stood from the table.

She looked up to him in confusion as he looked down on her from his standing position.

"If the Joker would have shot a National Guard," he informed her, "this case would be federal. You should thank the Joker for that," he threw her own suggestion of asking the Joker something back in her face, "He spared you a lot of national attention. I imagine attention is something that you are tired of getting."

"Thank you," she answered in mock sincerity as she watched the IA agent walk towards the door.

"You're free to go home Detective," he informed her in an almost snobbish tone, "Enjoy your two week vacation."

Bagheera stood slowly from her place at the table, moving slowly for her re-stitched wound, and made her way towards the door. She walked out to see men and women walking passed her. Uniformed officers made continued on with their duties as if nothing had occurred in the last 24 hours. Civilians sat in the small waiting room to make statements against criminals while a few criminals were being dragged in for booking. She felt like she was alone in the police station that had suffered, almost miraculously, small damage from the Joker's human bomb. She stood still as the people moved on with their life. Life was continuing on without her.

"Detective Lewis," a voice announced and pulled her away from the dark, lonely thoughts. She turned to see a female Asian officer walking up to her with a man and a teenage girl following close behind. Bagheera smiled as she immediately recognized the man as the cab driver that she had first met when she came back to Gotham City and the teenage girl as Ashley from the small grocery store.

"They brought you something," the woman informed her.

Bagheera forced herself to stand tall as she walked toward the two visitors.

"I thought I recognized your last name," Bagheera informed the teen as she reached to shake their hands, she smiled at Martin Davies as she added, "Nice to see you again, Mr. Davies."

"You forgot this," Ashley answered as she handed Bagheera the cell phone that she had left in the grocery store.

"Well thank you," she answered as she took the phone from the teenage girl and added with a joking chuckle "I can get Agent Barba off my back now."

"So you got him," Martin Davies asked.

"Yeah," Bagheera answered with a nod, "I got him. He's in Arkham for now."

Ashley smiled brightly at the revelation.

Martin pulled his daughter in close to him and said with pride, "Claudia would be happy."

"Thank you," Bagheera said to the father, she watched as a look of confusion came across his face momentarily, "for believing in me. You told me in the cab that you knew I was going to catch him. Thank you for that," she shook her head, "if it wasn't for that, I don't think I would have pushed forward after his first attack on me. It's because of you that I finished this."

"Bagheera," Barba's voice announced as he walked towards them, "A word?"

Bagheera smiled at the two and said to Ashley, "If you do stick to your plan to go into CJ, I would be proud to work with you."

Ashley smiled with a sparkling glint in her eyes as she watched Bagheera walk away from the two.

Bagheera smiled softly as she looked up to the man that had been there for her and handed him his cell phone with a soft chuckle.

"Forgive me," she asked with a small grin until she saw the look of apprehensiveness in his face as he looked her over, "What's wrong?"

"I just got word," he stopped and lightly grabbed her arm and pulled her into a small office away from eavesdroppers, "I've just been told that Dent has been found."

"And Jonathon," she asked as her heart seemed to stop beating in her chest, "Did they find him?"

Barba shook his head, "Dent was found murdered."

"Murdered," she asked in confusion, "Was it the mob?"

"No," he answered with a low, husky voice, "The Batman."

"That can't be," she said with a shake of her head in disbelief, "That can't be true. Where's Gordon?"

"They are going to start a manhunt for the Batman starting tonight," Barba informed her.

"I-"

"No," Barba interrupted, "You aren't going to be a part of it. I'm taking you home. You need to rest after what you've been through."

...

Two weeks had gone by without a single word from the Joker or from Jonathon Crane for Bagheera. Her mind was a mess as she wondered where her cousin had been hiding. The streets had become flooded with witch hunts for the Batman and the news moved on, leaving her in the past. She had gone on a few dates with William Barba, but they had yet to speak or act on what they had been feeling since they met.

Her apartment was empty and cold. She had spent her first night cleaning her apartment and thinking over the choices that she had made in life that had caused her to feel relief over the Joker not dying from her bullet.

Now she sat against the wall in her empty, lonely apartment wishing that she had adopted a dog just so she could have some company. The news was going into the weather segment and she listened to the forecaster announce that rain would soon find its way to Gotham City. The night sky lit up in the distance with lightning and thunder rumbled as the dark clouds slowly approached the city.

She closed her eyes momentarily as a sense of sleepiness fell over her. Her mind wandered through the many facets of her life and she couldn't help but think of where her cousin was hiding or if he was even hiding at all.

"Bagheera," she heard a muffled voice say from beside her. She opened her eyes and fear took over as she saw a man with a burlap sack over his head. She yelped as he pushed her into the wall. Her fearful blue eyes took in his oversized suit and loose tie.

"Jonathon," she asked with a hushed tone as she tried to glare through the eye holes of the sack. Her hands laced onto his lapels as he shoved her against the wall. Lightning flashed through the city. A loud pop sounded throughout her apartment and caused the lights to flicker off as she remained in her cousin's tight grip.

"I was so afraid that Harvey had," she trailed off as she tried to peer through the burlap sack.

"The only thing you have to fear is fear himself," the harsh voice said as he leaned his head closer towards her.

"Jonathon," she begged in fear as she allowed her hands to find his cheeks over the scratchy brown sack, "Come back to me. Fight him. You're there. I know you are still in there."

Bagheera's heart quickened in pace from the fear that rushed through her body as she watched ah pulled the bag off of his head.

"He's coming to get me," Jonathon whispered to her as his fingers moved over the buttons on her blouse.

"You can fight him," she whispered. Her eyes moved down to where his long fingers lingered over her clasped buttons. She wrapped her warm hands around his and she looked up to his darkened face, "Do you want to see it?"

Bagheera closed her eyes as she allowed him to unbutton her blouse and hold her in place against the wall. She shivered as the tips of his cold fingers lightly touched the reddened surface of her newly healed wound. She had known that he would ask to see it. It was in his sick mind, the need to see pain and fear and the scars that both left behind.

'This is the only way to help him right now. Let him see the scar, let him touch' the dark voice in her head whispered as she thought back to the summer when they had first discovered what kept the Scarecrow from hurting Jonathon's young cousin.

'Barba won't ever find out about this. He trusts you, Bagheera.'

She took a deep breath as she pushed him away; her heart beat quickly in fear that the Scarecrow would overtake Jonathon and physically harm her for her actions.

"No," she whispered to her cousin as she moved away from him, her eyes peered down to the floor as a feeling of bravery and disgust mingled inside of her, "You need to leave."

The lights flickered back on and she looked over to her confused cousin. His eyes were the same bright blue of hers; there was no darkness that filled them that had always revealed the Scarecrow's presence. Tears filled her eyes as she looked at her sick cousin.

"How did he do it? What did he do to you," Jonathon asked in medical interest as he watched her new found strength paint her pained features.

Bagheera shook her head as she recalled the Joker's words to the Batman and said between an escaped sob, "I am what happens when an unstoppable force meets a moveable object. I'm moving in the same direction," she shook her head as her tears freely escaped her, "and I'm not taking you with me."

Jonathon didn't answer her. He looked at her in understanding, he knew that it had something to do with her run in with the Joker.

"He's changed things, Jonathon. He's changed me," she said in a whisper, she rolled her eyes as she wiped the fallen tears away from her reddened cheeks in an attempt to change the subject away from the Joker, "You're still sick. We can find you a different hospital if Arkham-"

"No," Jonathon said as he shook his head in disagreement as he looked over to his tearful younger cousin that stood with her shirt unbuttoned, the fabric of her pink bra peeking out for onlookers to see if they were to look through the window, "No more hospitals Bagheera."

"Then get out," she said in a strong voice, the same that she had used against the Joker but never against her own cousin, as she held in the sob that wanted to escape her. Her heart began to break as she looked at the only person that had been in her life since she lost her parents.

'He's going to kill you and the Joker won't save you this time,' the voice in her head was saying as it became more and more antagonistic. The voice that she had spent so long taming down had come back in full force. Her cousin and the Joker were the reasons for it. They were destructive to towns and to people.

Jonathon didn't reply to her harsh words.

"I said leave," she demanded again, her voice was dark and fueled by angry as she glared at her blue eyed cousin, "I'll call the police if you don't. I'll have you locked back up. All of this," she shook her head as she looked down at the blouse that he had been pulled open to see the disgusting scar the Joker had left her, "you just need to leave. Please."

"I understand," he answered honestly as he nodded, "but what about-"

"You need help Jonathon," she cried in a desperate attempt for him to leave her presence, "This isn't helping you. It never has. It was a lie that He made us believe! You're sick and I can't help you anymore. It's up to you to save yourself. Only you can help yourself. Take the pills Jonathon, get better. You can be the great doctor that you set out to be."

She watched with wide shoulders as she watched her sick cousin leave her apartment. She felt a relief come over her that she had been able to stop what had been going on between them for years if for only a night.

Bagheera turned away from Crane as he slipped out the window without a word and said in a whisper that allowed her accent to slip for only a moment, "Good bye Cousin Johnny."

She grabbed her car keys as she hurried out of her apartment. Something inside of her changed when she stood up against Jonathon Crane and the Scarecrow. He was her last wall to climb over to become a stronger person. The Joker had only been the pushing force that had sent her moving forward with a destination that she did not know of just yet. The storm broke as she made her way towards her car. The heavy rain soaked through white blouse and drenched her curly locks. Her adrenaline pushed her foot onto the gas pedal and the sound of the windshield wipers against the window matched the sound of her heart beating in her chest. She quickly found her way to the cul-de-sac where William Barba lived.

The woman smiled in anticipation as she pulled into his drive. The lights remained on and her heart beat with the excitement that was now flooding through her system. The stress that she had lived through the last few weeks was draining from her body the closer she found herself to the home of a man that had told her she would end up hating.

She hurried through the rain, the rain soaking her to the bone and the cold wind whipping through her hair, to the door. She rang the doorbell and held her breath as waited for Barba to open the door to bring in the light in her life.

"Bagheera, you're soaking wet," he asked in confusion as he opened the door and the light from inside fell over her drenched body.

"I couldn't sleep," she answered as she looked up to him and chuckled in slight embarrassment, "I needed to see you."

"Come in," he answered as he hurriedly opened the door and allowed her into the warmth of his house.

Bagheera brushed by him and she felt a strange sensation rush throughout her body as she did so. She could smell his cologne just like the night she pretended to fall asleep against him. She took in his simple outfit. His tie hung loose around his neck, he wore a dark green shirt that had been wrinkled from sitting on his couch, and he had a small stain on his black slacks from an earlier cooking incident. She fought the urge to shove him against the wall and kiss him deeply as she looked to his ruffled hair. She couldn't hear the radio playing old 1980s rock music and she smiled at him as she heard the beginning of her favorite White Snake song. Is This Love was exactly how she felt as she lingered in his presence in the middle of the night after only knowing him for less than four weeks.

"Will, I," she shook her head as she watched him shut the door behind him, "We really-"

"What's wrong," he asked as he took in her flushed pink skin as she stood in his house in drenched clothes, he walked closer to her and looked her over with concern in his eyes, "You come over here all soak and wet-"

Yeah," she said breathlessly as she shook her head and hurried into his arms, "I know. I can't take this anymore."

Her lips crashed against his and she inhaled his scent as she waited for only a few seconds for him to respond to her soft lips. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck as they stood in the center of the room. Her soaked clothes seeped into his dry clothes as they held each other close. Bagheera could feel his hands cautiously move to the front of her blouse.

She pulled away from his kiss and leaned her forehead against his as she whispered with a deep, husky breath, "Just do it. Please."

Barba placed his lips against hers as he ripped her shirt open. Her buttons scattered across his floor as they both moved together to the music while never parting from the other's lips. What she had accomplished with Jonathon had given her a new strength to be with Barba. She shivered in excitement as the back of her thighs touched his couch where she had pretended to fall asleep against him. She giggled for the first time in a long time as they fell onto the couch while kissing. She felt the warmth of his lips leave hers and slowly explored her neck, down her chest to place small kisses against her wet skin, and to finally her lower abdomen where the Joker had stabbed her. She felt her breath catch in her throat as he placed lingering kisses against the scar as if he were apologizing for everything that had happened to her.

Bagheera smiled at the sentiment and pulled him back towards her to plant more passionate kisses against him. They had no need to fight for dominance in their kisses; each kiss was placed as if they had practiced before this ultimate goal. It was if they had been waiting their whole lives dreaming of finding the one person whose kisses matched up with their own ability.

Gravity jerked on them both as they fell from the couch and on to the floor. Barba fell onto his back with Bagheera on top of him. They both laughed as they looked at each other with sparkling eyes. The sudden fall did nothing to curb their electric attraction to each other as they lay against each other on the cold floor.

"I'm sorry," Barba said with a chuckle as Bagheera pulled herself from him.

"Let's go to bed," Bagheera said as she helped him from the floor, her smile was devious as she pulled him towards the stairs. She couldn't explain why or how the feelings that she had for the man had moved so quickly. It was like a spark inside of her every time that she was near him and when they finally kissed she felt like she had exploded on the inside.

In the early, dark hours of the morning, the storm had finally passed by them. Frogs and crickets sang to the sleeping couple that lay together under a thin sheet and comforter. Bagheera slept comfortably for the first night in a long time as she lay in William Barba's arms.

A soft movement beside her pulled Bagheera from her slumber. Her eyes fluttered open as she felt her lover's soft fingertips slowly moving down her bare arm. She turned to him with a soft smile as the smell of his cologne wafted over her once more.

"I'm sorry," he whispered as he looked into her blue eyes.

Bagheera looked at him in slight confusion, her heart dropped in worry as she asked, "Why?"

"I don't want you to think-"

Her eyes hardened as she prepared to hear him tell her that she was nothing to him.

"I don't want you to think that I was trying to take advantage of you," he whispered as he looked her over, his hand moved towards her wild hair as he moved a strand away from her face, "You didn't have to do this because of the dates. I really like you. I wanted to-"

Bagheera laughed at his sentiment and placed a light kiss upon his lips as she replied with a smile, "William," she rolled her eyes as a giggle escaped her, "I'm not a teenage girl," she looked into his eyes as she whispered, "I wanted to be here with you. Whatever this is between us, it has a hold on me," she ran her hand over his chest and shook her head, "This wasn't a mistake. I came here because I needed to see you."

'There's someone else you need to see too.'

"Why am I so important to you," she asked, they were the same words that she had asked of the Joker when he had captured her.

He smiled at her and replied, "Because I haven't been able to get you out of my mind since I first met you. And when that happens to me, I tend to think that person is pretty important."

She smiled at his simple, meaningful answer. It hadn't been cryptic like the Joker's answer. It had been straight to the point and sweet.

"Bagheera," he whispered as he placed a kiss upon her forehead and wrapped his hand warmly around hers, "When I found out that the Joker had taken you again-"

She shook her head and whispered, "That's over now," she thought of the incident with the Joker and she felt her happiness subside for only a moment before adding in slight disbelief, "It's all over now."

...

Bagheera took a deep breath before entering the observational unit in Arkham Asylum. She had went for a drive and in a blink of an eye she had found herself at the insane hospital. She felt as if she held a gun against her head as she stood in front of his room. Thoughts disappeared from her mind as she crossed the threshold; thoughts of her nights with Barba escaped her as she looked to the clown, she could only think of the many conversations that she and the clown had while he held her captive.

The Joker didn't acknowledge her presence as she walked into his room with her gun posted against her hip and her badge tagged onto her belt. He ignored her hair that fell around her face instead of being thrown up in a messy pony tail like usual. He ignored everything about her as he bit at his lips. The paint had been mostly removed during his time there. His eyes remained black and she noticed the empty can of black shoe polish beside the bed.

The detective sat in the empty chair beside his bed. His purple jacket fell over the sides and the smell of gunpowder and gas still remained on the purple cloth. White gauze wrapped around his bare chest that moved with each breath he took. She could see his dark chest hairs and the small amounts of fat that had begun to form over his abdominal muscles that he had most likely shown off in high school with.

She looked over to the many medical bags that were connected to the Joker. His wrests and ankles were fastened to the metal poles of the hospital bed to keep him from escaping. She felt a small pang of guilt as she looked him over. He still said nothing to her.

She shook her head as she looked passed him. A solemn look painted her face as confusion came over her. She had planned on never seeing the Joker again, but here she was sitting at his bedside in silence as if there were no words that needed to be said between the two of them.

"I don't even know what brought me here," she whispered solemnly as she turned her attentions to his dark eyes. She felt as if she were staring back at herself, the horrible question of what if psychopathy lived within her as well, as she looked into his brown eyes.

The Joker chuckled softly as he looked her over with sharp, intent eyes and said in a hushed voice, "I think you and I are destined for this dance forever. You and I complete each other. "

So there is the official end. I have just one little chapter left and it's just a peek into the trial, then I'll post a little teaser for the next story that I have yet to start.

I hope you all really enjoyed this fic as much as I loved writing it.

And I hope my video for you all makes up for how much you may hate me right now.