You were stuck at Blackgate Penitentiary while Gordon investigated the death of your father. It didn't take him long to look into it and when he obtained the information he needed, you were sent to court which was a longer process then you would have liked. It was boring and a waste of time, all you could think about was getting to Arkham Asylum and being there with Jerome. Your stay at Blackgate Penitentiary was different to say the least. You were teased and harassed at times by other inmates, which was the worst part for you. You couldn't say that you left the prison bruise and scratch free. Your body ached every day from the rough bunk bed you were given and the prison food made you want to vomit. Things would never go back to the way they were before, you learned to accept that during your time at the prison. You hated the environment, the people, the smell, and literally everything about it but you didn't regret the crimes you committed. It gave you a thrill and a sense of freedom, you loved how it felt to finally take some control of your life. You weren't going to let anyone hold you down anymore, things were going to be done your way and your way only. You couldn't help but wonder how things were at Arkham Asylum and how Jerome was adjusting to it. You weren't worried about him, you knew he could handle himself but you missed him and everything about him. You counted down the days you were held there, it was exactly three weeks.
Finally on the twenty-second day, you were approached by an officer in your cell and he unlocked the door to it.
With a blank expression on his face, he said, "Get up."
You were resting on the bed, you had almost fallen asleep but once he arrived you jolted up.
"Sending you to Arkham Asylum." the officer pulled out a pair of handcuffs and locked them around your wrists. He grabbed you by the arm and led you out of the cell. He guided you to the exit with a firm clutch on your skin. "Be gentle with me, I'm delicate, you know." you giggled. You smirked as you observed the other inmates locked up in their cells, they looked at you threateningly but you didn't care. You were headed to where you belonged and they were stuck at Blackgate Penitentiary.
Once you left the building, the officer shoved you into a car immediately and then started the vehicle the moment he sat in the driver's seat. You leaned your head against the backseat's headrest and smiled to yourself. You were victorious, you got exactly what you wanted. You and Jerome weren't going to be apart any longer, just like you promised.
The drive was shorter than you expected, the officer wasn't much of a chatterbox so you were able to hear yourself think for once which was difficult to do back at the dreaded prison. He stopped the car and led you out for the second time, he held onto your arm vigorously and you found his impatience with you to be amusing. "Do you have any idea how to treat a lady?" you jested.
He didn't waste his breath answering your silly question, he grasped your arm again and led you to the building. You lifted your head up to view the words at the gate which read, "Arkham Asylum". He opened the door and you were immediately greeted with growls and shouting from the other inmates. You scanned them as some banged their hands or heads against their cells, some men were whistling at you as you walked past them, some were rocking back and forth, some were screaming and rapidly shaking the bars on their cells. Watching the inmates caged up like that sent a shiver down your spine, you wanted to keep your distance from them as much as possible. The officer sent you to a room with a doctor awaiting for you, who had two guards at her side. They allowed you to change into the standard Arkham attire, which was the bland black and white striped dress. When you finished, the two guards gripped both of your arms again, which seemed like the routine around here was being mistreated.
You couldn't help but chuckle when they shoved you forward and brought you to the vast common room with several other inmates. "Easy boys, give a girl a break." you teased with a playful smile on your face. The doctor and the guards ignored your remarks, when you turned your head you saw the doctor jotting something down with a pen. One of the guards locked the door and you eyed him as he slipped the keys into his pocket.
You observed your surroundings, searching for the tall and roguish ginger. You heard whistles from behind you and in front of you. It took everything to bite your tongue and not to raise your middle finger at them. You spotted a gang of four in the corner, there was a tall man staring at you over his glasses and the other three were just laughing and grinning wickedly. You looked over your shoulder and you heard inmates whispering about you.
"She's a little girl, she won't last one day in here."
"What did she do anyway? She looks like she couldn't hurt a fly."
"This is not a place for nice girls. I already feel pity for her."
"Maybe now we'll finally get some entertainment."
Their mockeries drowned the voice in your head, you couldn't hear yourself think. You hated being the center of attention from these nauseating inmates, but this was foreign territory to you. You weren't sure where Jerome was, but you knew you needed to see him, and if it meant that you had to cross the other convicts then so be it. You started walking when suddenly you were approached by a large bulky man with a sinister grin on his face.
"Where are you going princess?" he questioned, his voice gruff and deep. He blocked your way, not allowing you to pass.
"Get out of my way, bozo." you answered, your hands placed at your hips.
"Looks like we got ourselves a spunky one!" he cackled, moving closer to you and continued to stand in your way.
"I'm not looking for trouble, so move over jackass. You think you're all high and mighty because you're bigger than me? Something tells me you're not as tough as you think you are." you taunted him, you stood your ground and you weren't going to let him waver you.
You grabbed the attention of the group of inmates in the corner again, they couldn't keep your eyes off you and they were very curious how you mustered enough courage to stand up to the hefty man in front of you.
He suddenly grabbed you by your throat and clenched your skin firmly. He lifted you from the ground, you gasped in response, kicking your feet as he held you up. You felt your cheeks redden and you couldn't breathe.
"Now now, I highly recommend not to make enemies with the new girl. She's with me."
There he was. The only inmate that you wanted to see. The man released his hold on your neck and let you drop to the ground upon hearing the ginger's voice. You coughed loudly, trying to catch your breath and you circled your hand around your neck to soothe some of the pain.
"Sorry, I had no idea, Jerome." the man said, his voice suddenly less threatening. He glanced at your body on the floor and then walked away back to his table.
"Took you a while to get here. One could say I was starting to get a little lonely, just a little." he chuckled and extended his hand out to help you up. You smiled and grabbed his hand, bringing yourself back to your feet.
He pulled you close to his side and whispered in your ear, "Don't you worry about that son of a bitch, he won't be breathing much longer after that. No one messes with my girl."
"What an asshole." you grunted and then added, "I missed your stupid face." you said softly.
"Stupid? That's not a very warm welcome, Y/N." he replied, his hand at his chest and a pout formed on his face. You laughed, he always knew how to make you smile. He grasped your hand and led you to one of the tables in a corner. He took a seat and you sat in the one across from him.
"Now, you have to tell me why it took you so long to get here. I was just about to blow everyone's brains out from mere boredom." he said, chuckling to himself.
"I think you can make an educated guess about how I got here." you looked back at him solemnly.
He tilted his head to the side and asked in a low voice, "Did you tell them about?"
You nodded, he knew what you were talking about without you having to say it out loud. If you hadn't told Gordon of your crime from the past then you wouldn't be here. You felt like it was worth it but at the same time you didn't want to be known for patricide, it was something you wanted to stay in the past, because the mere thought of him made your skin crawl.
He slowly started to smile and he leaned in to plant a swift kiss on your lips. "Don't you worry, it'll all be worth it. I'll make sure that damned police department get what's coming to them." he said reassuringly.
"You won't have to do it alone." you uttered, smirking back at him. Suddenly, you reached out for his hand and held it tightly in yours. "I told you they wouldn't be able to separate us."
"They can keep trying, but they won't ever succeed. It's fun to see them attempt though." he continued to laugh, and that was one of the things you missed most about him, that charming laugh still got you every time.
"I was sent to Blackgate Penitentiary while Gordon investigated about what happened to my father, which is why it took so long to get here. It was a long process with court and everything, I just wanted it to be over. I don't regret anything we did, just that we got caught." you said, looking back at him earnestly.
"So that's where they sent you. It's a shame you were there for so long. What was the worst part?" he questioned with his hand positioned on his cheek, looking at you puppy-eyed.
"The worst part? Hm." you thought to yourself for a few moments and then answered. "Probably the gross food, there was literally no flavor in any of it." you teased, you both knew that the answer was being away from him.
"Ah, you are not a good liar." he remarked.
"So how have things been around here? Looks like these meatheads fear you." you commented, you were very grateful that he arrived in time before that vile inmate tried to harm you further, your neck continued to ache from his firm grip on your throat.
"They know what I'm capable of. They might be bigger, but there's not much up here." he pressed his finger against the side of his forehead. "It's easy to make them do what you want, you just have to know how to manipulate them." a broad smirk appeared on his face as he snickered. "But I did make some friends." he said, leaning closer to you.
"Oh really? Well maybe you should introduce me." you suggested.
"See the big guy over there?" he motioned his head over to the one wearing glasses in the small gang at the back of the room, you nodded and glanced back at the tall man staring at you. He continued, "His name is Richard Sionis. He's a millionaire. He runs this place, and see his minions sitting next to him? They formed a gang, which I'm a part of." he revealed proudly.
"You're a part of this group? They look like trouble, but that's your calling card isn't it?" you giggled softly.
"Any friend of mine is a friend of his. What do you say? Do you want to be a part of something much bigger than Haly's circus?" he asked, his eyebrows raised with a cheeky grin on his face. You couldn't reject his offer, even though you were wary of the other inmates, you weren't going to miss out on all the fun with Jerome.
"I can't see why not!" you agreed simply.
"Just the answer I was looking for. Let's go over to their table, it's time for you to introduce yourself." he cooed and he held out his hand for you to take as he led you to the group.
You pulled out a chair and sat in it beside Jerome. You introduced yourself to everyone and they politely did the same, but the broad one whose name was Robert Greenwood, gave you the creeps. He wouldn't stop ogling you from the second you arrived at their table which made you feel revolted and you chose to act like he wasn't there.
"So you're Jerome's girl, we've been expecting you." Richard said, looking back at you fixedly. "He says you're not as gentle as you look."
"I can assure you she's a wild one, she has exactly what it takes." Jerome devilishly grinned, he wasn't able to contain his excitement. You perked up when he said that, you loved when he spoke of you.
"I'd love to see more of what you can do. You're not as strong, but your beauty puts you at an advantage." he lightly smiled at you.
"You're not suggesting that I play the damsel in distress are you?" you raised an eyebrow, you wanted to have much more fun than being a decoy for the group.
"No, but I can see you being the most versatile." he adjusted his glasses with a finger, a sinister look in his eye. You were certainly gratified by his words, he made you feel very welcome to the group.
You turned your head to the sound of hearing the gate open again. A thin young woman with blonde locks stepped into the room. You recognized her immediately because of her high status as an art gallery owner, she was the one and only Barbara Kean. Your interest was piqued, you wondered what she did to get here. You caught Jerome staring at her, but so was everyone else. All eyes were on her like she was a kitten stepping into a zoo full of lions.
"What did Goldilocks do to get in here?" you whispered over to Jerome.
"And things continue to get interesting." he uttered with an amused look on his face.
Barbara slumped in a chair by the nearest table with a magazine in her hands, she flipped through the pages aimlessly, ignoring everyone in the room.
"Barbara Kean, isn't it?" Richard said, looking over at her curiously.
"Don't you worry, Y/N, you're still the most gorgeous girl in the room." Jerome reassured you with a smug smile.
"Well of course, and no one rocks this dress better than I do." you laughed, tooting your own horn.
"But that doesn't mean we can't make friends with her." he recommended.
"You're right. I'm curious as to why she's here, anyhow." you grabbed his hand again and made your way towards Barbara's table with Jerome. Jerome hopped eagerly into the chair in front of her and you sat next to him across from her.
"Why hello there, I'm Jerome." he introduced himself confidently as always.
"And why does that matter to me?" Barbara replied with a disrespectful tone to her voice as she continued to turn the pages of her magazine.
"You're not very considerate of other people's feelings are you?' he said with a smug expression on his face, he quickly added, " So what brings you to Arkham?"
"I killed my parents." she admitted, avoiding any kind of eye contact with either of you.
You and Jerome gasped with feigned shock upon hearing her confess that.
"What a lovely coincidence!" Jerome exclaimed enthusiastically, he wrapped his arm around your shoulder and brought you closer to him as he spoke. "I killed my mother and my boo over here killed her father. But you take the cake by killing both of them! They must have been some parents huh?" he cackled.
"Miss Patricide and Mr. Matricide, you two are meant to be, how cute." she commented in a sarcastic manner.
"I wouldn't have gotten caught if it wasn't for this flop." you nudged him with your elbow. "He got sloppy."
Jerome looked back at you in a nettled manner. "Forgive me for wanting to see that bitch suffer as much as possible before she died." he hissed.
"Oh I know, and I don't blame you. I was just stating a fact." you teased. "But I didn't mean to upset you." you said softly, nuzzling your nose against his neck and leaving a trail of kisses there apologetically.
"You can be such a meanie sometimes." Jerome smiled in response, and he ran his fingers down the strands of your hair affectionately.
"Go get a room." she retorted bluntly.
"You know, she's actually a lot nicer than most people here." you commented, giggling to yourself quietly.
"Barbara is beginning to bore me." he acted as if he was yawning, with his hand hovered over his mouth. "Maybe she's right, we should get a room." he turned to look at you suggestively, you couldn't help but smile in satisfaction.
He leaned in to whisper in your ear about where you two could get some privacy, you bit your lower lip anticipatedly and your cheeks flushed with a soft hue of pink. You could see Barbara rolling her eyes in the corner of your eye. Jerome took your hand as you got up from the chair, a broad grin on his face. As you two were walking away in contentment, you started smelling something strange. It was quickly followed by a loud hissing sound that persisted as a foggy gas filled the air around you. The inmates around the room started to collapse, it filled your lungs rapidly and you started to feel suffocated. Your eyes widened at Jerome but before you could say anything, you were out like a light and so was he.