"Did you really have to bring the brats?" asked The Joker, whose voice seemed so joyful. Batman and the Robins stood up and stared at him in shock. "Nothing to say? I'm hurt, bats." The flames behind him rose higher while the smoke entered the sky.
"Why did you do this?" asked Batman.
"To grab your attention of course," he grinned. "I knew you'd figure out where I'd be. Now we're together again. When I thought you died I believed it was the end but you proved everyone wrong," he laughed maniacally. "I should've known better! I should've known you, of all people, would find a way!" From both sides of the roof arrived Batgirl and Red Hood. They expected to help the others in stopping the fire but they never thought it'd be The Joker keeping the others from helping. Barbara stopped dead in her tracks when she saw him, as did Jason. She pressed her hand against the bullet wound in her abdomen. It felt as if the bullet was yet again inside of her; drilling deeper into her spine.
Jason stared at the Clown Prince of Crime and felt the broken ribs again. His face grew hot as he remembered the flames against his skin. While Batgirl was shocked Jason grew angry. His fists were clenched as he ached to punch the man.
"Batgirl?" said The Joker. He pulled out his gun from the back of his pants. "That's odd. I didn't know you came back." He turned to the Red Hood. "You," he smiled insidiously, "I remember you, Jason," he hissed like a snake. "Still using my old moniker I see," he giggled. "I would've thought by now you'd come up with something more original. It's so nice to see the group together like this!" He turned to Robin. "The kids new though." Now he turned to Batman. "Another one for me to traumatize?" he laughed. Red Hood couldn't take it anymore and ran to The Joker. Joker shot him in the shoulder but his armor did its job. He tackled Joker down to the ground and began to hit him repeatedly in the face but the clown wouldn't grunt or yell out in pain. Instead he merely laughed each time he was hit. "Still got the anger issues I see," he said before shoving a blade into the abdomen of Red Hood. Hood stumbled back as he took the blade out but when he looked back, The Joker was already up with his gun pointed at him.
A bullet was fired and hit Hood's mask, grazing the side of his head. Hood fell down then The Joker walked over to him ready to pull the trigger again until he received a kick to the ribs by Batgirl. The Robins attacked next by going high and low on Joker. Robins swept the legs while Red Robin punched his face. The gun slid from his hands so Joker crawled toward it only for a large boot to step on his forearm. Batman now stood before him so Joker pulled out another knife and stabbed his calf. The Robins check on Red Hood while Batgirl joined Batman in fighting The Joker.
Joker pulled out another gun and shot at the dark knight but Batgirl quickly rammed her shoulder into his back allowing Batman to jump in the air and spin kick the clown in the chest. The Joker continued to shoot when he landed on the ground but Batman flipped out of the way and dodged the bullets with incredible speed. Joker looked at Batman with a raised brow. Batgirl tried to disarm him but he quickly sliced her forearm with a knife. Her distraction allowed Batman to shove his knee into the clowns back. Joker quickly kicked Batman in the gut forcing him to stumble backwards. Now they had switched sides with Joker by the balcony and the bat family by the flaming doorway.
"You're different," he said, no longer smiling. "There's something different about you." They all stared at The Joker as he tried to catch his breath. He eyed Batman up and down then a look of horror and anger swept his face. "You're not him," he said angrily. "You're not my Batman." Now he looked around at the group then back at Batman. "You're someone else. How dare you! There is only one Batman, you pretender!" Red Hood sat up now with the Robins at his side.
"Enough of this shit," he spat then pulled out his handgun shooting The Joker in the shoulder.
"No!" yelled Batman. The bullet forced The Joker over the balcony. Batman quickly jumped over it and fell down below. The Joker was falling to his death but Batman grappled to a building nearby and swung down; allowing him to catch the Clown Prince of Crime before falling to the floor. He brought him up to a roof where he was finally stirring awake but before he could Batman punched him square in the face, knocking him unconscious. He put his finger up to his earpiece. "Meet me at the cave now. I'm going to GCPD with The Joker."
Gordon was baffled to see Batman bring The Joker in once again. Batman stayed in the cell they were putting him in while a doctor looked at his shoulder wound. The Joker, oddly enough, had stayed quiet the entire ride to GCPD and while the doctor patched him up. There were no jokes or attempts of escape the entire time. When the doctor was done, Gordon and Batman stared at him as he sat against the wall of the cell.
"I never thought we'd see him again," said Gordon. "Are you sure it's him?"
"It is," replied Batman. "I don't know what's wrong with him but the man we fought on the roof was The Joker."
"In all my years of seeing this scumbag behind bars, he's never been like this. He almost looks miserable."
"Whatever the case is, don't let your guard down."
"You don't have to tell me twice. This is going to be so hard on Barb." Batman looked down knowing exactly how he felt. He placed his hand on Jim's shoulder.
"I'm sorry Jim."
"I know," he said softly. He walked closer to the bars to look at The Joker and shook his head. Batman's hand fell from his shoulder. He turned around to see Batman was nowhere in sight. He smiled. "I actually kind of missed that." Four men were placed at the front of Joker's cell once Gordon returned to his office. There was still no change in him. He simply looked down at the floor of his cell. There was no smile on his face and he was breathing very softly. His eyes were widened still but as if he was in a trance. His hands touched the cold tiled floor in the middle of his long legs. Slowly his right hand started to move and was eventually clenched into a fist.
Batman had returned to the cave where all the family was. Alfred was patching up Jason's head while Tim sat at the computer but wasn't typing anything. Damien sat on his bike while Barbara isolated herself from them and sat on the metal table displaying their weapons. Dick removed the mask and placed it in the case.
"You should've let that son of a bitch die," said Jason. Dick sighed.
"We've been through this before, Jason," he said. Jason stood up from the table and started to bleed from his head since Alfred hadn't finished stitched but he didn't care.
"You know this is different," he said. "I understand the one rule but that psychopath is not human! I don't know how Bruce couldn't see that and I don't know how you can't either!"
"You may think he isn't human but he still is."
"He killed me, Dick! He killed my mother! He crippled your girlfriend! How can you let him get away with these things?!" Dick looked at Barbara who turned to him. There were tears in her eyes. He'd seen her cry before but these weren't sad tears; they were frustrated tears. He could tell she wanted to let it all out like Jason but she held it back. He turned back to Jason.
"No matter what he did; I can't break that rule, Jason. If I do then I don't deserve to wear that suit."
"This is bullshit," he replied. "Do you have any idea how many people Bruce killed by letting him live? Now you're doing the same goddamn thing, Dick." Jason returned to the table so Alfred could finish. Tim and Damien remained silent and Dick simply walked upstairs. Deep down he knew this was the right thing but he was ashamed that he wasn't able to give them what they wanted. He couldn't give her what she wanted. That night there were no friendly dinner talks or even a dinner for that matter. They all left to their rooms in silence except for Jason. He didn't return to his apartment, instead he stayed up and looked for thugs to beat on out of frustration. Tim went straight to his room, as did Damien.
Dick lied in bed, hair still wet from his shower. Barbara entered their room without saying a word to him. She simply entered the bathroom, removed her clothes, and walked into the shower. He couldn't see it but she slid her bare wet body down the wall, held her legs up to her chest with her arms and leaned her head against her knees. So many memories flooded her head when she saw him again. She remembered the moment she opened the door and took a bullet. She also remembered the pictures he took of her naked, bleeding body then the horror he put her father through. It was the darkest chapter her and her father ever had in their lives.
She looked up from her knees to see Dick looking down at her. He extended his hand and she took it. He held her to his chest and she wrapped her arms around his waist. She cried so much. He walked her to the bed and held her once they were both under the blankets. He never touched her scar since he thought it would bring up the bad memories but on this night she moved his hand to it. On this night it felt horrible and she needed his touch; his warmth. Her head was on the pillow while his was buried in her neck. His arm was wrapped around her and she held it with her own. His other arm was underneath the pillow holding her other hand. Their legs were close together as well. She had never felt so cold with the exception of that night. She turned to him and kissed his lips.
"I love you," he said.
"And I love you," she whispered.
Days had passed since the return of The Joker and the media was eating it up. There were people on talk shows explaining their theory on why he returned; majority of them blamed the return of The Batman. Once again the media was beginning to reject Batman. The Joker was the most chaotic criminal to ever terrorize Gotham and many people saw it as Batman's fault. In many ways they believed he created The Joker and has since looked to face Batman countless times because it was fun to him. People picked up on something Joker often mentioned to Bruce in their most private moments which was: this was never going to end. Batman would always be there for Gotham and Joker would always be there because of him.
Dick sat on the porch outside because the TV had become too much for him. The idea that Joker would never leave so long as Batman would stay always haunted him. Gotham needed Batman and Joker needed Batman. It was a never ending cycle that tired him. Once again he realized why Bruce was always such a joy to be around. He dealt with this for years and even when Gotham didn't want Batman. Dick stressed so much after dealing with it for months and he couldn't even imagine doing it for years. He would eventually turn into Bruce and this disappointed him. Alfred had joined him outside.
"How is Miss Gordon?" he asked.
"She's sleeping," Dick answered seriously.
"Was it a rough night, Master Grayson?"
"That's putting it lightly, Alf." Alfred sighed.
"I had always hoped that he wouldn't show up during your run as Batman. I hoped that with the passing of Master Wayne he would pass as well."
"It never even occurred to me. I had been so busy with being Batman that I forgot about that psychopath." Alfred stared at the beauty that the morning sun shined on. All the green grass and the trees surrounding Wayne Manor were truly a thing of natural beauty.
"Have you spoken to Master Todd?"
"Nope. I'm kind of putting off the hard things at the moment. Talking to him is like talking to a brick wall."
"That is a good comparison."
"I do see his point though."
"It'd be hard not to." He finally turned to Alfred.
"Did it ever bother that Bruce never did it?"
"In the beginning yes. After what happened to Miss Gordon I was indeed infuriated, as was Master Wayne. It took every ounce of his willpower not to kill him if I recall correctly. It was the first time we had dealt with such a tragedy. Of course in the end he decided to simply turn in The Joker. He was a much different man after that day. Once Jason was killed it was yet another test of his willpower. Master Wayne did prove to have tremendous willpower that day. Any other would have given in a long time ago but he always remembered why he did what he did in the first place. Batman is a symbol and, like you, he wanted that symbol to be pure and upheld. Unfortunately that means people like The Joker will constantly test the durability of that symbol and it is there where we discover the true depths of our capabilities." Dick smirked.
"Thanks Alfred."
"My pleasure, Master Grayson." He placed his hand on Dick's shoulder. "I know these are hard times but we endure. You are just as great as Master Wayne and could be better in my opinion."
That night the family went their own separate ways in Gotham, even the Robins didn't stay together. The Joker's return had rattled all of them because they had never faced him without Bruce. Batman stood on the edge of a building in Gotham. The city was filled with traffic and lit with building lights. He breathed in the sight of the city because, despite all that was wrong with it, it still looked beautiful. Amidst the sounds of car horns and tires screeching, he heard a woman's scream. He dove off the building with perfect form like a swimmer. The cold air struck his face harder as he accelerated down the building. His cape opened up allowing him to cut through the air and glide. The woman screamed again and this time he pin pointed it to an alley nearby. There was a man attempting to rob this woman deep into the dark alley. He leaned forward in the air so that his speed could increase but then the man was pulled into the shadows. Batman eased back, decreasing his speed, then saw the woman's purse thrown back at her through the shadows. She took off running out of the alley then he saw a slim, dark figure climbing up the side of a small building. He landed on the roof of that same building but no one ever climbed up.
"Looking for me?" asked a smooth and seductive voice behind him. He turned around to find Selina Kyle, a.k.a. Catwoman, sitting calmly on an AC unit. She had on a tight black jumpsuit that fit perfectly on her slim and fit body along with high heeled boots of the same color. She wore a cowl that had cat ears on the top along with infrared goggles that were pulled up exposing her beautiful face. Strands of her short black hair stuck out from her mask onto her forehead. She sat back comfortably as she looked at the sharp nails retracting from her gloves. "You come back from the dead and now you barely come to see me? You sure know how to keep a girl waiting, Bruce."
"I'm surprised you saved that woman down there," said Batman.
"You know how much I hate a damsel in distress." She stood up now and slowly walked towards him. She softly touched his chest but he quickly grabbed her by the forearm.
"I'm not Bruce," he said. Her eyes widened in surprise as she stared at him. Her head tilted as she struggled to figure out who was underneath the mask. "It's Dick."
"Dick?" she gasped then walked back. "You look just like him."
"So I've been told." The shock didn't fade from her face and she seemed dazed now. She walked back to the AC unit so she could hold herself up with it. He ran to her aid and helped her stand. "Are you okay, Selina?" She looked up at him again.
"Please take off the mask." Dick pulled back the mask so she could finally see his face. "It really is you." She softly removed herself from his grasp; unable to look at him. "I really thought he came back," she said with hurt in her voice. "So this means he really is gone?"
"I'm afraid so." She inhaled deeply to keep the tears from coming out.
"Damn you Bruce." She turned back to him when she felt the tears were finally gone. "I should've known it was you. You're slimmer than he is. I guess I wanted to believe he was really back."
"Trust me sometimes I wish he was." He pulled the mask back over his face. Catwoman walked over to the edge of the roof. "Are you going to be okay?" She turned to him and smirked.
"I'll be fine." She turned back to the floor that was far below. "The others are back in Gotham too right?" He nodded and she saw from the corner of her eye. "You still with the Commissioners daughter?"
"Yeah." She sighed.
"Word of advice; don't shut her out." Now she turned to look at him and the two of them locked eyes. He could see the pain in hers. She saw Batman and only pictured Bruce underneath; the only man to ever make her feel vulnerable. She wished they had more time together but without the baggage the two of them brought to the table. When it was just them and nothing else; it was easy. However nothing was ever just easy. "I'll see you around," she said before diving off the edge.
"Batman, come in," said the radio in his ear.
"Batman here, Penny-one."
"There's been an incident at the Gotham Police Department. You must head over there right away sir."
"On my way."