Jim Gordon rarely watched movies. He simply did not have enough free time, and whenever he had some time off, he took care to spend it with his wife and kid. However, tonight his wife was visiting relatives, and his son was having a sleep over at a friend's house. So, Jim found himself home alone, a bit confused as to what to do with this unexpected few hours of freedom, and he – not a very original idea, one has to admit – chose to watch some TV. He stumbled upon an ages-old movie called 8 Mile, staring some now retired rapper. He remembered that movie from years and years ago as quite amusing, and having nothing better to do, he decided to glance at the screen while letting his thoughts roam freely. The strange case of Joker, who is now safely put behind Blackgate's thick walls, bothered him greatly. Something was off with Joker, something was completely different…but a rap battle was taking place on the TV, and Jim smiled a bit while he listened to the verbal attacks the young rappers exchanged:

"Now, while he stands tough

Notice that this man did not have his hands up

This Free World's got you gassed up

Now, who's afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

One, two, three, and to the four

One Pac, two Pac, three Pac, four

Four Pac, three Pac, two Pac, one

You're Pac, he's Pac, no Pac, none

This guy ain't no motherfucking MC

I know everything he's 'bout to say against me

I am white, I am a fucking bum

I do live in a trailer with my mom

My boy Future is an Uncle Tom

I do got a dumb friend named Cheddar Bob

Who shoots himself in his leg with his own gun

I did get jumped by all six of you chumps

And Wink did fuck my girl

I'm still standing here screaming, "Fuck the Free World!"

Don't ever try to judge me, dude

You don't know what the fuck I've been through"

And then Jim's smile faltered a bit as he heard the following taunting lyrics:

"But I know something about you

You went to Cranbrook, that's a private school

What's the matter, dawg? You embarrassed?

This guy's a gangster? His real name's Clarence

And Clarence lives at home with both parents

And Clarence parents have a real good marriage

This guy don't wanna battle, he's shook

'Cause ain't no such things as halfway crooks

He's scared to death, he's scared to look

At his fucking yearbook; fuck Cranbrook!"

Jim grabbed his jacket and went to his car. He drove straight to the hospital where he interviewed that lady, Sonja. He had to press her further. There was more to her story, he was sure. Her behavior during their previous encounter indicated that clearly, she was hiding something, but even more telling, Joker's behavior indicated that he was somehow involved. Is it possible, just as the notorious Papa Doc from the movie turned out to be the well-behaved Clarence, that the Joker is living a double life? His other life being that of a husband, a father?! This bothered Gordon so much: why in the world would Joker save a pregnant woman? Why would he stick around to see the child being born? Why would he want to hold a new-born baby?! Why would he be so defensive and..and scared?! Is it possible? As Jim drove down the streets, he kept trying to imagine the Joker as a part of a normal household. Could that be? Joker doing groceries or helping out with the laundry? No. Surely, there would be some domestic abuse involved - but the woman, Sonja, did not seem like your typical victim, and she had no signs of any kind of trauma. Maybe she is in it, too – maybe she's his partner? He comes home, she cleans the guns? She scoffs at him because he ruined yet another pair of trousers with blood?

Still confused and unsure of his theories, Gordon burst into Sonja's hospital room just as she was packing up to leave, but he stood dead in his tracks as he spotted a man in the room with Sonja, with his back turned to Jim.

„I am sorry, I just have a few more questions", he hesitantly said to a unpleasantly surprised Sonja.

„I have nothing further to tell you", she almost hissed at him.

„Who is this?", Jim asked, pointing towards Jackson, who now slowly turned to Jim.

„My son", Sonja replied shortly, but Jim didn't register a word. His eyes were glued to Jackson, who was glaring at him with hostility. He knew that look all too well. Actually, as he looked even more closely, he knew all about this person. He stared at this face for hours and hours, trying to figure out the man behind the angry hazel eyes. Same towering height, same strong body, but more than anything, the same aura of power, intelligence and rage surrounded this young man. It was as if he was looking at the younger version Joker, just without the scars.

"We can protect you", he said automatically and naively.

"You will leave us alone, or I will contact your superior. I will not be harassed", Sonja said coldly, holding her baby closer to her. She knew her threats were thin and transparent, and she realized as soon as she saw the look on Gordon's face that he knows who Jackson is. A new wave of utter despair hit her as she tried to keep a cold and composed face. Please Jack, please just come home…

…..

"…and then he'll take this bomb to the city, and he'll keep everybody hostage. Like, everything will be closed. No doctors, no schools, no fast food joints, like everything will be shut down, and everybody will go to this public trial, and lemme tell ya, most of them won't make it, like this guy has no fucking mercy for nobody. But wait, ya know what's best? Cause the bomb is real, but it's more for parading around until he's done with the city, and the he'll finish it off, like the entire city and everybody. But before he does that, he'll make sure he does such deranged shit that no one ever forgets him, you know what I'm saying? I heard he's gonna rip babies from their mommas and then kill the babies, and he says that's showing mercy, can ya believe this guy?"

Joker knew his way in a prison. While it is true that he was a more frequent guest to Arkham, he was no stranger to ordinary penitentiaries. So, he had no problem fitting in and finding an appropriate spot for himself in the inmate hierarchy. It did take strangling two other inmates to death with his bare hands, and doing it so that the authorities could not pin it on him, but still so that all other inmates knew very well that it was him. He knew the prison population and how they think. Here and there they need reminders on what's what and who's who. So, very soon he was well respected and had his usual following around him, including some henchmen he knew from before. That was always a good idea because in order to leave this place, he would need help.

Still, while being one of the top predators in there, he could clearly feel that he was not the most feared one, and what was weird is that whoever was the most feared one, was actually not there. The inmates talked about this mystery man in shushed voices, and every new story was more horrific than the other. While no one knew exactly the name or appearance of this new villain, everybody was rather sure that he will come soon and release them. That was more than enough for them to pledge their loyalty to this unknown person.

Joker first thought nothing much about these stories, tending to wave them away as rumors. But he couldn't deny a vibe and energy of anticipation amongst the inmates, and that made him listen up more and more. He soon realized that the threat was real, and that it was very likely that such an individual will come to Gotham and claim it as his playground. That made Joker very, very mad. Not only was Gotham Jokers playground, but it was his baby girl's playground too, now. No-one is going to even cross a red light while baby girl is so small and fragile. No-one is going to have any freaking trials. The idea of some animals dragging his Sonja to some wicked trial for no reason…or Jackson! Jackson has better things to do. He's like that close to banging this girl he's been pining for the last few months! And what if the vets don't work, who's gonna care for Gadni if that stinky dog gets sick or something? No, everything needs to work and be safe. And no-one's gonna play in my playground except me and maybe Bats, if that wanker ever decides to show up again.

This all got Jack thinking. Now that I have a baby, now for the first time in my life, I'm concerned. And what about before? People had babies five years ago, too, when I used to blow up buildings left and right. Yeah, the buildings were empty for the most part, but do I know for sure that someone's kid didn't get hurt? I don't. How many times did I cause traffic accidents? What if my baby was in a car when some maniac rammed it?

How can I be a good father if I'm in prison?

There's nothing more I wish now than to protect and care for that little shit, and her mother, and my son, too.

How can I be a protector if I'm not there? How can I be a protector if I am a threat to everybody else?

Can I be sure that I will always be smarter, quicker, better than all my opponents? Cause once I make a mistake, they'll take the opportunity to end me once and for all. If I end up dead or locked up for life..can I be a good father and also a fugitive for the rest of my life?

I need a new plan. A completely new plan.