Legal Bat 2 - (Batman: Wayne Family Adventures, Lawyer!SI)

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A new day, a new 'shift' to get the Joking One out of the streets and Arkham for good.

One would think that I had trouble sleeping the previous night, but I am a simple man - I put on Pretty Cure All Stars F with my headphones on and I was a calm sleeping bug for several hours.

Sure, I was a bit uneasy about having to see what the Joker was going to do today since he didn't try anything 'funny' the previous one, but I wasn't exactly planning to let the mere thought of trouble rattle me.

The same, however, I couldn't say for my gut telling me that I wasn't alone in my flat as I woke up. For a very long minute, I thought that it was some goons from the Joker. And I stood up as tense I could be.

I scanned around my room, but found nothing. I still left the bedroom with my trustworthy baseball bat, stepped into the living room and... I frowned as I saw someone sitting by my couch and drinking some of my coffee from my favorite mug.

Red Hood had the decency to pause mid-sip and turn to look at me for a moment and... look away. "I made another cup."

So, Jason Todd. Why is he visiting me? Why not Batman? Why not later after I am done with the Clown Prince of Crime?

I guess it had to do something with the fact that he had a stake on the situation. He loathed the bastard way more than anyone in town and for a good reason.

Huffing, I made to my couch and I was glad he hadn't lied. The steamy cup was soon claimed in my hands, and I started to drink from it.

"So, what questions do you have, Red Hood?"

There was no reason to beat the bush. Todd had questions and I may have answers. Simple as that, no reason to play mysterious for no real reason.

"Why are you putting the Joker on trial?"

"Why shouldn't I? Doesn't he deserve punishment?"

"He will find a way out of Blackgate," Jason argued, and I rolled my eyeas at that - a detail he didn't miss. "You know that already."

"Everyone know that. Me, the Judge, the defense, and even the GCPD. But the thing is that you are looking at the wrong angle of this trial."

"And that is?"

I smiled as I turned to him. "The Joker will lose his 'dodge higher punishments' card if his Insanity Defense is torn apart in this trial. That's why he will do his best to either win or ruin this trial."

...

"I don't follow."

"The Insanity Defense is what the common folk will address the 'revolving door' of Arkham. I am removing that privilege from that clown."

Jason leaned back, pulling his mask down to fully cover his face.

"So, you don't expect him to stay in Blackgate for long. You want to be free so... he will be put on trial again-"

"And he will pay twice for what he has done. Maximum security next, and then something out of Gotham entirely to handle a menace like his."

Red Hood sighed at that and he went quiet- or rather, he looked unfocused. And shivering a bit.

I knew he had PTSD from getting killed the first time when he was still Batman's second Robin, but this was... new. Usually the PTSD in the comics was rage-based, this one looked less fury-based and more... like a panic attack.

Gulping nervously as a wrong move could trigger a rather gunshoty situations, I turned to Jason with a tense look.

"Red Hood... I remind you that you are in my flat. And the clown is not there."

"I-I am fine," He mumbled, "I just- just need."

"You still have some coffee in the mug. You can keep it for the time being. I doubt you had that when whatever happened with the Joker occurred."

I saw him turn to the cup, pushing his mask up almost to the point of unmasking himself and then drank the few drops from his cup.

"Y-Yeah."

The shivering slowly passed and I saw him... tense up.

"I... I am sorry."

"Eh, for what? It's not like you have much of a choice with that issue. And I can only hope you are looking to get help with that."

"I am. It's just..."

"Work in progress?"

He nodded, and I felt really weirded out by how 'soft' this Red Hood felt like. Usually, when I think of Red Hood, I think of the Comics' version that is very violent with his outbursts, but this one was surprisingly tame.

He left shortly after, but he looked still a bit shaken up by the panic attack. None of the police noticed what occurred, and I was once again reminded they had some limits in that regard.

After getting ready for the day and leaving the flat, I moved to my car and soon the vehicles escorting me safely brought me to the tribunal. Differently from the previous day, I didn't have it easy in entering the building.

The journos were soon hounding me over several questions and topics I was quick to scream and shout I would answer to at a press conference after the trial itself while pushing through waves of cameramen and mic-owning folks.

When I made it throught the doors, I was greeted by Jim Gordon once again, he didn't have a coffee for me but he said that something may happen for today so to be wary of any alarm on the matter - in my line of work, this meant moving as quickly as possible before the trial was disrupted for a while.

Once I was done with the Commissioner, I moved to get myself some water and...

"Mr. M!"

I felt my body tensing up as I turned to see... well, one of the witnesses coming in for a hug. A very sudden bear-hug at that.

Harley Quinn was still a bit crazy, but she was on a more managed level after having been in a healthy relationship for a few years now.

"M-Ms. Quinn-"

"It's Harley~!" She replied with a giggle much to my chagrin. "Still, yesterday was fun! You should have heard Ivy when-"

"I am here too, babe. No need to speak for me," Another woman spoke up, and I turned to see Poison Ivy regard me with a nod. "Mr. Mercer, as Harley say- it was fun to see the crown pout."

"I am very flattered by your words, misses. But the trial is not over and... today I will have you take the stand, Harley."

"Oh! Is this about my expertise or-"

"I just want you to be blunt on how obsessed the Joker is with the Batman. That's all."

The blonde paused and... deflated. "Oh."

"Which also means that you will be targeted by his lawyers about any potential jealousy you may have had at the time 'warping' your understanding of the situation."

"I was jealous-"

"Which is why you will say that was the case and I will work around it during my interview. All you have to do is to be honest, as painful as it may be at times, and we will be through with this process as quickly as possible."

I saw the blonde look at the redhead for support, and the woman gave her a tight hug.

"We'll be fine."

"Glad to hear that. I will give as much help as possible to avoid the worst questions. You just need to hold yourself under control and I will whip them back to the line."

That last bit had the woman giggle, but it was soon time for us all to move to the courtroom.

Everyone was soon seated, and I realized that the officers positioned around had been changed from those assigned there yesterday. Maybe a fear of infiltrations? That would have been a dreadful thing to keep in mind.

Judge Shaffer appeared to be in a fairly foul mood. I thought that he had woken up with that mood, but his 'statement' before resuming the trial was telling more was going on than I was aware of.

"Before the process of law continues, I have some words to deliver. Yesterday night, my wife and I were almost kidnapped by individuals if not for the timely intervention of the heroines, Huntress and Spoiler. With that being said, an investigation is currently going on to determine if this matter is somewhat tied to this trial or not."

Good news, Judge Shaffer was out for blood due to the botched kidnapping. Bad news, the notion that the police had to still verify the identity of the thugs meant that there is no known connection between them and the Joker and, due to that, I can't ask for an expedited trial and have the Joker take the fall for it.

Still, nothing too bad on my side, and it just meant going along with my main plan.

I had Harley take the stand, something that the Joker's lawyers didn't prevent, perhaps hoping to work around what the non-expert witness had to say and what could be used against her to derail her testimony.

"Miss Quinzel, would it be fine for me to address you as 'Harley' or 'Miss Quinn' for the duration of the interrogation?"

"Yup, go ahead!"

I nodded. "Good. Then let's start with some simple questions to affirm your role within this circumstance. You were once a member of the staff at Arkham Asylum as a psychiatrist, you were fired upon being noticed taking a more 'softer' approach around the defendant while he stayed at Arkham and then you fled with him after helping him evade the asylum," I paused, then looked at Harley. "Are those statements correct?"

"Yes."

"Then, Miss Quinn, did you have feelings for the defendant at the time you joined him as his henchwoman?"

"I... I thought I did."

"At the time," I stressed over. "You believed there was something going on between you two. The defendant never made an outright statement confirming this, but he did behave in a way that could expand an innuendo - he made you think he shared the same attraction."

"Y-Yes."

I nodded, pausing a moment as I saw Harley wasn't exactly handling this matter well. I had to switch it up and get her endurance back up.

"Now that we have confirmed these absolute facts, I wish to address a very unique point you may have some insight over. You were quite close to the defendant's planning schemes, enough to remember some of the more general points of those, correct?"

"Yep. I always was around for the plannin' and the actin'," I heard her reclaim some of her spunkiness, but I could tell the blonde was still not truly out of that bad mood.

"Okay, then you are familiar with common points about the defendant's plans. What I am referring to is about his interest in creating large operations, many times not connected to previous ones, and all leading to one major point that connects them all - The Batman," I stated with a confident tone. "Am I correct with that assumption?"

"You are, sir."

"And did this interest ever clash with your infatuation of the defendant?"

"From time to time."

"Now, if that is the case... do you recall if this ever led up to some fights between you two?"

"O-Objection, hearsay!" One of the Joker's lawyers squeaked, but the Judge was upon him as he did so.

"The witness had yet to reply to the question."

"Y-Your honor, the answer can only be hearsay."

"That's incorrect, your honor," I rebuked, looking at the judge. "All I have asked is if the topic led up to quarrels between the defendant and the witness, not what was said in those fights. It's a yes or no question, Miss Quinn."

"Yes," She replied, her lips forming a thin scowl as she glared over at the side where the Joker was sitting at.

"Overruled," The judge confirmed and I turned to look at my 'opponents'.

They were jumpier than yesterday and, possibly so, it had to do with the Joker's growing bad mood.

"With that being said, I have to agree that I have to be careful with my questions as to not broach hearsay. So, rather than inquire about any private conversations you two may have held in the past, I wish to ask something fairly simple: did any of those fights led up to changes of plans?"

"...Yes." Harley frowned at this, taking a moment to think of her answer as it wasn't exactly something she could think off on the spot with uttermost certainty.

"Did any of those see you relocated or for some loud public proclamations to be made in regard to the topic?"

My question was met with a deeper frown but Harley nodded.

"Yes."

I smiled. "Your honor, I would like to bring up Evidence B25 and B29 for the courtroom to see."

The TV and recorder were back, and two videos were played. Both videos were taken from the news and they showed similar proclamations from the Joker.

"I exist only for you, Bats!"

"You complete me, Bats!"

Brief recordings and yet those further confirmed my thesis. I could hear the Joker's teeth gnawing at this development. Usually those were 'passionate' moments, but right now, with the way I was giving them context, I was finally unraveling the mess that was his mind and his biggest trick - a faux insanity.

After all, following the confirmation of the Obsession, it was time to use it to strike at his defense for good.

"Miss Quinn, those statements. Can you recall if those followed the spats you two had?"

"Yes," I saw Harley nodding as she answered honestly.

"So, it is fair to say that the defendant had taken steps so that his plans involved, always, the Batman."

"Yes."

"Directly and indirectly."

"Yes."

"And this made you angry at times because you thought it felt wrong beyond than 'unfaithful'."

"Yes!"

I took a pause, seeing the blonde a bit too incensed now and I knew I had to swerve this again to keep it balanced.

"The defendant's plans, those were handled with care and precision. In fact, reading some statements made by the Bullock Commission: 'The Joker was quite crafty in securing funds, locations, men, and have a way to not only win but also keep a way out of trouble in case of failure'. Would it be fair to say this was part of the planning schemes?"

"Yes."

"Has it ever struck you odd that the defendant was so incredibly clever with his details? I mean, we are talking about someone that has been confirmed to have a form of mental disorder - and with the intensity of said disorder under review, it feels compelling to think that someone too unstable wouldn't be able to craft such impressive plans."

Harley Quinn leaned back and... she huffed. "Mister... I mean, the Joker was always the charming fellow. His plans were unique in details and care, and I do agree that he was particularly smart about it but... I am no longer qualified to say if he is insane or not."

That answer was... perfect. And I smiled.

"My most sincere apologies, Miss Quinn. I had overstepped with the question so, please, let me rephrase it accordingly," I said with delight. "Would you agree that if the defendant was put through a psychiatric evaluation he would try to inflate his bouts of madness?"

"He would."

"Your honor, objection!"

"What for?" Shaffer asked with an annoyed tone.

"H-Hearsay."

"All I have asked, your honor, was an opinion. Not a true statement, or a known speech between the defendant and the witness."

"So, it can't be hearsay if it isn't rooted in a concrete exchange," The judge added with a nod. "Overruled."

As he said that and I turned back to Harley to get the interrogation resumed, I froze up as the building suddenly shook. An explosion- the much-awaited attack was finally happening.

The agents were already moving in action but... the courtroom was soon thrown in chaos. The people behind the lawyers' benches were acting in a panic, causing most of the officers to be facing crowd of terrified citizens and-

I barely heard the Joker rushing me. I heard the beginning of a laugh, then I felt the pressure towards me from his side, and I shifted my palms just barely as searing pain hit my left hand and I found myself pushed down on the ground.

Pulling the pen out of my palm as he had pierced through it, the Joker raised the pen to finish the job but... I knelt it. Between his legs.

Not my finest moment, but it was effective as his laugh died immediately and he gasped for air as he dropped the pen to rush his hands to his crotch. It was just enough of a distraction from some agents to move to tackle the criminal on the ground and pull him away from me.

I was helped back to my chair as Harley and Ivy had rushed to check on me, the former checking my injury while the latter fetching the first aid kit in her bag.

Later that day, Judge Shaffer would confirm an expedited trial, with judgment to be passed by the end of the week - everyone knew the Joker's gamble had backfired horribly on his case and his insanity defense was gone for good.

AN

No, it's not Harley and Ivy. They are here, they are cool, and they will be friends with 'Mr. M', but they are not going to end up with the MC.

In fact, the romantic interest... shall appear next chapter!