The Joker's New Pet

**

The Joker was in good spirits today, fortunately for his men. He had, had a little quickie that morning with Stacey, and it had put him in a good mood all day. Who knew that having female companionship around could be so…delightful?

Stanley was late to the meeting (again) but the Joker didn’t even yell at him this time. Nor did he kick, punch or threaten to stab anyone after they had said something stupid, (and his followers did tend to say a lot of stupid things.) He merely corrected them like an understanding teacher, and then dismissed them to their household duties after the meeting was over.

His henchmen scrambled to all areas of the house as the Joker bounced his way up the stairs towards the top floor, where his henchmen usually weren’t allowed. He liked the top floor to be his personal area, like a king’s private quarters in his castle.

He found himself whistling as he made his way to his master bedroom on the east wing of the upper floor, only to find the door slightly cracked, a small beam of light creeping out and shining onto the hallway floor. The old and heavy wooden door made a squeaking noise as the Joker pushed it open. Inside the room little Ace immediately trotted over to his master, wagging his little tail and sniffing at the Joker’s shoe. The small dim lamp on the nightstand by the bed was on, and the closet was open, a basket full of dirty clothes sitting on the floor beside it.

“Little bunny?” the Joker called, assuming that she was in the bathroom. But upon further inspection he found that she wasn’t in there either. “Sweetness?” he called again, as he turned the light on in the bathroom. Ace was whimpering beside him and jumping up on his leg, his tiny frame barely reaching the Joker’s knee. The Joker kneeled down and scratched the little pup behind the ear. “Now where did the little bunny toddle off to hmm?” he asked the pup. Wherever she was, she had clearly left the laundry in that room. Was she avoiding her chores?

*

“This is where daddy works sweetheart.”

Jim Gordon’s voice buzzed in Stacey’s ear as a distant foggy memory flowed through her mind, the images coming to surface like a hazy water painting. She was in the police station again, as a younger Jim Gordon placed a cop hat on her head. She remembered how it felt as it slipped down over her eyes, the size of it being much too large for her small head. She could hear her father’s fellow policemen laughing around her, admiring how cute their coworker’s daughter was.

Another face of a man behind her father was coming into view, smiling and laughing along with the rest of the men in the room. Officer…Mertz? No…Wer…Wor…

Wuertz! Officer Wuertz! She remembered him standing in that room, looking much younger as well, grinning ear to ear.

“Ya got quite a looker there eh Gordon? Better be careful. Someday you’re gonna have to beat all those boys off with a stick!” Said officer Wuertz, and Stacey remembered herself giggling and shying away as he winked at her.

But it was all coming back to her now. Another memory flashed in her head. Her father was promoted to lieutenant, and she vaguely recalled him talking to her mother about how he got the impression that Wuertz was bitter over him getting the promotion that he had wanted for so long.

Whatever did happen to Wuertz? Something happened to him right?

That didn’t matter to her now. Her thoughts switched back to that one memory of Jim sitting her up on his desk at the police station and smiling down on her with fatherly pride. It was a good memory, and it made her feel warm inside. She could not recall feeling any fear or anxiety in his presence. But if her father had been so abusive to her, like the Joker had claimed, then why couldn’t she recall feeling any hatred towards him?

Stacey wandered down the hallway on the lower floor like a zombie, the ceiling lamps casting an eerie glow that ignited her path. This area of the mansion seemed oddly familiar…in a bad way. She felt a chill run up her spine, as if a bad omen was inhabiting this area if the residence.

A door at the very end of the hallway seemed to be beckoning her. She walked at almost a snail’s pace, still holding the batman mask in her hands. For some reason this mask held some sort of horrible significance. And why did the Joker even have a mask of the Batman?

She slowly opened the door to the small room. There was a single window there, and a small bed. Much smaller than the master bedroom that her and the Joker slept in. The room was mostly empty save for the bed and a small dresser that was set against the wall. The moonlight peeked in through the window, casting unsettling shadows around the room.

She felt her body begin walking on it’s own towards the bed, as if some unseen force was pulling her along. She ran her hand along the comforter of the made up bed, and as she did so, a sudden unnerving feeling surged through her veins followed by a disturbing image. She vaguely recalled waking up in this room…in this very bed, with the world spinning around her.

‘Rise and shine little bunny.”

‘Ah!’

Stacey’s hand quickly jerked away from the bed, and her entire body jolted as she remembered his terrifying voice. The Joker’s voice? It couldn’t be.

She slowly turned and peered out the window, the Batman mask still clasped in one hand. Another image flashed through her head. It was daylight and armed henchmen were patrolling the area outside her window, some bearing pit bulls on leashes. And as that memory flashed through her head, it was followed by another more terrifying one.

‘Naughty little girl. What did I tell you about trying to escape? Naughty little bunnies get punished!’

And she remembered feeling genuine fear. Fear for her life. And as that memory played back in her mind, it was like a domino affect. Another memory soon followed, and then another, and another.

‘When little bunnies are bad, they get locked in their cages.’

‘I suppose I have to make sure I water my disobedient pet.’

‘I want you to completely brainwash her so that she’s happy to be my pet and happy to serve me in everyway.’

Stacey dropped the mask on the floor, and she had the sudden urge to projectile vomit. Tears stung her eyes as she felt an uncontrollable rage surge through her body, while memories cut through her mind like dull knives. And eventually doctor Crane entered the picture. The evil Batman. It all made sense now. How could she be so stupid? So easily brainwashed?

‘I wouldn’t expect his daughter to be such a looker.’

‘This only works if the subject and I are left alone in peace.’

‘Brainwash her…’

‘Let’s see if this other method will work.’

‘Look at me!’

‘You wanted the Batman? Here I am.’

‘Naughty little bunnies get punished!’

‘They’re all the same. All schemers.’

The urge to lose her lunch became a reality, and she involuntarily vomited in the corner of the room. She shook and rested her head against the wall, now feeling as though she would faint. The thought of allowing someone to completely brainwash her to the point of actually aiming a gun at her father’s head had caused her to become deathly ill.

With her hands and head still resting against the wall, she slowly slid down to a crouching position, still feeling queasy. She suddenly felt another presence in that room with her, but for a moment she couldn’t even gain the strength to look up and see who had entered. “Boss? Boss! She’s in here!” A youthful male voice reached her ears.

Stacey forced herself to look up at the doorway, and her watery eyes met the shocked eyes of Stanley, the young blond henchman who was still eager to get on his boss’s good side. She felt another surge of rage course through her, as she remembered Stanley holding a knife to a puppy, and the way he would always gawk at her whenever she walked passed him, careful not to let his boss know that he was staring at his pet like a horny animal. He even had that look in his eyes now. She knew that if he could, he would have humped her right there.

“What are you looking at?” Stacey suddenly snapped. “Can’t a girl even vomit in peace around this animal house?”

Stanley merely blinked at her. He was never really allowed to talk to her, and she had never really talked to him. “What’s your problem bitch? PMSing?” he snapped back. “If you weren’t the boss’s plaything I’d…”

“What’s going on here hmm?” Stanley paused and nearly felt queasy himself when he heard his boss’s low voice interrupt him. Hopefully he hadn’t heard what he had just said to his precious, spoiled pet.

“Uh, um boss she’s in here. I found her. She’s had an accident,” the tone of Stanley’s voice switched from cocky to subdued.

The Joker gave the shorter, younger man a dirty look as he entered the room, but his look softened when he turned his gaze to Stacey, and saw that she had vomited in the corner, her face looking sweaty and pale. “Little bunny…” he took a step towards her.

“Stay away from me!” Stacey barked. The Joker stopped in his tracks, her sudden explosion catching him off guard. Stacey was shaking so much she felt like a broken washing machine, but she managed to stand herself back on her feet, and she took a combative stance by the window, ready to bolt out of it if the Joker tried to attack her, even if it meant breaking through it with her own head. “I’m not your little bunny! You stay the fuck away from me! You….you….,” she looked down at her quivering hands, and she felt tears stinging her eyes again.. “Oh God…” she whimpered. “Oh God!”

The Joker licked his lips in puzzlement, but then he saw the batman mask that Crane had used on her during his treatment, laying on the floor beside the bed. Oh no. She remembered. He was going to have to…do something about that. He took another step towards her. “I said stay the fuck away!” Stacey bellowed, backing her body against the window. “Don’t touch me. Don’t you dare ever touch me again! How could you…how could you do this to someone? How?” she raged.

At this point, more of the Joker’s henchmen had entered the room, wanting to know what all the commotion was about. “Hey boss, what’s goin’ on?” One of his fatter henchmen said in muffled words, while munching on a corndog.

“Nothing Wally,” said the Joker, staring at Stacey with a serious expression. “Little Stacey is just throwing a little…tantrum. She’ll get over it.” He started advancing on her again. “Now little bunny…” the Joker said in a soothing, fatherly voice.

“Stay away,” Stacey warned again, backing up to where she was closer to the nightstand by the bed.

“Little bunny,” the Joker said again. “Calm down. You’re just having a little fit and it’ll pass. Now how’s about you let daddy get ya a nice bowl of ice cream to make it allll better hmm?”

Stacey blinked at him. “How stupid do you think I am?” she hissed. “Stay the fuck away from me! I’m not playing your games anymore!”

The Joker sighed heavily. “Well little bunny,” he said rather gravely. “Daddy’s not playing games here either. Now come here,” he ordered, beckoning her to him with his finger. “Come let daddy J make it better sweetheart,” he said a bit more softly. “Because he loves you.”

At those last words, all his henchmen looked at each other as if they had just heard the most shocking thing they had ever heard in their lives. Did their boss just say what they think he said? Stacey just stood there shaking heavily, tears starting to run down her cheeks. She was about to have a complete mental breakdown. “You’re…you’re a liar. A fucking liar!”

“Little bunny…” the Joker said again, taking another step forward.

“I said stay away!” Within a fit of rage, Stacey reached for the lamp that was on the nightstand, and she violently hurled it towards the Joker. The Joker immediately darted out of the way, causing the lamp to hit Wally behind him instead, knocking his corndog out of his hand.

“Ow! Hey! Boss, did you see what she did?” Wally whined, like a child who had just dropped his ice cream cone.

The Joker didn’t answer. He just stood there, glaring at Stacey, who only glared back with reddened, watery eyes, and a flushed tear streaked face. The rest of the henchmen fell deathly silent, wondering what their boss was going to do. Would be beat his little pet in front of them? Would he do something worse? They stood there in anticipation with a combination of excitement and fear, wondering what would happen to the Joker’s little plaything now, or to one of them. “I want, I want to go home,” Stacey spoke in a trembling voice. “You’re not capable of love, you…you bastard clown.”

“Boss, do you want me to restrain her? Or throw her to the dogs?” Said Stanley, hoping his boss would say yes. He desperately wanted to touch her, and at the same time get revenge on her for behaving so bitchy towards him. The other henchmen stepped away from the idiot young man, expecting the Joker to shoot him in his other leg this time. But the Joker was acting unusually calm.

“No, that wont be necessary,” said the Joker. “Little miss Gordon says she wants to go home. So I’ll escort her home.”

The next few moments that followed were so quiet one would be able to hear a pin dropping. “W-what?” said Stacey, her eyebrows furrowing in bafflement.

“Yeah what?” said Wally the fat henchman, after he had picked his corndog back up off the floor and continued to munch on it.

“You heard me,” said the Joker. “Stanley? You wanna be helpful?” he turned to Stanley, who nodded frantically, eager to please his boss. “Then go outside and warm up the van.” Stanley gave his boss an odd look, but without saying a word he scampered off to go warm up the van that was parked in the driveway outside the mansion.

*

“I suggest you say goodbye to Ace,” the Joker told Stacey, as he allowed her to pack up some extra clothes in their room, for her apparent trip back home.

Stacey was slowly packing her small suitcase, and she looked up at the Joker with suspicious eyes. “I can’t take him with me? I thought he was a gift?”

“He was,” said the Joker. “But he’s already used to this being his home. I think it would be better if he stayed here for now don’t you?”

“But…”

“Say goodbye to Ace and let’s go Stacey,” the Joker said seriously, calling Stacey by her actual name, which he so rarely did. “The van outside is waiting. We need to get going.”

*

Outside of the mansion, Stanley was waiting eagerly in the driver’s seat of the van for his boss to arrive with Stacey. It was already late in the evening, and thick rain clouds were gathering in the sky, signs that a storm would soon be imminent. Two large burley men were standing on the porch, holding open the large double doors for their boss and Stacey to make their exit.

The Joker stomped through the doorway with a peculiar look of determination on his face, and Stacey was trotting behind him, struggling to keep up with his long legged stride. She was carrying a small suitcase, and the image was similar to that of a little girl trying to keep up with the pace of an adult due to their enormous difference in height. The Joker behaved as though he was in a hurry, and that he didn’t even acknowledge Stacey’s presence behind him.

He stomped over to the driver’s side of the van, and Stanley greeted his boss with a goofy grin through the open window. The Joker didn’t return his smile. “Get out,” he said. “I’m driving her into town. Alone.”

Stanley gave him a puzzled look. “Boss?”

“Out!” the Joker barked angrily, and he didn’t have to tell the young man twice. He threw open the door, and fumbled his way out. The Joker nearly pushed him out of the way, as he took Stanley’s place at the driver’s seat. “Get in,” he ordered Stacey, and pointed at the passenger’s seat. Stacey was reluctant for a moment, and she had an anxious feeling growing in the pit of her stomach, but she did as the Joker bade. With a few grunts, she opened the passenger side door and crawled in with her suitcase. As soon as she closed the heavy door, the Joker immediately put the van in reverse, and he pulled out of the large driveway with breakneck speed.

When he stopped the van, he heard Stacey gasp as she felt herself fall forward, stopping herself from hitting her head on the dashboard. “Buckle up,” he ordered. She shakily buckled her seatbelt and as soon as she did, the Joker floored it out of there, the van screeching down the winding road of the large estate.

*

As they were driving down the dark twisty roads of the mountains, the tension between them could be cut with a knife. Stacey was afraid to open her mouth, and the Joker hadn’t even glanced in her direction since they had left the property. Stacey was worried that he was going to kill her and leave her body up in the mountains somewhere. But her thoughts changed as soon as they had entered the actual city.

It was after two A.M and hardly any cars remained on the road, and the ones that Stacey saw pass them, their lights fuzzy within the thick early morning fog, were probably drunkards who had just been kicked out of the bars. Against her better judgment, Stacey finally decided to break the silence. “You’re not going to shoot me, and take my body to Gotham lake and dump me are you?” she asked, unable to hide the concern on her face.

Not that it mattered. The Joker didn’t look at her face, nor did he even seem to acknowledge her existence during this time. He continued to stare blankly ahead, his dark, soulless eyes remaining fixated on the dimly lit road before them. His unwillingness to answer her right away unwontedly filled Stacey’s heart with panic. Though she had spent lord knows how long with him at this point, he was still so unpredictable, and even within Stacey’s broken down condition, she realized that she really did not want to die. She felt her lower lip begin to tremble, as visions of thrashing about in the lake filled her head, the horror that the last image she would see would be the Joker’s blurry, laughing face above the water, tormenting her with his demented Cheshire grin as he watched the life vanish from her terrified eyes.

But after what seemed like an age to Stacey (and it was really only a minute) the Joker finally answered her. “Don’t you know me better than that by now kiddo? If I was gonna kill ya, I’d have done it ages ago.”

“Then…you’re really taking me home?” Stacey asked in a minuscule voice, not even believing her own words as they came out of her mouth.

The Joker smacked his lips, and this time it only took him a few seconds to answer, which was still too long for Stacey’s liking. “I said I would. Now would I lie to you Puddin’ pop?”

He turned his head and actually looked at her this time, and he reached over with his hand, and gently swiped a gloved finger under hear chin. Stacey had to fight the urge to withdraw from his touch, certainly not eager to set him off in anyway. But she didn’t like the tone of his voice. Though her suspicions were still exceptionally high, she found herself flabbergasted when they kept getting closer and closer to central Gotham, expecting them to turn around at any second, with the Joker grinning wildly in her face and screaming ‘psyche!’ with loud mock laughter.

And then an idea entered her mind that he really was taking her to her old apartment….just so he could force her to watch him blow it up, and laugh while she watched her old home, and all the attendants inside, become engulfed in flames.

“I’m offended,” the Joker’s voice suddenly cut into her thoughts, causing the butterflies in her stomach to flutter. “I’m hurt. I truly am,” he spoke rather seriously, displaying the tone of someone who actually was…or who was at least behaving as though they really were offended. “After all the time we’ve spent together. After all the things I’ve done for you…you treat me like this. Like some sort of lowly freakish animal who isn’t worthy to lick your oh so precious little princess ass.”

Stacey felt her eyebrows crinkle. Another confusing mess of words started coming out of the psychotic clown’s mouth. “I can’t believe your ungratefulness. After all that I’ve given you…I took care of you. Fed you. Hell, kept you alive. Treated you like a princess…like a spoiled bratty little princess. Protected you from my apes. Got you gifts. If you had decided to stay with me you wouldn’t of had a care in the world. No worries for the rest of your life. But you prefer the…normal life I guess,” he said the word ‘normal’ as if it had left a bad taste in his mouth.

“The nine to five job. The bowling nights on Fridays. The boring goofy blind dates that your bumbling friends set you up with. Nine to five, every day, day in and day out. With your morning and evening workouts before you go home and crash in your dinky, closet sized little apartment, curled up with a Stephen King book, or turning on your pathetically puny little television set, and watching reruns of ‘Dexter’ marveling at the fictional lives of exciting characters, that you dream about, and fantasize about…but would never dare fathom ever meeting in real life right? Because you prefer the boringly normal, simple life. Day in and day out, nine to five. Everyday. Every damn day until Mr. right comes along and sweeps you off your feet, rescuing you from your dreary little life, and taking you away on a grotesquely romantic vacation, somewhere Cliché like Disneyworld. That’s what my little Gordon princess wants is it?”

Stacey sat there dumbfounded….which she should have been used to by now. He was speaking as though he were a hurt husband, who had just gotten home after a hard day’s work, only to find his wife’s divorce papers waiting for him on the kitchen table. It was all an act. It had to be. Right? “Where are you really taking me?” Stacey asked, feeling rather stupid after she heard that question escape her lips. But she still didn’t fully believe him.

“Just hang tight princess,” The Joker assured her in a rather irritated voice. “You’ll be home soon.”

**

Yep I wanted to write more here, but I need sleep lol. Will try and update soon.