Batman & Robin

"Tony, why do we gotta start this up again?" Brad and Tony were standing guard, watching the cats go by outside the alleyway. The moonlight glinted off their guns. The paint on the door was peeling, and the stench of rotting food and garbage juice floated through the air.

"You heard the boss before he got arrested, Brad." Tony sighed. He didn't want to be here either, but Brad made it so much harder. "He's almost out of prison, and we gotta follow the exact instructions he gave us."

Brad rolled his eyes, and groaned. "This stinks, man. It's been, what, 5 years since The Boss got beat by that bat?"

"yeah, just about." Tony wiped his nose. His allergies were acting up, for some reason. "Boss wants the business up and running once his five year sentence is up."

"I got a wife and a kid now, man." Brad slumped a bit, his lip quivering. "I can't be back to doing this stuff."

"Are you about to cry? All that's your fault man." Tony shrugged and rolled his eyes, his fist balling in frustration. "Shouldn't have gotten caught up in all that stuff. Either way, it's another reason to do what the boss asks, you know what the new guy he's working with is willing to do." Tony sniffles a bit, pulling another tissue out of his pocket.

"Yeah, I guess your right man…. Hey, aren't you allergic to cats? Why are your allergies-" a hand covered Brads mouth, stifling his words.

"Hello there, boys." Catwoman wrapped her whip back around her arm, having just used it to slide down the side of the alley wall. "Let's have a chat."

Tony stumbled backwards, reaching for his gun, but Selina's leg whipped out much too fast for him to react, hitting him in the face with a strong kick, while still covering Brads mouth.

She flipped Brad to the ground, pinning his arm behind his back and holding him there, while pressing her foot against Tony's neck, holding him against the wall. "You two are going to answer alllll my questions….. understand?"

Tony's right arm scrabbled at the ground, before just barely reaching his gun, and cocking it….. and then Selina landed two kicks directly to his face, knocking him unconscious.

"Just you, then." She pinned Brad harder against the ground, digging her knee into his back. "Whos your boss?"

"I- I can't tell, or hell-" His arm was pulled back by Selina, threatening to be popped out of the socket. "OKAY OKAY OKAY!!! FINE!!!! Falcone, I work for Carmine Falcone okay?"

"I know, just needed to make sure you were telling the truth." Selina smirked. The gravel crunches as Brads face was pushed deeper into it. "I know your boss is working with Dent. Harvey Dent. Where are they meeting up once Falcone is free?"

"I- I don't know!" Brad grunted in pain, sniffling, his lip quivering, as Selina pulled his arm harder. "I swear I don't know! He never told us, all we were supposed to do was stop anyone from getting to the drugs- he never told us anything else, I swear!"

Selina pulled tighter, and shoved her knee deeper into his back. Her eyebrows were scrunched in both concentration and frustration. "fine. Then tell me where you think they're going to meet up."

Brad let out a scream, blood was now streaming out of his nose, turning the pavement below scarlet. "F- fine, b- boss has a place on- on 23rd! A little bakery, he likes to have all his meetings there, after hours!"

Selina chuckles. "Thanks, Brad. Have fun with the GCPD." She pulled his head back, and then pushed it forward, slamming his head, hard into the pavement, knocking him unconscious.

Waves crashed against the rocks.

A giant island stood near the edge of Gotham city, 50 feet above sea level, only connected by a road of rock.

One building stood on this island. One large, looming, terrifying building.

Arkham Asylum.

Laughs echoed throughout the building. Prisoners banger on their cells. Some talked to themselves. Any normal person would go crazy just being in the proximity of this many psychoes.

But not him.

One man walks through this prison, unafraid, unaffected, his footsteps echoing throughout the building.

The Batman.

He stops in front of a cell, and turns.

"Zsaz." He growled

"Hello, Batboy." Zsaz chuckled. "Your here about Dent again? Told you last time- I don't know anything about the guy."

Batman didn't answer. He just kept walking.

A few cells down, he stopped again.

"Hugo Strange." He muttered. "You used to run this place, now your in it."

"Rub it in my face all you want, Batman." Strange growled "I'll be out of here one day."

"You got your chance when Harv- when Dent freed you. Now your going to tell me what you know."

"I know nothing about that man." Strange stared at the ceiling. "Other then the fact that he's the only reason I got caught…. Him and you."

"Even if your a psycho, your still one of the best psychiatrists on the planet." Batman growled. "You know something. About what's happened to him, what's going through his head- I know you've figured something out, Strange."

"Maybe. Maybe not." Strange shrugged.

"IM NOT HERE TO PLAY GODDAMN GAMES, STRANGE" Batman yelled, his voice booming throughout the building. His hands slammed into the cell bars, threatening to pull them off and beat the information out of Hugo.

"The goddamn Batman doesn't want to play goddamn games! Isn't that hilarious!" A familiar voice chuckles from the cell behind Batman.

"Joker." He growled "do me a favor and shut up."

"Did you hear that, Billy?" Joker pulled out a sock puppet, using it to mimick Batman. "He told me to shut up! How rude of him!"

"Do you see what I have to deal with all day?" Hugo let out a sigh of exasperation. "Always with the sock puppet! And then you come in here yelling about Dent all the time! These conditions are unlivable!"

"Shouldn't have done what ya did" Victor Zsaz voice boomed from a couple cells down.

Batman let out a small sigh, then reached in and grabbed the sock puppet off joker's hand, ripping it in half and throwing it on the ground.

"Oh, Bats! Why would you do that to poor Billy!" Joker chuckles "Play nice now!"

Batmans first balled in anger, when suddenly his earpiece started buzzing. He tapped it, and a voice message from Selina played.

"I figured out Falcone is meeting Dent at a bakery on 23rd. Be there the night Falcone gets freed. This could be our chance."

"Is that your little girlfriend, Batman?" The Joker began laughing maniacally. "I remember her!"

Batman ignored him, walking out of the building at a much faster pace then he entered. This could be it. This could finally be exactly what they needed.

"What's this, Alfred?" Bruce asked, as he ripped open an envelope Alfred had handed him as soon as he entered the Batcave.

"Tickets, sir." Alfred said, smiling lightly at Bruce. "Falcone won't be freed for another two months, so I figured you deserve a break while you wait. Don't you agree?"

"For once Alfred" Bruce smiled for the first time in almost a year. "I agree with you. Call Selina. Tell her we're going out together in a week."

Bruce placed the tickets on the table.

Two tickets for a show at 9:30 pm next Thursday.

A show at Haley's Circus.