This is for all of you who loved A Shadows Heart in my Dark Knight Previews. It is highly suggested you read that before you start this. If there is a point where I have to decide which story, the Joker fanfiction or this one, to continue with. I would like it to be your decision. Leave a comment stating which story you would like me to continue, if I end up having to choose. Please read the Previews first, you can find them in the stories tab of my bio, this way you new comers won't be confused :)

Chapter 1: Words

Darkness... It surrounds the world like an abyss, in her mind, her dreams, her heart, her very soul. It has no light and nothing around her has it... She stared in deep thought as the numbers on the elevator went up. She stood with a straight posture, a black coat hanging from her shoulders, buttoned up to her neck. Her hair was braided back, it had become rather cold outside in Gotham.

There was resounding ding and the elevator doors slid open, her heart skipped a beat when she saw who was on the other side. It was Bane. The man she was just about to go see about a particular issue with the courts. His hands gripped tightly onto the edges of his furry coat and he gave a curt nod. "Ren." It was a simple name, it wasn't her real name, in fact she never knew what her real name was because she had forgotten it completely. His voice always dragged it out when he said it, despite it being three letters, he knew how to pronounce each one with such a verbose beauty. He entered the elevator to stand beside her. "I know of the issue. I have Barsad who is supposed to meet us in the courts to address it."

"The people are already out of control." She replied, it had been what she was thinking. It was hard to believe that three weeks ago, they were beneath the city hiding in the sewers like pests.

"It is their city and they have little time left, what do you expect? The people of this cruel world will do anything in their last moments."

"They need order." Bane placed a hand on her shoulder and her eyes flashed up to meet his. She loved his eyes... She loved them so much. They reminded her of dirt and dirt reminded her of the earth and the earth was her favorite element.

"We provide them with this order. The order and justice that is rightfully deserved." He claimed, his grip not threatening, but exhilarating. These past few weeks had been a horror, between crashing the city's stock exchange to blowing up a football field and promoting the decay of a nuclear reactor.

It was horror and hard-work, but she liked it. She liked it because she was beside Bane, she knew he wouldn't ever think of her in that manner, but she certainly did. She was obsessed with the man and her obsession had only grown worse when Talia suggested that she may be by his side more often. She loved how his mask accented his words and how his muscles bulged when he would walk. She was purely in love with the man, meditation had not helped the least. It was growing worse, it was harder to hide... She would turn beat red in the cheeks or her breath would stagger, luckily he never noticed the district changes in her behavior.

Then of course the fact that they used the same floor of Wayne Tower for housing made things worse. She would take her clothes in the bathroom so that she wouldn't have to cross the scale of the apartment to get to her provided bedroom. The same could not be said for her masked infatuation, he would walk across the floor in nothing, but a towel, dripping in wetness remaining ignorant to her absent stares.

She had grown far to attached to Bane and she hated herself for it. She hated herself for betraying her friend every second she dreamed of what Bane could do to her if he had found out of her secret crush on him. She was glad with herself that Talia had not found out, her mostly stoic personality allowed little to no suspicion. She still worried, not that they could ever assume something without there being rumors or some distant push in that direction, but it was plausible.

She hated herself for being jealous. She was jealous that Talia had the right to do whatever she wanted to Bane, but merely gave him kisses on the forehead or cheek. While Ren would imagine kissing him everywhere and doing everything to him, his hands holding her and touching her ravenously. He was a man and every man had desires- No not desires, in Bane's case it would be dreams. Dreams because he would never feel Talia's touch or sate his ever growing lust, if he had much of lust at all. Lust was a powerful thing when it came to a man and how Bane had such great control over his body, Ren did not know. She definitely did not harbor this control, she couldn't even meditate or keep proper balance when thinking of Bane.

He was the embodiment of everything she wanted in a man and how she could never get him... How she could only look from afar. It killed her. The elevator opened and both Bane and Ren exited it side by side. Together they gave off a whirl of intimidation that struck fear into the souls that passed them everyday and this fear was powerful to them both, but the thing that made them equal was they knew how to use it. Bane and Ren were similar in ways; ways of emotion and strategy, they had very clear mind sets and knew exactly what their plan of action was. They were along the lines of constant usage of pure intelligence and brawn alone as their game play.

"So, you witnessed what had happened, give me my report." Bane began, there was usually something that needed their attention. They had started the fire, now all they needed to do was contain it until it was time to let it go.

"One of the accused, a low beat, good for nothing insurance agent, who stole money from his clients had gotten it in with a gang. When they found out he was being put up for trial, they came for him before he was pulled to execution and dragged him away to do their worst."

"Then what?" Bane held the door open to Wayne tower as Ren walked through and he came treading up alongside her.

"The gang was apprehended as was the insurance agent, but the people aren't happy about it. They want the insurance agent to pay with torture, not immediate death and they want the gang released."

"So we torture him and release the gang." She stopped walking and blankly watched as he continued down the sidewalk towards the large tank like vehicle that drove them to their destinations. Mercenaries surrounded Wayne tower, carrying their heavy machine guns and keeping civilians away from the area. Bane stopped and turned to face Ren who was now a few feet away.

"I do not agree with that." She said softly, it wasn't her defiance, it was her belief. Her and Bane did not see eye to eye at times, no matter how similar they were.

"So you do not want the people to be satisfied is what you are saying?" Bane waited for her answer, she stuttered slightly, drawn in by his masculine form, she eventually came up with an answer.

"If the people are satisfied..." She started to take steps towards him, till she was at a much closer distance, but still comfortable to her. "They will continue to think that they can do this, more court decisions will be intervened by the people and they will think that it will always be their choice. We will gradually lose their respect." Bane nodded his head, considering her words. He knew she had knowledge pertaining to the details of their mission, but never understanding them.

"Yes, but it is the people's city now. So we give them what they want and if they do not give us what we want in return..." He took in a deep raspy breath. "Then they shall suffer the consequences."

She was sitting there, relaxing, having a moment of silence in the many hours of sleeplessness and arduous work to prepare for their conquest on Gotham. Where she was sitting had everything to do with how much relaxation time she would receive. They were in Daggot's Penthouse, a nice place, but not Ren's type. She had told Bane when they arrived, that she could not wait to leave and he simply agreed.

Daggot continued to be arrogant and think that he was in charge of Bane, that because he paid Bane that gave him the ultimate rank. She closed her eyes and laid back into the leather couch, she had turned off the TV because it was growing annoying hearing of the Bat constantly. She was still in her coat, her hair sprawled out in all directions under the fine black leather.

"Ahh... I see someone is comfortable with the accommodations." His voice made her sick, how charming he thought he was as he stalked over to the couch with his martinet glass in one hand and his other hand shoved into the pocket of his dress pants. She wanted him to leave, but the moment she sat down her eyes flashed open and she was standing again. "Oh come on, sweetheart. Just relax a little." He leaned back into the couch, eyes trailing up and down her curvy body.

He took another sip of his drink, before placing it down. "You know, I've never seen a woman like you before. You really have it all together and you are so strong." She rolled her eyes, begging that Bane walk through the door and give her permission. Permission to kill the motherfucker. "Quiet to. He must like that. Are you two a thing or are you open for business?" He was referring to Bane and her, although she liked the idea this rumor was untrue.

"I'm not open for any business." She ground out as Daggot continually incensed her behavior.

"So you two are..." He stood up from the couch and walked over to stand directly behind her as she had turned her back to him in her annoyance. "I am interested, how that works. Does he pleasure you-"

"I never said that we were a thing." She growled out, he reached a hand up and fiddled with a strand of her hair.

"Oh darling, that's good. Have you ever been pleasured before?" She turned red with both anger and embarrassment, spinning around to grab the wrist of the hand he had used to touch her hair and flipping it so he was in a painful position, one move and she could easily break his arm. He was on his knees before her, hissing with pain at the irregular movement and grip of her hand that he could not break from. She was about to do it, she was about to kill him.

"Ren." She looked up at Bane in response, who stood at the door, leaning against the frame and waiting. "What did we talk about?"

"He was saying-"

"I know, what he was saying. I heard it." Bane's voice sounded different, instead of his low grumble, it came out as a growl. She wasn't afraid... But Daggot was. She released Daggot and stepped back, she looked down at him, her eyes leaving a warning in his wake. "We have more important things to tend to." She walked over to him. "You are good at hacking things. I need you to hack this." He lifted up a cellphone, it was just an average cellphone and easy enough a task to hack. She snatched it from him, but he quickly caught her hand in his gently and pulled her closer to his chest. She was wide eyed and taken aback by the sudden movement. "Do not listen..." He whispered so only she could hear. "Do not let flimsy minds distract your beautiful intelligence." She tensed, he released her hand and allowed her to pass him. Those words haunted her, they fed her obsession. He had called her beautiful...