Evening fell upon Gotham. Though the city had been bombed, beaten, and broken, it remained ever strong, ever resilient. The same could be said for its residents - enjoying, for the first time in years, a quiet peace. One by one, gangs had fallen silent, masked villains and supervillains had been brought to heel by the very night in which they'd called home.

Though no one revelled in this calm more than the Dark Knight himself.

The nights became less active, all for the better - families stayed safe, belongings stayed where they should, and a person could walk down the streets without fear of being preyed upon. Though Gotham kept it's Knight, the Bat Family was broken, by choice, leaving the battered Robins & Batfolk to their own lives. So still, Batman stayed behind. Keeping his eye on things. Keeping his hand on the communicator, should anyone call.

As evening fell upon Gotham, Bruce sighed, relieved. Again he poured over the details of the invitation he'd been given, weeks prior;

To friends and family of the late Oswald Cobblepot,

Please, give us the honour of your presence on the 6th of December at Gotham City Hall, where we shall unveil father Oswald's last great gift to this city.

Food, drink, and cheer aplenty will await you all 6PM.

Ta-ta,

~Penny Cobblepot~

Bruce had indeed heard of Oswald's passing before - caused by a vicious lung cancer that could've only been exacerbated by the persistent smoke and mist of the Iceberg Lounge. As well he'd heard of Penny - never seen the woman, as she'd been raised and educated outside Gotham for the majority of her life.

This didn't strike him as a trap, but it made him wonder - could Penny have been groomed to run the family business? To take over Oswald's nom de guerre & share of Gotham's underbelly?

James Gordon, now retired, had received the same invite, along with a good chunk of the Gothamite social elite. If it were a trap, it was perfectly timed; for if tensions weren't as low as they were, he wouldn't have stepped foot into City Hall as a civilian. With cautious fingers pouring over the gold & silver lining of the hand-pressed paper, he took in the scent, chuckling.

"Something smells fishy," He joked, eliciting a quiet chuckle from his first date, Zatanna Zatara. Sensing the incoming 'thwack' to the back of his head, Zatanna suppressed a further giggle as Bruce's second date scolded him.

"For God's sake, the man is dead Bruce! If we're going to be an hour late, then the very least you can do is act solemn!" Jaina Hudson hissed, straightening her dark-blue salwar kameez. Falling in step, farewelling Alfred, Bruce wiped the smile from his face, taking either lady's arm in his.

"You're right, Jaina. My apologies," he purred, tracing a touch over her digits. She fought a blush, and shook her head, unable to beat down her own grin.

"I don't know, John, I feel the least you could do would be to treat us to a good night. That means no flirting whilst you have two lovely women by your side-" Zatanna began.

"No throwing insults to Oswald whilst his daughter hosts us," Jaina added, sighing wearily.

"-And no shop talk unless prompted. Penny has just lost her dad. As scummy as he was, no one in their right mind would want to be reminded of their parent's worst dealings at this point," the magician finished, conjuring a handkerchief to wipe an errant tear from her eye.

Bruce clenched at that thought, remaining quiet for a moment. Squeezing Zatanna's hand, he nodded to them both, taking a deep breath. Two men, short and round of stature, stood at the doors of the hall, dressed in tuxedos. After checking their invites, Bruce, Jaina & Zatanna were let into the City Hall, where the stares of their peers and enemies awaited.

They were ushered quickly to seating, and a silence fell over the gathered crowd. Casually darting his eyes across the room, Bruce noted Jim's whereabouts, as well as a few members of errant crime families. A lull of soft jazz whisked throughout the hall as a band played their tunes, opening for their orator.

She stood taller than her father, by a foot or so, and had oily black hair, cascading down to the small of her back. Her nose, whilst crooked, lacked the sharp point and warts that Bruce had become accustomed to. From a cursory glance, couldn't have been older than 30. By all accounts, Penny Cobblepot was a lovely looking woman, who carried herself with confidence on the stage.

She wore a solid black dress, no white highlights, perhaps still in mourning.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, it does truly warm my heart to see you all here. Though I've never met a soul in this room, I can pick out the faces of friends my father would go on about. It warms my heart to see he had good taste in company, those covered in renown," She spoke, a mild yet distinct Southern twang to her deep voice. In particular, she stared at Bruce, smiling, before continuing.

"It was my father's dream to see this city grow and prosper - to fight, to keep life strong and hearts happy, even in his own dingy little bar," She joked, a warm, polite chuckle of the crowd resounding as her response.

'To choke and wrestle control of Gotham for his own whims, more accurately,' Bruce bit internally, pouring as much humour into his laugh as he could.

"And he fought valiantly, my father did - keeping his lounge running, keeping his pet penguins happy and healthy, even deep in a ghetto. My father provided entertainment to his neighbourhood like no other father had done before. He cared for all life in Gotham, be it human or animal," Penny continued, wiping a tear from her eye as a smile tugged at the corners of her lips.

With supernatural poise, Zatanna leaned, whispering into Bruce's ear;

"If by 'caring' she means 'slicing tendons with cane-swords', then sure," she chuckled, appearing to the rest of the crowd as if she'd never moved at all. Bruce suppressed a chortle, a slight twitch of his cheeks showing more than enough mirth for the magician.

To the crowd's surprise, an emperor penguin waddled forth, opposite Penny on stage.

"So, it is with great honour that I announce the conversion of the Iceberg Lounge to the Oswald Cobblepot Animal Sanctuary - where a city can learn to live."

Thunderous applause and muted laughter awaited Miss Cobblepot, as she presented a gilded plaque to the penguin, farewelling it back off stage. Bruce made a point to clap louder above the crowd, in masked sycophantic fashion.

Food was served to the crowd as Penny made the rounds of the tables, talking tight with old friends, family, and the social elite. She even stopped a spell by James Gordon's table, reminiscing that Harlow Dent couldn't be there to meet her that night. As Bruce, Jaina, and Zatanna made quiet jokes amongst themselves, Penny made her presence known, riding off the humour of her last conversation.

"Ah!" she announced, eyes narrowing, "Jaina, Bruce, I presume?"

"Miss Cobblepot, a pleasure to meet you," Bruce greeted, placing a courteous kiss on her hand.

"I see our reputation precedes us, and Zatanna and I share Bruce's pleasure, Penelope," Jaina introduced the magician, standing to greet their host properly.

"Truly, the pleasure is mine, folks. Father had quite some stories to tell about you both, and of course, who hasn't heard of the Mistress of Magic!" Penny jostled, fanning herself as a short blush kissed Zatanna's cheeks.

"Ahem, well, if you'd like an autograph," Zatanna spoke, spelling her name in sparks, flying from her fingertips, "I'm happy to please a fan."

Another small applause erupted from around their table, Penny giggling at the display.

"There we go, our thunder - stolen again Bruce," Jaina joked, sighing wistfully. He snickered, standing as well, and placed a gentle hand on Penny's shoulder, cracking a soft smile.

"Though I can't match Zanna's theatrics, I can say what an honour it was to know your father. We may have had our differences, and we may have butted heads over the years, but Oswald's determination and brains were truly something to admire," Bruce assured her, truly believing his calculated statement. The Penguin was tough to take down. Stubborn as hell. And he truly worked his best when he was controlling a show - not fighting with his goons.

Penny couldn't help but smile back at Bruce, red dusting her cheeks.

"D'aw, I'm sure father would've loved to hear you say that, Mister Wayne. And whatever conflict you may have had with him… It'll end with me," she chuckled, holding her hands up in faux-defence.

"By the way, Penelope, I'd be more than happy to provide my expertise regarding funding for the Sanctuary. Really, anything I can to honour the man who kept Gotham living," Jaina assured the younger woman, twisting her words to get a reaction out of Bruce. Penny gasped, the red on her cheeks darkening, and took Jaina's hands in her own.

"I… D'aw, I really do appreciate that, Miss Hudson. A-And I'm sorry to have to leave you three, but I've got a whole room to talk to-"

"No need to apologise, you're the star for the evening, Penny! We'll talk again if we can, and if not - Bruce and Jaina will keep in touch, I'm sure," Zatanna assured. Bruce and Jaina nodded, echoing the magician's farewell.

"Ah, of course. Thank you all, and ta-ta, folks!"

Once the three were sure Oswald's daughter was out of earshot, they glared at one another.

"I thought I said no shop-talk, Jaina," Zatanna bit, arms crossed over her chest.

"It was purely a facade, Zatanna. You don't hear me raising a stink over Bruce undressing Penny with his eyes!" Jaina bit back in defence.

"Only to get back at you for "the man who kept Gotham living" comment, Jaina. Purely strategical, otherwise," Bruce chuckled, with a quiet shake of his head.

"You're not getting off the hook that easily Bruce. You tower over her - that must've felt choking for that poor girl," Zatanna chided him, narrowing her gaze. Bruce met the magician's steely look, making sure to lower his voice.

"We needed to get a read on her. I planted a microchip on the strap of her dress, which should allow us to keep track of her location, and listen in on any further conversations," he spoke, the voice of the Batman slipping through slightly as he tuned a signal on his wristwatch.

"I've just tuned in our communicators to the chip's signal."

"So far, she seems like a regular woman. You can barely even tell she's Oswald's daughter," Jaina mused, swallowing a cautious lump in her throat.

"Then again, Oswald rarely squawked in public. We can't rule her out just yet," Zatanna joked.

The drinks and food poured in still as Penny ended her rounds, ducking to the kitchens of the city hall. Bruce, Jaina and Zatanna filtered out the inane chatter of the Penguin's old business partners and family friends, talking amidst themselves, until a distinct sound played over their communicators.

"Sounds like… Levers, pulleys, that metal groaning… An elevator?" Jaina noted, quickly sobering herself.

"Could be used by loaders and the chefs, gotta have easy access to their store room and freezers, after all," the magician reasoned, dancing a dime between her fingers.

"It wouldn't go this deep," Bruce added, following Zatanna's train of thought, "and more than likely, Penelope would have no reason to drop down there by herself… It's stopped."

Faint footsteps echoed into the microchip's microphone, bouncing off the walls of an ancient tunnel system, beneath the heart of Gotham. Penny Cobblepot straightened her dress, hand clutched around her phone. The cold, damp vice of the tunnels gripped her mind, sparking the hairs on the back of her neck - ready to alert her personal guard if needed.

A taunting cackle bounced off the walls of a maintenance room, guiding Penny to her scheduled meeting. Tip-toeing into the dimly lit, damp and dank dwelling, Penny had to suppress a violent gag, shielding her mouth and nose. It was there he met face to face with a painted dame, wearing black and red leather - who stood guard of her lover, her chaotic queen.

"Hiya toots - took you long enough!" Harley teased, fingers wrapped around a wired lightswitch.

"My apologies, I got caught up in… Keeping up. I take it you're Harley Quinn?" Penny asked, standing ramrod straight to masquerade her rising fear.

"Cor-rect, Penguinie! You got all my letters, yeah?"

"Of course. And behind you - Miss White?" Penny motioned to the long legs poking from the darkness - sat in a rusted chair. A choked giggle sputtered from the shrowd, and the legs receded.

"Jacqueline White, Jacqui Napier, Josephine Kerr - all good monikers, if not for the lack of finesse, my dear Penelope," she spoke, her breath misting as she parted a loose, green lock out of her eyes.

"I knew your daddy well, and it pains me knowing I'll never see his nose arrive 5 minutes before him again! I mean sure, love may have moved a mountain or two - but it was a common hate your father and I shared, Miss Cobblepot," and with that, Harley flicked the switch, revealing to Penny a clown - a jester princess of pain and pageantry.

The white body-paint did well to mask the woman's features, and the creepy smile and psycho green hair didn't settle Penny, either. The woman before her presented in such a way that masked a hidden, clouded cunning, and a daring, bloody strength.

"He called me The Joker. I called him fat. It was a... Thing we had," she tittered, cracking a toothy grin at the scared girl. The air was thick with the scent of paint and blood, and Penny fought every animal instinct in her body that told her to run. No, rather, she beat the instinct down, focussing on her unfinished business.

"I've heard a lot about you. And… I saw what you wrote, Miss White."

"Then you'll know those smokes didn't take out 'Ole Ozzy. No mere cancer stick could've wacked your papa, Penny - someone was there, at every step of his death, ensuring his tubby thread of life was cut-"

"Hkkkk-" Harley motioned, dragging her thumb across her neck, letting her head fall limp.

"-Short," the Joker drawled, rising from her chair. She paced around the claustrophobic room, as if to further exert her errant aura of terror - snickering at Penny's ever shiver or twitch.

"Someone tall, dark, and broody," Harley added.

"The Batman," Penny and the Joker answered, the harsh whisper of Penny's lips contrasting with the Joker's husky breath.

"The answer to the question no one asked - and the punchline to the most grim, repetitive, and edgy joke there was - the Big Bad, Belligerent Batman!"

"You said he poisoned my father. Slipped things into his meals without looking - filtered gasses into his house and the Lounge... How the hell didn't that show up in 3 months of hospital trials, Miss White?" demanded the daughter, daring to delve deeper into the Joker's carefully-woven plot.

"It's still as I said in those letters. You haven't met him personally, so let me clear this right up for you - Bats is loaded - filthy rich and full of ways to spend it. I've seen him develop serums, anti-serums, poisons, antidotes, and Bat-mantidotes! There isn't a single chemical on God's green earth that I haven't pumped in his veins, or thrown in his eyes…" the Joker answered animatedly, darting back and forth around the Penguin's daughter.

"Point is, Penguinie - if there were a man with the resources, know-how, and motive to kill ya pops, then it could only be one!" Harley continued, holding up a single finger in the woman's face.

Still, Penny stood, resolute.

"B-but I've seen the papers, h-heard the stories… Batman doesn't kill…"

And quick the Joker was, improvising a little white lie;

"A rule he follows, strict as a boy-scout. But even our boring Bats is known to bend his rules from time to time, Penpen. Known to rationalise a death or two for the greater good of Gotham..."

Seeing the swirling of hatred, agony, and fear in Penelope's eyes, the Joker let her grin falter, let her eyes wander…

"Trust me. Bats and I are more alike than you think. I've seen how he works. Without his code, he'd be a criminal, nothing but a night-terror," she accentuated, coming face-to-face with Penny.

"He's the bastard that done did ya old man in, Penguinie. And we've got the means to get back at him, right here," Harley motioned, pointing to a worn and rusted canister, emblazoned with a red jack-o-lantern.

"You… You'd mentioned this as well; Fear Toxin?"

"Scarecrow's finest. I had her muddy up the formula for me, in exchange for a few… Guinea pigs," the Joker joked, cutting her laugh short as Harley's boot grazed the can, nearly tipping it over. Harley's queen shot her a filthy look, before smiling back at Penny.

"Will it-"

"Kill him? No! No, this crooked concoction was made to tear down the legend of the Batman. To break every moral code in his bonked brain, to shatter every semblance of self-important superiority he thinks he has over the hardworking criminal," she explained.

Penny dared not to interrupt, nor to inquire on the exact chemical compounds. Second thoughts were biting at the back of her mind - begging her to hurry this damned deal up.

"It'll pump Bats with a mix of the good stuff - serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin, endorphins, as well as a healthy heaping of adrenaline. Plus whatever Scarecrow's flavour of the month is! We're hoping it'll-"

With a quick stomp of her leather boots, the Joker silenced Harley - grinning still at the Penguin's daughter.

"If you want Bats to suffer - to make him really pay for every bloody cough, every painful, sleepless night your poor old daddy got, then…" the Joker reached a hand out for Penny to shake, eyes alight with glorious, skewed vengeance.

"Play along."

With nothing more than a shuffle of hands and clothing, the communicators fell quiet. Footsteps echoed back as Penny retreated up the elevator, back to the gathered socialites and family friends. Bruce, Jaina and Zatanna shared a look, the former thief in particular running through scenarios in her mind.

"I get an inkling that she's going to crash this event. Hold Penelope hostage on stage, demand to see the Batman," Jaina thought aloud, voice barely above a murmur. Bruce nodded to her, sighing, turning his gaze to Zatanna.

"Seems likely. Zanna, are you still able to cloak me, if needed?" He asked.

"Pfft, piece of cake, Bruce. Though I refuse to dress you," Zatanna giggled, fingers at the ready for a quick snap of magic. Mirth sapped from his mind, Bruce nodded to her, planning his contingencies.

"No need. A drop from the Batwing, duck to a closet, and I'll be back out in seconds," he appraised the two of them, "will you both be alright to evacuate the others?"

"You're the one she wants. She'll only resort to violence if you test her patience," Jaina advised.

"Good point. Then as soon as you see green, Bruce, give me the signal."

It took too long for Penny to reach the surface again. As she exited the kitchen, Bruce could see the jitter in her steps, past the masquerade of a happy host, as she fumbled about with speech cards. The crowd fell silent as she nearly tripped up the stairs to her podium, taking deep breaths to calm herself.

"Dear friends, we're now about to move on to tonight's entertainment, featuring the m-musings of a little jazz band my father loved, the Swoonin'-"

Zatanna could practically sense the grin on the Joker's face as her grand-entrance bomb detonated, flinging glass and wood against the crowd, ripping a good chunk of the hall. Jaina prepared to split herself as a magical cloak fell over them, Bruce sprinting away from the scene as debris settled around them all.

Dressed in her best, a purple and white tuxedo, Joker skipped to the stage with a cane in hand, trilling and scatting as her goons followed suit - a meagre team of 5, including Harley. She felt it a far cry from her heyday as a cult leader to thousands, but did her best with the resources at hand. The clown wrapped her arm tightly around Penny's neck, and had her minions point their rifles at the crowd, to suppress any sort of uprising.

"Now-now," she tutted, ignoring Penny's weak attempts at escape, "we all know this song and dance. I'm a bit short on cash these days, and I'm in need of… A loan. So, throw your bits and baubles to the stage, and my lovely assistant Harley here will collect, in good spirit."

A quiet murmur in the crowd was shut down by a burst of bullets being fired into the ceiling, silencing any doubt. Necklaces, watches and wallets were thrown to Joker's feet, as Harley skipped up and down the stage, swinging her hammer haphazardly.

"Please, ladies and gents - take all the time you need, I'll be here all night! Though, if you'd like to keep the little Miss Cobblepot's head intact, I'd suggest coughing up your coffers now!" She enunciated, whipping out a small revolver, clicking it against the young woman's head.

A diamond-studded ring was tossed to the podium - and from it's arc to it's descent, a shadow danced across their stage - the limelight stolen again. The agents of the clown princess were whisked away by unbreakable tethers, hung upside-down from the ceiling, as Harley did her best to act surprised.

"Oh no Missus J - c-could it be the, the-"

He gave them no time to react - no time to conceive a line for their wicked play. Harley was taken down in the space of two seconds, Batman having dodged a potshot taken by the Joker, which scored a hole through his cape. He whipped around the podium as Joker separated herself from Penny, throwing her to the ground, and disabled her just as easily.

Too easily.

In the space of a second, he'd took note of any pains or pricks to his body, but found none. He ensured he'd made no contact with the toxin; airborne or otherwise, and saw no syringes on either of the jester duo. Batman darted a gaze back to the crowd, noticing evacuation already taking place, with Jim and Zatanna at the helm.

"Oh, egads - defeated again by Gotham's dark prince! Victory, snatched out of my wicked, wicked hands!" The Joker wailed, groaning and moaning all the while, as she crawled away from the cape-clad hero. He stalked over to her, prying her hands apart, finding her suit jacket lined with fall-protected injections of fear toxin.

"End of the line, Joker," he growled, rearing a fist back to knock out the jester, before he was knocked onto his back by a flying knee. Dazed, he launched back up to a standing position, crouching low - sneering at his attacker.

"White Rabbit."

She grinned, baring her pearly whites at the outnumbered bat. He felt the gentle creak in the floor as Harley picked herself back up, and found himself encircled - the Joker looking no worse for wear as she leapt back to her feet, holding back a snigger. Batman threw a smoke bomb at his feet, cloaking his escape to the audience's seats, whisking Penny away as well. She fought and fought, bashing against his armour, but to no avail, feeling a cold glove wrap around her mouth to silence her.

"Masquerading as a table-cloth, Bats? Surely you could do better than that! Wee Rabbit - hit him with a spark of the good stuff!"

In an instant, his nerves were alight with fire - electricity sparking through every vein, every nerve, making him glow, stand out from the darkness he encased himself in. He threw Penny away the instant before the sparks flew, and attempted to rip off a small device on his suit - the source of the electrical attack.

He tried to crane his neck back to where Jim and Zatanna had been, and found only Jaina, bound and gagged by her alter ego, no doubt. He remained, grunting and biting out breaths as the sparks darted across his body, penetrating even through the deepest insulation of his armour. He roared with pain as the Joker, Harley, and the White Rabbit encircled him once more, skulking like lions around prey.

"Good efforts, bat-brain, but not quite what we were looking for! You pissed off one too many members of the Gallery this time!" Harley taunted, delivering a swift kick to the man's ribs, cackling.

"Here-here. Try as you might, Bats, you can't escape this little concoction - you'll be up to your eyes 'ole Scarecrow's best brew until Christmas time!"

Joker let the Rabbit linger on the electrocution for a bit longer before commanding her to stop, the hero finally lying limp on the ground. He managed to get a glimpse of the horrified progeny of the Penguin herself, staring on in horror at what she'd wrought upon Gotham. Tossing syringes between them, they drove the needles past the armour; through cracks and weakpoints, joints and crannies.

"This'll teach you, Bats - every rehabilitative effort you've gone through for Gotham will all be for naught - each tingle of fear you've nailed into the hearts of me and my crew shall be erased, and soon you'll be known as nothing more than a lunatic, raving and raping the streets in his batsuit!"

"Wh-what!? Raping!?" Penny sputtered.

The clown laughed, squeezing pure, potent toxin directly into the fried veins of her nemesis.

"Oh yeah, that's the best part, and oh - thanks for reminding me!"

She leapt back, with Harley in tow, advising White Rabbit to do the same. It may have been 20, 30 syringes in total they pressed into his body - pumping him full of a nightmarish cocktail of brain-addling drugs. The Joker hollered as Batman began to rise, hands shaking as he gingerly removed the needles from his back.

"Penguinie - I'd suggest hightailing outta here right now!" Harley roared.

Torn, truly torn, Penny fumbled about before noticing an awful, dark glint to the Batman's eyes. An evolutionary sense of dread kicked into her, and her body commanded a safe sprint away from the hungry, hungry foe - to retreat without looking back. She bolted past Zatanna, who was now hovering back to the hall, catching sight of what had just transpired.

The magician quickly undid Jaina's bindings, noticing the escaping trio, soon after rushing for Bruce.

"Bonsoir, mes amis! I think you'll enjoy the encore more than tonight's main event!"

"Bruce? Damn it, Bruce? Are you okay? Good god, what have they done to you - do you need me to contact Alfred!?" She yelled, delicately plucking the rest of the needles from the hero's back, ignoring the building heat surrounding him.

He snatched her hand as she dropped the final needle, and met her gaze with fear, fury, and fire.

"I need you to run," he uttered.