Disclaimer: I do not own Batman.

"Give it up, my child. This is the end." Jonathan sneered. "You and I both know it."

"You won't do it. You don't have it in you." Vera retorted quickly.

She knew it was a lie. Killing her would be nothing to him, absolutely nothing. There was nothing he wouldn[t do. And she wouldn't put murder past him. Granted, this was his own daughter. But that would hardly stop him.

"I would. And I will. But not yet. It has to be slow." Jonathan said, his cold eyes turning full force on her.

"You know, I loved you. And I never understood why you couldn't love me." she said.

"You never did anything to ear my love. And you didn't deserve it."

"You never earned my love either, but I still gave it to you, no matter how unwilling you were to have it. I thought that maybe, there was hope."

"Hope for what? Hope doesn't exist. It's an illusion."

"Hope that you would love me back."

There was an awkward pause. She could see the gears turning in Jonathan's head, trying to comprehend what his daughter had said. She hoped it would have an effect on him. If she aid the right things, maybe he would let her live.

"You know what?" she questioned. "I still love you."

Jonathan's face remained emotionless, there was nothing there. No reaction, no change in posture, facial expression. It was like he was frozen. That moment was frozen. Neither of them could move and neither knew what to say.

Then, he lunged,

The knife point was aimed directly at her head, ready to slash and cut. The blood on the tip was crystal clear as Vera moved out of the way. It was like time had slowed down for a moment. And thank God it did or she would be dead.

Vera got up and ran throughout the house. Jonathan pursued her, on her tail. They ran through a lot of different rooms. Jonathan never got quite close enough to catch her, but if he had good enough aim, he would have thrown the knife straight into her back.

They ran through the kitchen. Vera threw a chair behind her, making Jonathan trip over it. Delaying him and giving her a little more time to run.

She ran into the front hallway and screamed at the sight that awaited her. There was Alfred, blood soaking through his clothes. There was a pool of it all around him. She could see that his throat was cut.

At that point, Jonathan had run into the room, but kept his distance. Neither moved, neither spoke, neither breathed. All was still.

"I'm done running from you." Vera growled, her voice like an animal.

All this time she had been satisfied with running from him. She could get away and rest up until he found her again and then she'd run until he lost her again. It was a continuous cycle, and Vera had always been content with it.

But not anymore. This had taken it too far Killing a friend, and practical family member. Nothing could ever make up fir that.

She would stand up and she would fight him. For Alfred. For herself. And for anyone else that he had hurt. This was quite over the line.

Then it was her that lunged at him. He swung the knife at her but she caught it in her hand, screaming out in pain as the blood poured out.

"Finally ready to fight, my dear?" he teased.

"Hell yeah I am." she said darkly.

It was like a dance, sparring partners. It seemed choreographed, every move perfectly synchronized by the others movements. It was like stage fighting, but this was for real. This was real. It was a matter of life and death.

If you watched them, it would be in awe at the beautifully synched movements of father and daughter. It didn't seem dangerous, but it was. There was nothing more dangerous.

Jonathan threw Vera to the floor. Vera grabbed his ankle, dragging him back down with her. He fell to the ground with a sickening thump. Vera smiled, satisfied with the groan that escaped his lips at the contact.

She'd lost focus for a split second. The one thing that lead to her downfall. For a split second, she'd lost focus. And Jonathan had taken advantage of it.

He got her. He finally got her.

He took the knife and sliced it straight through her, impaling her in the chest.

Vera screamed, the most pain she'd felt in her entire life. It was a searing pain, unlike any she'd felt before. There was nothing like it.

It's a fire raging in her chest, deeper than words can describe. She coughed, blood soaking the floor and her clothes. It hurt. Her bones rattled, bits and pieces breaking off. The blade was straight through her ribs.

Jonathan smiled. It was impossible to live through that. It was fatal and no one would be around in time to save her.

He rolled over on his side to get up. Vera watched him incredulously. He just stabbed his own daughter in the back and was going to simply walk away, just leave her there to die right there in her own house.

Vera reached behind her back her back to grab the hilt of the knife. She yanked hard and ripped the blade from her body. A scream tore from her throat but Jonathan just stayed where he was and never even looked her way.

She griped the knife tightly in her hand, ready to get revenge on her father. She wasn't dead yet, but she would be soon. The blood was steadily pouring from her wound. She would bleed out soon, her veins would run dry, and she would finally be dead.

It's too late to save myself, but it doesn;;t mean I can;t save everybody else. Vera thought.

Then, with a moan of pain, she lunged, plunging the blade into Jonathan's back, the same place he had gotten her.

He cried out, in pain and surprise. It was hard to comprehend but he knew in that split second, he was destined to die, right beside his daughter. He was going to suffer the same fate as her.

And in a flash, the pain, the surprise was gone. His chest swelled with pride. She had finally done it. She had proven to him that she was extraordinary, worthy of his love. She had done something that only he had the guts to do.

She could see it, the way his face changed, she could see the pride in his eyes. He fell over onto his back and she crawled over to lay her head on his chest.

"Don't you love me?" she asked.

He nodded, his breathing labored. "Yes, I love you, Vera."

"I love you, too, Daddy."

They lay there together, bleeding and dying together, finally seeing eye to eye as father and daughter in their dying moments. No one else mattered at that moment. It was just them.

Vera was the first to go. She faded away slowly, her eyes losing focus. Her breathing quickened, then began to slow. They both knew that it was her time. She was going to leave this life, finally at peace.

She gasped in her last breath and Jonathan watched in wonder. She coughed and sputtered violently, blood spewing everywhere. Then she went deadly still and was gone.

Vera Crane was no more, gone from life as death stole her soul. She was gone, absolutely gone.

Jonathan was surprised that he felt a wave of sadness. A single tear rolled down his face. His breathing was calm, he felt his heartbeat began to slow.

Then, Jonathan Crane was no more.

A/N: The epic conclusion of Don't You Love Me? I'm pretty satisfied with it. It feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. In a good way. I'll miss this story, but it will be back as a sequel, and a prequel, so you're not rid of it yet.

Thank you for staying on this journey with me. It has been wonderful to write this story and thankful to my faithful reviewers. They have all put a smile on my face.

It's not a goodbye, merely a see you later. Okay, I'm signing out. :) (If you know where that last part is from, you get brownie points)

-Harley

Shoutouts:

Rorschach In Blue Jeans (I'm pretty sure I forgot to put you in in one of the past chapters. Sorry about that. :P)

ZenyZootSuit

xxyangxx2006

Jordan Lynn 7