[Batman: The Dark Knight] - SmILe & thE wOrLD SMiLEs bAcK
Title: SmILe & thE wOrLD SMiLEs bAcK
Author: Xanthos Samurai
Fandom: Batman: The Dark Knight
Pairing/Characters: The Joker/Harvey Dent
Rating: R
Length: 1,198 Words
Warnings: HUGE, MASSIVE FUCKING SPOILERS. Seriously people, I can not make this any more plain. DO NOT READ IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO GET SPOILED. Also: yaoi, language and AU-ish.
Disclaimer: I do not own nor claim to own anything but the arrangement of the words on the page.
Notes: ...I really can't summarize this without giving away spoilers, but I had to write this once I watched the movie. The Joker is a hard character to get into, but I'm pretty happy with how I did.
~
“You know, Harvey… It’s a strange situation I find myself in.”
The Joker’s eyes narrow and the creases of flesh vanish into the white paint. The tongue darts out from between yellow teeth - a mad dog licking its chops. Harvey can smell him from here. A vile mix of the acrid tang of gunpowder and the dull musk of his makeup and the sweet-sour reek of something rotting.
“I got into this for fun. You see, I don’t care what happens to most of the simple-minded little people in this city. None of ‘em.” The Joker walks his fingers up Harvey’s torso, tip-toeing them over the folds and creases of the hospital gown until the fabric gives way to the horrifying juxtoposition of smooth and ruined flesh. “Not the mob… not the police, not your wonderfully idealistic little voters. Blow ‘em all up, let ‘em live - it’s no skin off my nose. Or, in your case, skin off half your head.” He pats Harvey’s skinned cheek almost tenderly and Harvey attempts to jerk away, held down by the very restraints intended to keep him from harming himself.
“But now there’s a problem.”
Harvey can feel himself sweat. It trickles into the raw wounds of his bad side, stinging like fire all over again. His eyes dart between the Joker’s two, as if hoping to find sanity in one of them. For some reason, he can’t stop thinking about the Joker’s dress. He knows it’s irrational - of the myriad of things that he has to worry about right now, he’s fixating on the dress. But where had it come from? Had he killed some woman to get it? Had he found it somewhere and donned it on a whim, just to disturb him more? The red badge proclaiming “I Believe In Harvey Dent” mocks him, a final nail in the coffin of his former identity.
“The problem is… I got more than I bargained for.” The Joker continues, oblivious or just apathetic to Harvey’s discomfort. He rises and walks over to the head of the bed to stand right over Harvey, looking down at his disfigured half. “I found two people that I simply wouldn’t ever want to live without. Guess who they are. Guess guess guess.” He leans down close, his sliced-open mouth inches from the hole that used to be Harvey’s ear.
“Batman.”
Harvey snarls as best he can, unable to curl a lip or glare.
The Joker stands up again and claps his hands, clearly pleased.
“Oh, I knew you were a smart one, Harvey Dent. I knew it. And you didn’t disappoint. But let’s see if you can guess the other person. C’mon, take a wack at it. Let’s see if you can go two for two.” He sits down again and looks at Harvey with piercing eyes, licking his lips in anticipation.
“I don’t know. Who.”
“It’s you, Harvey.”
The way that the Joker says his name causes the blood to drain from half of Harvey’s face. His skin crawls and as he looks up into the clown’s eyes, a part of him has a strange and sudden flash of clarity. Before this moment, there was a chance. A chance to go back. A chance to remain Harvey Dent, the man who people - who things - like this monster had feared and hated. As long as as they had wanted him dead, wanted him destroyed, there was still a spark of light that Harvey Dent could have brought to Gotham.
But with those three simple words, the Joker annihilated all of it. There was no chance. The light had gone out. And something had divided deep within Harvey. He was still Harvey Dent in name and, yes, in face, but now he was also something else. He was something more. There was no going back.
“Why?” His voice is strangled, his breath rushing through his gaping mouth. “Why Batman? Why me?”
“Why? Why? Isn’t it obvious, Harvey?” He smiles wide, his eyes and yellow teeth glinting. “I need the Batman. He is… my foil. He’s my other half. The other side of my coin, you might say. We can’t live without each other. But you, on the other hand…” He pauses and leans forward, tilting his head slightly to the side. “You I just plain like.”
“Why?” Harvey’s rage rises in him and chokes him like bile. “Why me? Is this just part of some sick, fucked up little plan you have? Why are you doing this to me? To us? What do you want?!”
The Joker leans back in his chair so that two of the legs were off the ground, cackling and laughing. He leans forward again and the chair returns to all fours with a loud clang.
“Now Harvey, I think we’ve already established that nothing I do is part of any big plan. I think things are more fun when they don’t go according to plan, don’t you? I didn’t plan you coming out of this in your current predicament, but now that I’m here looking at you in all your glory and splendor, I can’t help but feel just a little bit happy. After all, who could be sad looking at a face that’s always half smiling, like yours?”
Harvey can only stare, too horrified, too revolted, too… tempted to do anything else. The Joker reaches for him and he jerks back, but the gloved hands are merely reaching for his restraints.
“We’re all friends in here, right? So maybe we can take these off.” He leans over Harvey for his wrists and catches him staring at his makeup.
“Wondering how I got my scars?”
“No.” Harvey draws back. “I don’t want to know.”
“Smart man.” The Joker seizes one of Harvey’s hands and forces him to press his fingertips against the knife-slash smile. “It’s a funny story, so we’ll save it for a rainy day. “ He licks Harvey’s fingers and pulls away again, releasing him from his restraints. “Maybe between the three of us, we can even put a smile on the Batman’s face. Now wouldn’t that be something?”
Harvey takes his coin in hand and watches as the Joker walks over to the door to the hospital room, the dress swaying as he walks.
“Where are you going?” Harvey rises slowly, watching.
The Joker pauses, licking his lips almost meditatively. Tasting something in the air.
“Oh, you know. Around. But if I were you, Harvey, I wouldn’t be worrying about little old me. I’d be figuring out the best way to make them pay. Because that’s what you’re all about, isn’t it? Fairness? Justice? You’ve been bringing people to justice your whole life, but how about some justice for Harvey Dent?” He tossed a gun to Harvey. “After all, they took everything you ever wanted. Fair’s fair, isn’t it?”
Harvey looks down at the gun, feeling weight and solidness of it. Yes… Fair was fair. When he looked up again, the Joker was gone, but he could hear footsteps walking down the hall.
“Oh. And one last thing.” The Joker’s voice echoes into the room. “Keep smiling, Harvey. Smile at the world and it’ll smile right back.”
~
Author: Xanthos Samurai
Fandom: Batman: The Dark Knight
Pairing/Characters: The Joker/Harvey Dent
Rating: R
Length: 1,198 Words
Warnings: HUGE, MASSIVE FUCKING SPOILERS. Seriously people, I can not make this any more plain. DO NOT READ IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO GET SPOILED. Also: yaoi, language and AU-ish.
Disclaimer: I do not own nor claim to own anything but the arrangement of the words on the page.
Notes: ...I really can't summarize this without giving away spoilers, but I had to write this once I watched the movie. The Joker is a hard character to get into, but I'm pretty happy with how I did.
~
“You know, Harvey… It’s a strange situation I find myself in.”
The Joker’s eyes narrow and the creases of flesh vanish into the white paint. The tongue darts out from between yellow teeth - a mad dog licking its chops. Harvey can smell him from here. A vile mix of the acrid tang of gunpowder and the dull musk of his makeup and the sweet-sour reek of something rotting.
“I got into this for fun. You see, I don’t care what happens to most of the simple-minded little people in this city. None of ‘em.” The Joker walks his fingers up Harvey’s torso, tip-toeing them over the folds and creases of the hospital gown until the fabric gives way to the horrifying juxtoposition of smooth and ruined flesh. “Not the mob… not the police, not your wonderfully idealistic little voters. Blow ‘em all up, let ‘em live - it’s no skin off my nose. Or, in your case, skin off half your head.” He pats Harvey’s skinned cheek almost tenderly and Harvey attempts to jerk away, held down by the very restraints intended to keep him from harming himself.
“But now there’s a problem.”
Harvey can feel himself sweat. It trickles into the raw wounds of his bad side, stinging like fire all over again. His eyes dart between the Joker’s two, as if hoping to find sanity in one of them. For some reason, he can’t stop thinking about the Joker’s dress. He knows it’s irrational - of the myriad of things that he has to worry about right now, he’s fixating on the dress. But where had it come from? Had he killed some woman to get it? Had he found it somewhere and donned it on a whim, just to disturb him more? The red badge proclaiming “I Believe In Harvey Dent” mocks him, a final nail in the coffin of his former identity.
“The problem is… I got more than I bargained for.” The Joker continues, oblivious or just apathetic to Harvey’s discomfort. He rises and walks over to the head of the bed to stand right over Harvey, looking down at his disfigured half. “I found two people that I simply wouldn’t ever want to live without. Guess who they are. Guess guess guess.” He leans down close, his sliced-open mouth inches from the hole that used to be Harvey’s ear.
“Batman.”
Harvey snarls as best he can, unable to curl a lip or glare.
The Joker stands up again and claps his hands, clearly pleased.
“Oh, I knew you were a smart one, Harvey Dent. I knew it. And you didn’t disappoint. But let’s see if you can guess the other person. C’mon, take a wack at it. Let’s see if you can go two for two.” He sits down again and looks at Harvey with piercing eyes, licking his lips in anticipation.
“I don’t know. Who.”
“It’s you, Harvey.”
The way that the Joker says his name causes the blood to drain from half of Harvey’s face. His skin crawls and as he looks up into the clown’s eyes, a part of him has a strange and sudden flash of clarity. Before this moment, there was a chance. A chance to go back. A chance to remain Harvey Dent, the man who people - who things - like this monster had feared and hated. As long as as they had wanted him dead, wanted him destroyed, there was still a spark of light that Harvey Dent could have brought to Gotham.
But with those three simple words, the Joker annihilated all of it. There was no chance. The light had gone out. And something had divided deep within Harvey. He was still Harvey Dent in name and, yes, in face, but now he was also something else. He was something more. There was no going back.
“Why?” His voice is strangled, his breath rushing through his gaping mouth. “Why Batman? Why me?”
“Why? Why? Isn’t it obvious, Harvey?” He smiles wide, his eyes and yellow teeth glinting. “I need the Batman. He is… my foil. He’s my other half. The other side of my coin, you might say. We can’t live without each other. But you, on the other hand…” He pauses and leans forward, tilting his head slightly to the side. “You I just plain like.”
“Why?” Harvey’s rage rises in him and chokes him like bile. “Why me? Is this just part of some sick, fucked up little plan you have? Why are you doing this to me? To us? What do you want?!”
The Joker leans back in his chair so that two of the legs were off the ground, cackling and laughing. He leans forward again and the chair returns to all fours with a loud clang.
“Now Harvey, I think we’ve already established that nothing I do is part of any big plan. I think things are more fun when they don’t go according to plan, don’t you? I didn’t plan you coming out of this in your current predicament, but now that I’m here looking at you in all your glory and splendor, I can’t help but feel just a little bit happy. After all, who could be sad looking at a face that’s always half smiling, like yours?”
Harvey can only stare, too horrified, too revolted, too… tempted to do anything else. The Joker reaches for him and he jerks back, but the gloved hands are merely reaching for his restraints.
“We’re all friends in here, right? So maybe we can take these off.” He leans over Harvey for his wrists and catches him staring at his makeup.
“Wondering how I got my scars?”
“No.” Harvey draws back. “I don’t want to know.”
“Smart man.” The Joker seizes one of Harvey’s hands and forces him to press his fingertips against the knife-slash smile. “It’s a funny story, so we’ll save it for a rainy day. “ He licks Harvey’s fingers and pulls away again, releasing him from his restraints. “Maybe between the three of us, we can even put a smile on the Batman’s face. Now wouldn’t that be something?”
Harvey takes his coin in hand and watches as the Joker walks over to the door to the hospital room, the dress swaying as he walks.
“Where are you going?” Harvey rises slowly, watching.
The Joker pauses, licking his lips almost meditatively. Tasting something in the air.
“Oh, you know. Around. But if I were you, Harvey, I wouldn’t be worrying about little old me. I’d be figuring out the best way to make them pay. Because that’s what you’re all about, isn’t it? Fairness? Justice? You’ve been bringing people to justice your whole life, but how about some justice for Harvey Dent?” He tossed a gun to Harvey. “After all, they took everything you ever wanted. Fair’s fair, isn’t it?”
Harvey looks down at the gun, feeling weight and solidness of it. Yes… Fair was fair. When he looked up again, the Joker was gone, but he could hear footsteps walking down the hall.
“Oh. And one last thing.” The Joker’s voice echoes into the room. “Keep smiling, Harvey. Smile at the world and it’ll smile right back.”
~