Brucie Boy part 2

Brucie Boy
Part Two
Bruce lifted his head drowsily as a loud beeping issued from his nightstand. Slowly he sat up and reached for the device. The screen on the bat wave flashed a message. It was a police report.
Arkham Asylum- Two patients escaped- Penguin and Joker on the loose- extremely dangerous- thought to be armed.
He narrowed his eyes. The two most dangerous criminals in Gotham and Arkham let them escape… again…
He sighed and rubbed his eyes as he walked downstairs towards the living room. Suddenly he heard hushed footsteps coming from the kitchen.
He grabbed a bat and turned the corner into the small hallway separating the stairs from the kitchen. He flattened himself against the wall and eyed the figure standing near the sink as he slowly walked over and turned on the lights. The figures head bounced up in alarm as he took in the man standing before him.
Alfred stood in front of the sink, a glass of water in his hand.
Bruce gave a sigh of relief as he lowered the bat and crossed the room to confront Alfred.
The man simply stood there with his back to Bruce. This puzzled him a bit.
"Alfred?"
Bruce laid a hand on the old man's shoulder. Alfred still made no move to turn around or even flinch under his touch.
Bruce slowly spun Alfred around, afraid of what he might find.
Alfred's face had been contorted into a large unmistakable grin. His skin now pallid, giving him a crazed look about him.
Bruce backed up against the wall still staring at his now stiff and smiling friend.
"He does look better with a smile on his face don't you think Brucie?" Joker laughed, hanging from the chandelier by his feet as he now faced Bruce, their faces merely inches apart from one other.
Joker's red eyes gleamed with amusement as Bruce frowned at him.
"Careful, you'll get wrinkles." Joker laughed again causing Bruce to give him an irritated grimace.
Joker frowned at this and flipped back down to the floor to look at Bruce more clearly.
"You know, you have just as much humor as batman. No wonder all your friends were so happy to see me. They got tired of looking at you!"
At this Joker busted up laughing, sending echoes throughout the house.
Joker frowned now, realizing Bruce still wasn't laughing.
"Why are you here Joker?"
Bruce asked matter-of-factly.
This seemed to catch Joker's attention for a moment. He paused.
"Say that again?"
"Why are you here Joker?!" Bruce said a little angrier.
"Well I'm here to rob you but that's not the usual reaction I get from people. I only know one person who asks me things like that…"
Joker eyed him carefully but shrugged and turned toward the dining room.
"Hey, Pengi! Come over here a minute!"
A moment later Penguin emerged with a sack filled with fine china and a painting of an eagle on a mountain face.
"What? I'm busy looting the other room!"
"Does Brucie boy remind you of anyone?"
Bruce began to get a little nervous and attempted to lift the bat up slightly. This got him a glare from both Penguin and Joker who were both eyeing him now.
"Yeah, he does kind of… a dead duck!"
Joker and Penguin grinned now and Joker began to reach for the flower on his suit. Bruce ducked now and swung the bat at Joker's legs, earning him a surprised look from Joker and causing Penguin to extend the tip of his umbrella into a sharp sword tip which he happily shoved at him.
Bruce ducked again and grabbed a hold of the portly man's umbrella, flipping him into the wall behind him.
Joker got up now and glanced at Bruce again, a crooked yellow smile spreading across his face.
"Hey Pengi, I think we picked the perfect house to break into tonight." He turned to Bruce.
"Didn't we Brucie?" Bruce glared at this. He had a feeling he knew what Joker was thinking.
He swung the bat at the harlequin once more. This time however Joker was too quick for the swing and jumped to the chandelier once more. Without looking at Penguin Joker spoke, keeping his gaze on Bruce as he smiled down at him.
"Hey Pengi, why don't you go loot the rest of the house and give Brucie boy and I some privacy?"
Penguin looked a little confused at this but when he received a sharp glare from Joker he did as he was told and returned to the dining room to finish his looting.
Joker turned back to Bruce once he was sure Penguin was out of ear shot.
"I thought I recognized you…" He eyed him a little with a smirk on his face. "Batsy."
Bruce's eyes widened but then grew angry as he took another swing at the crazed clown.
Joker merely shifted his position on the chandelier and pretended to look at his fingernails as if bored.
Bruce then had an idea and looked toward the chain holding up the chandelier and quickly bashed it roughly with the bat until it came free.
Joker's eyes got wide now as he fell to the floor and got back up only to meet the end of the bat once more.
Joker's grin faded now as he wiped a little blood from the side of his mouth.
"I've gotta say I'm a little disappointed Batsy."
Bruce had an idea now.
"The only batty person around here is you Joker."
Joker's eyes seemed curious now.
"Oh really? Then how'd you know about my flower then?"
"I don't know what that stupid flower does but I'm guessing if YOU reached for it then it can't be good."
"Touché…" Joker smiled, "Then where's Batsy? He's usually here by now?"
"How should I know? I'm not his mother." Bruce said angrily.
Joker seemed to take this as a challenge, his eyes gleaming in the dim light.
Joker shifted his eyes down to his pockets for a moment, still eyeing Bruce suspiciously. He slowly retrieved a black object from his pockets and Bruce raised the bat, waiting for Joker to spring something on him at any moment. Slowly the tattered, crudely stitched cape and cowl of the laughing bat emerged and Bruce's eyes widened.
"If you're not Batsy then you'll have no problem wearing this will you?" Joker laughed, eagerly awaiting Bruce's response.
"Who knows what you've done to that ugly thing. I'm not putting that on!"
Joker scowled now, something Bruce had never seen before. Clearly he had struck a nerve.
"Now you listen here Brucie boy! I'm in charge here! We play by my rules so if you want to survive the night you best put this on!" Joker growled, all humor lost from his usually cheery tone.