Inside Your Eyes

My legs ached. It was a foolish move, but I couldn't stop running. Making it to that area of Gotham would be a feat alone if I were an actual athlete, let alone a woman who may have sat back on the couch instead of worked out in her spare time.

When my lungs started screaming for me to stop, I did. I wondered if anyone had followed me and checked over my shoulder, "No one..." At this I was happy, but a little disheartened, "Why didn't he chase me?" Little did I know what had stopped him.

I made my way to the doors of an old warehouse and looked around. The contraptions Joker had set up were still running, "Let's see about getting in here with both feet and arms in tack." I chose my steps carefully. I could see the failed attempts in front of me, all disfigured and rotting. The Joker had an ingenious mind, when stepping over lasers your foot would hit tiles. It took me only one try to memorize the tiles that had the lesser of two evils triggered by it. One tile triggered flowers to squirt water in your face, but the other would trigger flowers to shoot acid in your face. The only thing that stopped me from getting my face burnt off when I used the front doors that first time was a line of other men that insisted they go first. Being born without the complex of having to be the one to finish first did have its perks.

I made it across the room unharmed, save the water all over my face. The main room was more run down than I thought was possible. My old room had been ransacked, my previously full closet of drugs was now empty. "Seems Cordelia figured out how to get in there before they had to leave." I groaned a bit and began to claw at the wall beside it, "At least I still have some money to keep me functioning for a while." One thing I learned, always hide the money next to the focal point, odds are they'll never find it.

I put the money in my bag, "Never in 1,000 years did I imagine my being here again."

"Really?" I heard a voice behind me. I turned around to see that clown face, "I thought it was inevitable you'd be back."

"Gerttie. You never could pull off that makeup very well."

"My name is Ruse!"

"You'll never be what I created," she rolled her eyes at my comment, "So what now? Where's Joker?"

"In the other room. Seems your lovely Brucey didn't put up much of a fight."

"You'd better let him go!" Why in the world did he have to get captured in the day!?

"Why don't you come with me," she took me by the arm and jammed a machine gun behind my back.

"Hey, easy with that thing!"

I was led into a room with Bruce tied to a chair that was bolted upside down to the wall, "Makes you think that you lost the stronger man," Cordelia smiled.

"If you're trying to make me jealous like a vindictive high school girl, you're wrong. I don't need to feel angry that The Joker made it with a crack whore." Her face turned red and she lifted the gun towards me. I was not bound so it was rather easy to turn around and take the gun from her, "You see, Gerttie," I lifted it towards her face, "never dish it out if you can't take it, because you're dealing with the girl that will always beat you. Drugs and men don't cloud my mind like yours. If you ever feel that I don't belong, you are sorely mistaken."

A slow clap came from behind me, "Now that's the Ruse I know."

My neck snapped around, "Don't think I'm crawling back to you either, scum."

"Cool it on the names. I haven't touched her since you left. She gives me the heebie jeebies," The Joker said nonchalantly.

Gerttie's face went from scared to slightly sad. I shifted my gaze back to Joker, "Just let Bruce go and nothing bad will happen."

"Oh where's the fun in that?" Joker grinned jumped at me. Both of us were knocked into the next room. I kicked him off and rolled to my side. A small click sounded from the floor triggering all the doors to become bolted to the wall. There was no way out...

Joker flipped out a long blade. I was unarmed, the gun I had previously held thrown into the other room before the doors closed Which room is this? I looked around seeing it was the kitchen. Something reflected the light and I dove toward that, "My old switchblade. You planned this didn't you?"

"Of course!" he lunged at me with the knife.

I twirled out of the way, "Quit that! Why are you doing this? You've already ripped out my heart now you want to kill me?" my hand slapped over my mouth and I started to scream.

He looked at me with a confused face, the wheels turning in his head. He began whipping his head around frantically, "Shut up! Shut up!" he began to cackle. The room sounded like a mad house. "Who cares if she dies!?" the knife pointed at me for a minute and then to his neck, "If I cut my throat you will shut up!"

Without thinking I flew across the room and tackled him, the knife sliding across the floor, "No! You aren't allowed to do that!"

"Yes I can!"

"Listen to me!" I banged his head against the floor, "You've made enough bad decisions, I can't let you do this! You can't do that to me!" I let go and stood up to leave, a seemingly invisible escape hatch beneath the exit door was the back-up plan for if this ever backfired.

"Maya don't leave!"

"Give me one good reason why not to."

Cordelia slightly opened the hatch.

He beat his head against the floor in rhythm, "Be-cause-I-love-you!" he screamed through gritted teeth. That was enough to stop me in my tracks. Unfortunately Cordelia sprang out the hatch and stabbed me in the side. I crumpled to the floor and she disappeared through the hatch as quickly as she came. The Joker ran after her.

I pulled myself across the floor to press the button to unbolt the doors. They all opened, "Bruce!" I was crying but not only at the physical pain. He had gotten out of the chair by this time, "I need a hospital..."

He scooped me up, "Just stay with me, I'll make The Joker pay for this."

I shook my head, "It was Cordelia..." My body went into shock and I blacked out.