FicWad

Gordon found himself quickly moving through the crowd of Gotham's rich and high class as he walked over to Quincy Sharp, who was chatting with the Mayor over a glass of Champagne.

'How?' was the only thought the Police Chief could even process after the phone call he had just received and as he approached the pair, he could tell that the Warden of Arkham Asylum had not heard the news himself.

"Ah, Commissioner Gordon, please join us." the Mayor exclaimed in happy tone, gaining a mirrored expression from the Man beside him.

"I would love too..." Jim started to reply, trying to fake a smile as he turned his attention to Quincy.

"...but I need to discuss 'something' with the Warden here first, if that would be alright?" he added, while giving the Warden a knowing look.

"Of course but after you are finished, please join me and the Deputy Mayor at the Buffet table, apparently the Truffles there are to die for." the Mayor said back in an understanding tone as he patted Gordon on the shoulder, before leaving the pair alone.

"What appears to be the problem, Commissioner?" Sharp then asked in a bemused tone as Gordon looked around them, making sure they had enough privacy.

"Only something that neither of us thought would ever happen...'he's awake."

"Who's awake?" the Warden then replied with little to no interest in his voice, which made Jim's eyes narrow in return.

"You know who I am talking about, our dirty little secret."

"Ridiculous, he is a vegetable..." Quincy replied with a chuckle as he sipped his drink, before he then gave the Commissioner a knowing look.

"...and what do you mean 'our dirty little secret'? If I remember correctly, it was 'your' idea."

But the Police Chief just stared back with a pure and serious stare, not even flinching at the other's remark which then made Sharp stop, with his face slowly changing to one of horrific realization.

"My god, but it can't be." he added.

"I just got a call from the Asylum, one of your Interns walked into the East Wing and found him...and he woke up." Gordon then explained, making the Warden rummage through his Tux's pockets for his phone.

"Blast! I bet it was that Ms. Quinzel, she has been making every excuse she can to get some face-time with our most dangerous Inmates." he said back with a frustrated tone as he took out the mobile and turned it on, while the Commissioner watched.

"Her name didn't come up...and why may I ask is your Phone off?"

"Oh, this was supposed to be my night off and I didn't want it ruined." he replied with a guilty look, one that made Jim roll his eyes and sigh.

"Never mind, but we have to head to the Asylum now."

This gained a knowing look from Sharp, who sighed and nodded in return.

"Yes of course, so we can see how salvageable the situation is. Let's go." he replied while gesturing for the Commissioner to follow him, before both Men then made their way through the gathering towards the exit.

Although unbeknownst to them, Foley was watching them with a curious expression as he took a sip from his drink while Barbara joined his side.

"So did you two argue over me back there?" she asked with a curious tone and smile, making the Lieutenant shake his head in return as he mirrored her expression.

"Well he was about to, but was then called away by what looked like a very distressing phone call." the Lieutenant replied with a curious tone, which gained a disinterested expression from the Woman as she looked around them.

"What do I care anyway, since Jim is certainly not the boss of me." Barbara said back, before her smile came back as she returned her gaze at the other Man.

"So shall we have another drink?" she asked in a playful tone while gesturing to her now empty glass, making Foley smirk back as he looked between her and the direction that Gordon had left in.

"I would really like to, believe me. But there is something I must look into first, so rain-check?" he replied with a tone that was a combination of disappointment and hopefulness. Barbara looked down at her glass in return and ran her finger around the top of it, before she brought her attention back to him with a seductive look.

"Okay, but what will your Wife think about you sharing a drink with another Woman?" she asked, gaining a shrug from the Policeman as he necked back the last of his drink.

"I honestly don't care anymore, since it seems that we both have a lot of problems with our respective Partners."

"I couldn't agree more, in fact don't you think it is hypocritical of Jim to be asking about your relationship when he can't even hold his own together?" Barbara answered back, which brought a slightly surprised look to Foley's face.

"You know about that?"

"Jim has told me as much when he has tried to start a conversation with me, but he is nothing more than white noise to me these days, I just heard bits and pieces." the Commissioner's Wife replied with an honest expression, making the Lieutenant nod back as he noticed his Superior disappearing from view, starting to move so that he could follow.

"I see, well I should really get moving. So I'll see you later?"

"Sure, have fun following Jim." Barbara said back with a knowing toned, which stopped Foley in his tracks as he looked back at the married Woman with a telling smile.

"Believe me, that is not the kind of 'fun' I would rather be having."

"Get a move on then." she said back in an encouraging tone, which made Foley smirk back as he walked off in the same direction as the Police Commissioner, leaving Barbara as she turned around and headed back to Buffet and drinks table.

Meanwhile Bruce was still in the company of Sebastian as the latter continued to speak while the former inconspicuously glanced in the direction of Gordon and Sharp, as both Men left the Manor's interior.

"...so I was thinking we could chat some more over Brunch tomorrow..." Bruce's friend added as the Billionaire's eyes narrowed ever so slightly, for he then noticed Lieutenant Foley then doing the same as though he was following his Superior.

"...Bruce?"

This brought the young Wayne's attention back to Sebastian, flashing a reassuring smile at his friend in return.

"Yeah sure, Seb. We can do that..." he started to say before glancing at Alfred with an ever so slightly knowing look, making his Butler reach into one of his pockets with his free hand, for he recognized his Master's expression.

"...just let me..." Bruce continued only to be cut off as his phone started to ring in his Tuxedo's inner pocket, gaining the attention of both Men as the former took the device out and looked at it.

"...I apologize Seb, but there is something I have to take care of." he then added, earning an understanding nod from the other Man.

"Of course, Bruce. But we on for tomorrow, right?" he then asked, which made his Billionaire friend smile back as he started to back away.

"Of course, I'll give you a call in the Morning. Now, please enjoy the rest of the Party and I'll see you tomorrow." he said before turning around and walking away, giving Alfred an appreciative smile as he passed him.

"Thank you." he muttered, gaining a nod from his Confidant in return.

"Of course, Sir." Pennyworth replied as he watched the young Man leave the Hall in the direction of the Living-Room.

BATMAN: THE SCARRED AND THE DAMNED

Below the Mansion and the Party currently playing out within it's walls, Bruce exited the elevator and entered the sanctum of the Bat-Cave as he quickly took his seat at his large Computer while the Armory and his Bat-suit rose up from the ground to greet him.

'Why did you rush off Commissioner?' the young Man thought as he brought up the Mansion's internal Camera-feeds and filled the screens with multiple angles of the his Fundraiser, just as elevator doors opened again to reveal Alfred.

"I hope you're only down here to check your E-Mails, Master Wayne. Since you still have a Fundraiser upstairs that requires your attention." the older Man said as he walked up to Bruce, who shook his head in return.

"Sorry to disappoint, Alfred. But after noticing how James Gordon and Quincy Sharp left the Party as they did, I think there is something more important going on." he replied before taking note of the time on his watch and then fast-forwarding the footage on the screen, gaining the Butler's attention as he saw both Men suddenly standing together.

"But what about your guests, Sir?" he then asked with a slightly disapproving tone.

"You're going to have to give anyone who asks the same excuse that I had to use on Sebastian, though I doubt anyone is going to notice my absence for a few hours." Bruce replied, gaining a reluctant sigh from his Confident.

"Very well, Sir. So what is going on with the Commissioner and the Asylum's Warden."

"We're about to find out, activating the lip-reading software..." his Master replied, before tapping the enter key as both Men talked with subtitles appearing on the screen with them as the two life-long friends started to watch the footage, just as Gordon then replied to Sharp.

"Only something that neither of us thought would ever happen...'he's awake." the writing below him said while Bruce's expression remained stoic and inquisitive as he watched the scene play out. But as it continued, Alfred would glance at his Master every now and then, noticing that the young Man's expression became more and more surprised and confused looking as he read what appeared on the screen.

'What the hell?'

Once the footage of the Police Chief and Arkham's Head talk was over, the Billionaire simply turned off the footage and sat back in his chair with a thoughtful and questioning expression, while the Bats above the pair made the only sounds that either could hear.

"Master Bruce?" the old Gentleman asked, regaining the young Wayne's attention as he was snapped out of his thoughts.

"What they were talking about doesn't make sense..." he began to reply, only for the Butler to cut in.

"Whatever it is, Sir. It appears to have both the Commissioner and the Warden quite distressed." he added, earning a nod from Bruce in return as he turned around in his chair and looked out at the rest of the Cave, just as a Bat flew from one side to the next.

"Yes it does. Who could both Men be on about, who was in a Coma at Arkham Asylum?" he said back before turning back to the Bat-Computer, quickly typing in commands as he brought up a list on the main-screen.

"Is that what I think it is, Master Wayne?" Alfred then asked as he pointed at the data, earning an ever so slight-smirk from Bruce.

"If you think that it is the current patient and Inmate list for Arkham Asylum, then you would be correct. I gained access to their database some time ago, just so I could keep an eye on some of it's more troublesome residents." he replied in a matter-of-fact tone, making Pennyworth smirk back as they both scanned the list of names and the current statuses.

"Well, I don't see anybody there that is currently in a Coma." he added, gaining a nod from the Billionaire as he scrolled through the information.

"Exactly, so that means a visit to Arkham is in order." he replied while turning to face the Bat-suit.

"I agree Master Bruce..." Alfred started to say back, while the younger Man got up and walked up to the Armory.

"...and don't worry about your Fundraiser and it's guests, for I can take care of all that. Good luck, Sir."

"I never doubted it. Thanks, Alfred." Bruce replied as he got up and walked over to the Armory, which brought a warm smile to the old Man's face as he turned around and headed for the elevator, while the transparent chamber opened up and revealed the Bat-suit and all it's equipment.

"Oh before I forget, Alfred." the young Wayne then called back, stopping Pennyworth in his tracks as he turned round with a curious look.

"Yes, Master Bruce?"

"Make sure that there are more Truffles on the buffet-table up there, because they are quite the hit." his Master added with a grin, making the Butler's own smile grow a little wider as he nodded in return.

"Of course, Sir."

And with that, the Gentleman turned around and headed for the elevator while Bruce changed suits.

Thirty minutes later, both Gordon and Sharp arrived at Arkham Asylum in the dead of night. As the Police Chief got out of his car and looked up at the old building, he could feel a sense of trepidation and cold dread creeping up the back of his neck, for Jim was certainly not expecting this outcome as his mind became swept up in his memories.

'Jim was standing in the wreck of 250-52ndstreet, his Son standing at his side as the pair watched the Batman disappear into the shadows of the night around them.

"...He's a silent Guardian, a watchful Protector...a Dark Knight." Gordon said with a confident tone, earning a confused look from the boy in return.

"I don't understand, Dad." he replied in return, with the Father looking back as a hopeful smile appeared on his face.

"One day you will Son."

"Commissioner Gordon!" a voice called from behind the pair, making them turn to see a number of Police Officers approaching.

"Are you and your family alright?" one asked, gaining a nod back from Jim as he looked down at his Boy and then back to the burnt out ruins of fifty-Second street, only to see Barbara and their daughter coming down the stairs, a confused but relieved expression on former's face as she looked over to him.

"Yes Officer, we are fine but..." the Police Chief started to reply, only to stop for a moment as he felt a sourness build in his mouth at what he had to say next, so he glanced down at the corpse of the former District Attorney and took a breath.

"...the Batman killed Harvey Dent and is fleeing the area as we speak. We need to cordon off the area and catch him." he then added, gaining a shocked nod from the Officer in return.

"...right...right away, sir." he stuttered in an almost disbelieving tone, before reaching for his radio while gesturing to the others around them.

"The Batman is the Target. I repeat, apprehend the Batman." he said into the device, gaining the sounds of voices speaking back from it.

"Okay, we're going in. Go, Go...Move!"

"Officer, if you could get my Family out of here..." Gordon then started to say to the other Man, gaining the attention of his family.

"...then I will take over...the manhunt for the Batman." he said while feeling a lump in his throat, as those last few words stung him.

"If you will follow me please." the Officer then said in a reassuring tone, gaining confused looks from Barbara and James Jnr.

"Dad..?"

"Jim..?"

"Take the kids and follow him please, Barbara?" the Commissioner just said back, making his Wife give him a questioning look before reluctantly taking her kids hands in her own and following the Police Officer put of the area, gaining a tired sigh from Older Man as he turned back to the DA's body and stared down at it.

"Jim!" a familiar voice then spoke up from behind, making the Police Chief turn to see fellow Cop, Gerard Stephens rushing up to him.

"I just heard, are we really after the Batman?" he asked, gaining a reluctant nod from Gordon in return, before he gestured to the body lying on the ground beside him.

"Oh crap..." Stephens started to reply as he looked at Dent, only for a confused expression to appear on his face.

"...but I don't get it. Why would the Bat just turn like that, I mean he was working with us right?" he continued while kneeling down beside the Attorney's body, looking at the heavily scarred side of his face.

"I don't understand it either, but he does dress up like a Bat, so who can really say what the man is really like." the Commissioner replied as he turned away and adjusted his glasses, all the while he could hear the barking of search-dogs in the distance around them.

"Uh...Jim!" Stephens then said in a surprised tone, which made his Superior turn to see that he had his fingers on Harvey's throat.

"Gerard, what are you doing?" the older Man asked back, gaining his friend's attention as he looked back with an equally surprised expression.

"Dent's not dead."

"What…what are you on about, I saw him fall and…" Gordon began to reply as his eyes widened with a mirrored expression, while Stephens shook his head in return.

"But he's got a pulse, Jim. It's faint, but it's there."

"But how, I mean…" the Police Chief started to ask as he knelt down beside the body as well, looking down at the D.A. with a disbelieving expression as everything he had just forced himself to accept fell apart around him.

"…what even made you check him?" he then asked in a disapproving tone, earning a similar expression from Gerard as he looked up at James.

"I don't know, Jim. I just guess I had to be sure, but why I do I have the feeling that you would rather Dent was dead?" he replied, while Gordon stood back up and looked around them as he ran a hand through his hair in a frustrated fashion.

"It's…complicated…" he started to say back, noticing that the other Officers were either still chasing the Batman or maintaining the perimeter.

"…but believe me when I say, that things could not get much worse right now."

"Well from the look on your face and how you're acting, I can believe it. But unless you tell me what's going on, then I can't help you." his friend said back with an understanding though matter-of-fact tone, which regained Gordon's attention as he turned back to him with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Okay, do you trust me" he asked, trying to sound calmer than he actually was feeling at that moment.

"Jim, come on…" Stephens started to say back, only for the Police Commissioner to cut him off as his agitated behavior started to reappear.

"Do you?"

"Of course I do." he replied, which made Jim acknowledge him with a relieved but still slightly apprehensive smirk.

"Okay, I promise I will tell you everything Gerard, but we first need to get Harvey out of here and without anyone else finding out that he is not actually dead." he said back, earning a nod from his Subordinate.

"Right then, I will stop the Morgue guys from coming over and picking him up, while also getting a body-bag in return. Any other time, I think that people would question why the Police Commissioner would be handling something like this himself. But since we all know that you and Dent were friends, then they should more understanding about this."

"I hope you're right and I also hope that he doesn't wake up in the meantime, other otherwise we will get a similar result." the Police Chief added, with Stephens getting back to his feet.

"I don't think there will be any chance of that. I mean I am no Doctor, but I guess he is in a coma. Anyway, I'll go and get that body bag." he replied before turning around, only to stop and look back over his shoulder with a curious expression.

"By the way, where are you planning on taking Dent, should we be able to get him out of here without incident?"

"We can take him to Arkham Asylum, since I know it's current Warden well and I believe that he will help us, considering what would be at stake should the truth come out." Jim said back with a knowing tone, making Gerard's expression change to one of curious uncertainty.

"Okay, you're the boss, Jim. I'll be back in a moment and then you can fill me in on the way to Arkham." he replied, gaining a nod from the Commissioner.

"Deal." he said back as he watched his friend walk away, leaving the older Man with the unconscious Harvey Dent. But a thoughtful and worried expression started to creep onto Gordon's face, while he looked down at the Man who had tried to kill his Son as rain started to fall down lightly on the area.

'I really hope I am doing the right thing?'

"Finally, what took you so long!" a female voice then said abruptly, pulling Gordon out of his thoughts as he and Warden Sharp entered the Asylum's interior, only to be met by Dr. Cassidy and Officer Bullock.

"We've been waiting for over thirty minutes." the former added, gaining a shrug from the Police Officer as the Commissioner ignored her and walked up to him.

"What's the situation?" he asked with a serious tone, only for his subordinate to look back with an unsure expression.

"I'm sorry Commissioner, but you tell me? I mean i came here for the scheduled check-up on our friend 'the Bird', only to find out that someone I...everyone believed was dead...is actually alive." Bullock replied in an honest and confused tone, earning only silence from Gordon in return.

'I should have seen this coming, there was no way that this secret was stay that way for long.' he thought to himself, while Sharp turned his attention to Cassidy.

"So was that blonde buffoon, Quinzel responsible for this?" he asked, making his Female-subordinate shake her head with a taken-aback look on her face.

"No it wasn't Harleen, for she was not even here tonight."

"Then who was it?" Gordon then asked, gaining the pair's attention as he stood next to a confused-looking Bullock.

"It was Penelope Young, another of our new Interns." Sarah replied with a little disbelief underlining her words, gaining a similar-looking expression from Sharp in return.

"Really? I can't believe it. Miss Young didn't appear the type to go behind our backs into the East-Wing, just to see our more dangerous Inmates." he said back, once again gaining a head-shake from Dr. Cassidy.

"It wasn't like that, because she only went in there to get a straight-jacket for two Orderlies who were trying to get a rather fearful Patient back to his room safely."

"So it was just an accident that she came across Dent." the Police Chief then asked, not even flinching as he mentioned the D.A.'s name.

'The Cat is out of the bag now, so there is no need to beat around the bush with it.' he thought, gaining a nod from Cassidy.

"Exactly…" she started to reply, before gesturing to the room just behind her where the younger Woman could be seen through the window, showing her to be sitting behind a table and looking rather shaken.

"…but the whole thing has taken a toll on her, so I have left her in there to calm down and collect her thoughts."

"That's a good idea." the Warden then replied, before Gordon then spoke up again and made everyone in the group look at him.

"Okay, so where is 'he'?"

"We had to move him out of the East-Wing since the Joker and Crane had become quite riled from his presence, so he is in the room over there." Cassidy replied while gesturing to the door behind her, making the older Man's eyes narrow as he looked in it's direction.

"In other news, it appears that your idea to put the Bird with the Crazies worked like a charm, since he is ready to spill everything he knows to us." the Police Officer then stated, only to make his Superior shake his head as he adjusted his glasses.

"That's not important right now, but I want to see Dent…alone." Jim said back, earning nods from all three.

"Very well. He has been very quiet but we still have him restrained, just to be on the safe side." the female Doctor replied, making the Commissioner's eyes widen a little.

"Okay. Bullock, I want you to wait outside the door and make sure I am not interrupted…" he started to say, gaining a nod from the chubby Man in return, before returning his attention to Sharp and Cassidy.

"…and it's important that no one outside of the Asylum finds out about this."

"We have already made sure that the staff here will not say anything and as far as outsiders go, Bullock here is the only Police Officer on site, other than yourself of course." Sarah said back, making the Police Chief nod back with a relieved expression.

"That's good to know. Okay, I will see Dent now." he replied, only for Bullock to give him a curious look.

"Commissioner..?"

"I know what you are going to ask and I will tell you everything once I have spoken with him, but that does mean that you…" he began to say, only for the younger Man to cut him off mid-sentence.

"I understand Commissioner, since I can keep a secret. If you're willing to trust me, then I can trust you too." he said back as a knowing look appeared on Jim's face.

'I would rather it had not come to this. But since I have been the 'only Cop' to know this secret for what feels like an age, it would be less of a burden if I could share it with another again.' he thought be giving his Subordinate a reassuring smile, before he then left the three people and walked over to the door.

Gordon could swear that he felt his heart-beat quicken as he took the door-handle into his hand, making him take a breath before opening the door and entered the room.

Once inside, Gordon quickly noticed that the room was not that well lit as the light hanging above him in it's center was already starting to dim.

'Well this is couldn't get any more creepy now, could...' he started to think before he was cut off by a very familiar voice.

"Hello Jim."

This made the hairs on the back of the Commissioner's neck go on end, as he found himself caught between breaths. But he still managed to look in it's direction at the far side of the room, where a mobile-berth was parked alongside it's wall. And a person could clearly be seen lying on it, but Gordon did his best not to look directly at the person, while the sound of his own heart-beat got louder in his ears.

"Why so quiet, Friend...?" the person then said with a tempered anger to his voice, making the older Man look directly at his face, seeing the scarred half of Harvey Dent's face. The former-D.A's eyes fixed on him as only his right narrowed since his left was completely bare, due to it's eyelids having being burnt away by the fire previously.

"...we have a lot of catching up to do." Harvey added as he gritted his teeth, which made Gordon gulp as the two Men stared at each other.

Meanwhile at the checkpoint on the City's-side of the bridge that connected Akrham Island to the rest of Gotham. A large black Van stopped as the rain continued to fall, while a AA Guard walked up to the driver's side and shone his torch at it and saw that SWAT was printed on it's side in bold white lettering, before turning his attention to it's driver.

"What's your business at the Asylum?"

"We are dropping off a Crazie who tried to blow up a school back in Blüdhaven." the Driver replied as he handed a document over to the Guard, who looked over the details with a confused expression.

"This is a bit out of the blue, isn't it? Why couldn't he be kept back there?"

"You know as well as I do that we don't have the right kind of facilities to hold these Crazies, not like here in Gotham." the stranger said back with a knowing tone, which gained a sigh and a nod from the Guard in return.

"Yeah that is unfortunately true, it just seems that the Crazies are drawn here..." he started to say back before handing back the document.

"...but your papers are all correct, so you can go on through as soon as the bridge is lowered."

"Thank you." the driver replied as he watched the AA guard walk back into his booth, before the bridge suddenly lowered down and allowed the vehicle entrance.

Once the SWAT vehicle was back on it's way, driving down the winding road leading to the Asylum as it followed it's Cat's eyes. The Driver glanced over his shoulder into the Van's back where a large group of masked-soldiers dressed in heavy amour sat, all carrying assault rifles and shotguns.

"We are in." he said in a stoic tone, gaining a nod from the masked-Man sitting closest to him.

"Good..." he began to say before turning his attention back to the rest

"...alright boys, you all know the plan. We go in and get the Boss out, taking down anyone who gets in our way. We cannot let him spill anything that leads the cops back to our 'Employer', understood?"

"Yes Sir." they all said in unison, making the Man smile behind his mask.

"Then lock and load." he added as they all readied their weapons as the Van carrying them closed in on the Asylum, where thunder echoed and lighting streaked across the sky overhead.