Henchman (JOKER X READER) ✅

chapter 16: the flip of a coin

don't forget about me, even when i doubt you. i'm no good without you

—

Dent's retaliation came swiftly, or the first part of it, anyway. And it came in the form of being completely and utterly unhelpful.

Joker was pacing around his office like a man possessed, banging around and occasionally throwing things. You leaned against the wall, watching- once he calmed down, you'd try to figure out what set him off.

"That son of a bitch!" He shouted, running both tattooed hands through his green hair. Then he whirled, turning to you as if he had only just remembered that you were there. "Does he want me to kill him? Does he?" he demanded. He was close to you now, looking at you with wild eyes. You could feel the heat of his body, but you couldn't physically react- you froze like a deer in the headlights of an oncoming train.

"If he wants a war, I'll give it to him," Joker said, voice quiet and rasping. He was shaking with rage. "I'll ruin this city. Raze it to the ground."

"I know," you said, trying to sound as calm as possible. He didn't reply, but he did look slightly less deranged. You reached out and wrapped your fingers around his wrists.

You didn't touch Joker, as a general rule. Nobody did. But you were starting to notice that touch often kept him grounded. It prevented him from delving further into his own head. And he hadn't reacted poorly thus far, so you figured it was alright.

After a few very long seconds, he stopped trembling and freed himself from your grip. You let him go, still watching carefully in case he started up again.

"What happened, J?" You ventured.

"Dent," he growled, starting to pace. "He's blocking every one of our roads, not letting a damn thing get through. He's trying to make me desperate enough to deal with him."

You frowned. "He has to know you wouldn't-"

"I thought so, too!" Joker threw his hands in the air. Then he straightened up. You saw his signature wicked smile spread across his face, and you knew someone was going to pay for this.

"Y/N," he said, striding back across the room to you, "We're going out."

"Where?" You asked, starting to frown.

"Where's my coat?" He was mumbling. "To talk to Harvey, obviously, before he has any more bright ideas that'll piss me off. Come on, Y/N!"

You followed him out of the building and to one of his purple sports cars, where he directed you to get in the passenger's seat.

Oh hell, he's driving, you thought to yourself, tugging on your seatbelt to make sure it was fastened tightly enough.

Sure enough, Joker drove like a goddamn maniac. He was cackling the whole way to the abandoned courthouse Dent had made into his base. The car skidded to a stop right outside the place, where a few of Dent's henchmen were waiting. As soon as you both got out of the car, one of the men darted inside, presumably to warn Dent. That was fine with you. It meant he wouldn't keep you waiting.

But Dent wasn't the next person to come through the big, wooden double doors of the courthouse. No, that was-

"Nelson?" you whispered, eyebrows pulling together in confusion. Sure enough, that was him, alright. Dark red hair, pale skin- although he didn't have the same relaxed air as before. He wore a button-down shirt that was half black and half white, and that told you everything you needed to know about his allegiances.

Joker shot you a swift, questioning look. You inched close enough so you could whisper to him without Nelson overhearing.

"That's the guy who told me about Dent in the first place," you said.

"Joker," Nelson said, cutting off any reply Joker may have wanted to voice. It was barely a greeting, more of a statement of fact.

"Mikey," Joker grinned. "So good to see you."

You looked from one man to the other, confused by the proceedings. And then it clicked- two and two made four, and the file on Dent had had a tiny little footnote in it that said only one thing- the name of Dent's right hand man. Michael Roberts.

Supposedly, Mikey was the only person who could handle and work around Dent's mercurial moods. You found yourself relating to him just a little- working for a certifiably insane man was not easy, you knew that better than most.

Mikey just nodded. "Mr. Dent's busy at the moment. You know how it is."

"Work," Joker sighed, "I got into this business to avoid it."

Mikey shrugged. "Sure. But you'll have to reschedule. He-"

A low, rasping voice cut Mikey off mid-sentence. "Let him in, Mike." You looked up, and there was Harvey Dent, in all of his grisly glory. He flipped his silver coin with his scarred set of fingers, a nasty smile quirking at the charred side of his lips.

"We have a lot to talk about."