Story suggested by AnimeLover1808
((Note: Set in the Adventures of Batman and Robin series, mixed with some Duela Dent comic stuff ;) ))
Part 1
The darkness of the night sky in Gotham never bothered Batgirl- she rather enjoyed its foggy atmosphere from smog and light pollution. Hardly a star was visible through the thick clouds but the city lights were always vibrant
As she rested on a window ledge and surveyed the atmosphere, she reviewed the night in her mind. First, the bat signal had been on, prompting her to visit the police station and have a talk with Commissioner Gordon. Batgirl had to laugh as she thought of the man who would have never suspected that the female crimefighter was his own daughter.
If only Batman had been in town that week- unfortunately, Batgirl had to cover for him. He had been busy in Japan with some unexplained business, but Batgirl didn’t mind. She knew that Batman was a mysterious kind of guy, even more mysterious than her. If she could only get him to offer up more information, reveal more secrets... but she knew that would mean giving up her own hidden details.
Robin was also out of commission. Anytime Batgirl tried to find out what he had been up to, Batman would merely look at her silently with that glassjaw look he was so good at giving. Couldn’t she know anything? Oh well... she knew her purpose in Gotham was to fight crime, to get rid of criminals. It had nothing to do with jeopardizing or invading the life of Batman and his crime fighting bird friend. Besides, when the time was right, they would all reveal themselves to each other. Right now, they were business partners, collaborators of justice and nothing more.
Batgirl snapped out of her frivolous thoughts. Commissioner Gordon contacted her for one duty and one duty only- to find Joker and Harley. The evil clown duo had been up to some horrific mischief that night- they had sprayed an entire mall with laughing gas before having their goons rob every single person they could find. Well planned, no doubt, and the whole event was probably set to happen for months. Batgirl knew Joker well enough to know that, as spontaneous and wild as he liked people to think he was, he really was a meticulous and cunning planner. It was all part of being a comedian, of making people get his “joke”- a joke they would never get.
Joker only left one clue, and Batgirl had been thinking about it obsessively for the past half an hour, which was probably why her mind was drifting now. Still, the clue nagged her. When Joker left the mall, he apparently told the crowd “See you in the funny papers!” before laughing and running off. This was the information that Commissioner Gordon had given to her, at least. The calling card of the Joker, Riddler, or any big time villain in town was to leave behind a hint after a crime, and tonight would be no exception.
“The Gotham Gazette!” Batgirl finally said as she jumped, night winds blowing her red tresses wildly. Yes, that was it. The Gotham Gazette. A Gotham artist had just won an award for his comic that was featured exclusively in the Gotham Gazette funnies section. If Batgirl could recall, the man’s name was Robert Kane or something like that.
“That doesn’t matter,” Batgirl said as pulled out her grappling gun. “The Gazette. Time to go.”
Yes. That was exactly what she had to do- she had wasted too much time already. With her right hand outstretched, she shot the gun towards a building and felt its strong hook catch on the building’s surface. With a leap, she was jumping out into the night’s open atmosphere, zooming past the buildings of the Gotham cityscape, ready for her next location.
Batgirl landed carefully onto the roof of the Gotham Gazette. Closing time had passed hours ago. It was well past eleven and all of the building’s lights were off.
Putting up her gun, Batgirl straightened her utility belt before proceeding into the building from the roof’s entrance. She crept through the dark cautiously- she could never put it above or beyond Joker to set up a trap for her. No- she had to be smart, wary, and not rush into this job. The Clown Prince of Crime was the most dangerous man of Gotham, and every time she went against him, she could only hope to come back alive.
After climbing down the stairs, Batgirl made it to the highest level of the building. It was a wide office setting with many cubicles. Notes and newspaper clippings were all over the place, tacked into the walls and on cubicle surfaces. As Batgirl moved through the floor carefully, she looked back and forth before deciding that there was no threat. The place was so mundane, so bland- not anything like The Joker’s style. No threat at all, Batgirl thought. It was time to move onto the next room.
Then, she thought a little more. No- there was always a threat with Joker. When things seemed the most calm, that was when he could get you easily. Everyone knew the Joker as loud, flamboyant, and attention seeking- how opportune would it be to catch Batgirl off her guard?
No, she thought as she shook her head. You’re being paranoid- you’ll be ready for him. Both of her hands already had batarangs ready. She still crept through the darkness, her toes on their tips as she neared the next step case and made her way down. There was no way in hell that she was going to take the elevator. She could imagine herself falling down to her doom, ending up dead in the collapsing contraption.
As she walked down the next set of stairs,she got her first hint of Joker. There it was, on the staircase- a small Joker card resting with it’s face staring up at Batgirl, grinning hysterically. The card was left there to congratulate her on figuring out where the Joker was. At the same time, it was there to mock her, tease her, and make her uneasy. Well, Batgirl thought, at least I was right about coming here. There would be no turning back now.
She made it to the next floor. Immediately, even in the rows of cubicles and work desks, her eyes were captured by a colorful sight in the middle of the room. There, on the center table, was a decorative little box with green and purple stripes.
Batgirl’s brows furrowed immediately. Mistrust rose in her system as her bloodstream boiled and her skin warmed up. She looked around, cautiously, but knew Joker and Harley wouldn’t reveal themselves so easily. With a strong throw, she let her batarang move towards the box, taking some quick steps forward before tipping a desk in front of her for save cover.
The batarang knocked against the box with a loud ting, forcing it to fall on the floor. Batgirl reached up to grab her batarang. Maybe the item was safe- there was no explosion or gas emanating from it... yet. Batgirl did hear something coming from it, however. She took a few dashing steps forward before ducking under another table, listening carefully. Immediately, Batgirl recognized Harley’s voice. The box was playing a recording.
“Ahem, ahem,” Harley’s voice said on the electronic recording, “a toast to the beautiful, strong, and amazing Batgirl, Gotham’s pride and joy! Roo roo roo roo!!!”
Batgirl had to roll her eyes at Harley’s imitation of Arsenio Hall. Idiot, she thought unapologetically. Wasn’t that guy, like, retired a long time ago?
“I’m proud of ya, Bat-babe. You go girl! You always know how to make me and Mistah J smile.”
Batgirl cringed when she heard Harley refer to Joker as ‘Mistah J’. Didn’t she know the clown was just a raving lunatic that abused her for sport.
Growing tired of the recording, Batgirl stood up and shouted at the darkness around her. “Enough games! Come out, Joker! You too, Harley. Now.”
“No, no, no, Batgirl! Temper, temper.”
It was the recording. At least, Batgirl thought it was a recording at first. No- the box was relaying Harley’s voice in real time.
“Gee, Batgirl,” Harley continued from the box. “From that look on your face, you look surprised. You know me and Mistah J are used to using way more impressive technology than remote walkie talkies. Here, let me show you something more impressive.”
Batgirl’s eyes shot up to the ceiling as she suddenly saw the lights shooting on and buzzing with electricity. Bolts and sparks were flying as glass shattered and wires split, spraying sparks wildly. Batgirl immediately ran and ducked for cover..
“Me and Mistah J played with the electrical wiring of the building a bit,” Harley said. “Those bills are going to shoot up through the roof!”
Batgirl started to run as, through the box, she could hear the Joker’s signature laugh filling the room. Anger surged through her as she ran past the box, covering her face with her cape. She was only five feet or so from the box before it exploded, ripping through the ground under it and making the building shake for a few seconds. Batgirl was thanking herself that she didn’t approach the box before.
Joker’s laugh didn’t end with the explosion of the box. Now, new speakers had been turned on. They must have been all over the room. Batgirl heard the Clown Prince laugh at her, enjoying her peril to an extreme. The sick sadist, Batgirl thought. Fires were building up in the room as sprinklers were activated on the roof. The sprinklers offered no water; Batgirl smelled gasoline.
Coming up to the door for the next flight of stairs, Batgirl tried to kick it down. It took a few strong kicks- Joker had secured the door tight. No doubt that this room was only a temporary booby trap. Batgirl started to dart down the stairs.
“Careful for that landing,” Joker’s voice sounded from the ceiling, “it’s a doozy!”
Batgirl didn’t notice some of the super thin but tight dental floss strung up a few inches over the third highest stair.
That mistake would cause the heroine her balance. She tripped, falling down the rest of the flight of stairs before hitting her head against the railing. Instantly, she lose consciousness, her body descending without control down the rest of the stairs and through the next door. Her body slammed against the door, pushing it open before falling onto the ground. There she was, laid out like a fish, completely cold from a simple and humiliating defeat.
Joker and Harley stood over the caped crusader, grinning wide as their studied Batgirl in her defeat.
“Oh, Batgirl! How could you forget to floss?” Joker grinned wide with his yellow, decrepit teeth before cackling away.
“Maybe she needs a sit in a real dentist’s chair, boss,” Harley suggested.
“Why, I think you’re right, Harl!” Joker pinched his woman’s cheek as she smiled wide. “And I think I’m the perfect man that will make Batgirl smile- guaranteed!”
“Only you can do it, Mistah J.”
Batgirl moaned.
“Time to leave this paperhouse, Harl. Only a small matter of time before it all goes up in flames.”
“Ain’t it a shithouse, Mistah J?”
Joker looked at Harley with a scoffing eye. “What do I look like? Jim Morrison?”
Harley looked back blankly before smiling sheepishly and shrugging. “I, uh, thought that was who you were referencing, mista-”
Joker grabbed Harley’s bells and shouted loudly into her face. “I only reference myself!”
Harley composed herself as Joker stepped away. “Right, boss, right.”
“I better grab the Bat bimbo before I really lose my patience with you.”
Joker went to grab the Batgirl under her arms. He strained a bit, sliding her slowly before looking up at Harley. “Geez, what’s this Bat on, the high protein crime fighter’s diet? Harley, grab her legs.”
“Yes, boss.” Harley bent down and grabbed Harley up. With gritted teeth, she helped Joker lift her up and carry her towards a chair. “Wow, Mistah J, you weren’t kidding- Bat-blob could really use a workout.”
The crime clowns got Harley to the elevator safely. They had to move quickly, and Joker knew they had enough time. In case Batgirl got a little loose, he wrapped a strong chloroform cloth around her mouth and nose for good measure after dumping a few sleeping pills down her throat.
As they left the building, Joker and Harley got Batgirl into the back of the getaway car that had just pulled up for them. After the couple climbed in, their loyal henchmen driver hit the road. Joker glanced up a moment and smiled as he saw the higher levels of the building filled with flames. A fire truck sounded in the distance, but Joker had no interest in what the fate of the Gotham Gazette held.
The clowns brought Batgirl into their own private lair they had planned for her. It was a modest basement under a temporary haunt they had picked out for just this occasion.
In the center of the room was a dentist’s chair. Joker had snatched it from an old dental office and made some modifications with it- metal bands, a strapping belt, and a head restraint to keep whatever victim he chose subdued. Harley and Joker were ready to try it out. After laying her into the seat, they strapped Batgirl in. Harley kissed Batgirl on the check before giving it a little rub. “I was just kidding about ya being a blob. You’re humongous. Still so cute though!”
“And she’ll be way cuter when I’m done with her,” Joker said with a teasing grin. He looked down at Batgirl, studied her, and made sure she was securely strapped against the seat. “Hold on to your capes! It’s gonna be a funny night. Hahahahahahaha!!!”
“It’s always a funny night with you, Mistah J,” Harley said with deer wide eyes aimed directly at her boss.
“What can I say, Harl doll- I keep their attention. And if jokes fail...” The Joker ran towards a nearby closet and wheeled out a television on an AV cart. “I got a killer variety hour show!” Joker chuckled as he wheeled the cart in front of Batgirl. “Harley, babe, you may wanna step behind the TV here with me, unless you wanna get some boob tube drainage yourself.”
“Oooh!” Harley wisely stepped away from Batgirl, who she had been mocking the whole time, in order to stand next to Joker. She knew that she would be a fool to be anywhere in front of the screen after Joker turned it on.
Joker’s finger pressed the on button. The screen flicked with a low light before coming into full view. A spinning black and white spiral moved slowly and hypnotically. Joker’s theme song played brilliantly from the television’s speakers.
Batgirl was starting to stir. “Uh... uh...” Her eyes flickered softly. As her head moved a bit more upright, Batgirl’s eyes were transfixed to the screen almost immediately. Her eyes seemed to dilate before widening.
“That’s my girl,” Joker said with a grin before sneering. “Look into the spiral, Batgirl. Look into your new life.”
“New... life?” Batgirl looked into the spiral, held captive, though her mind was still trying to fight. “I... uh... no.”
“There’s nothing you can do, Batgirl,” Joker said, grinning again. “Nothing, except for, well, being happy.”
“Joker can make you happy, Batgirl,” Harley confirmed.
“No he... can’t.” Batgirl’s eyes couldn’t stray away from the spiral, but she knew that she couldn’t let Joker win. Not like this. “Joker’s... evil. He can’t make anyone happy... not.. genuinely happy.”
“No!” Joker shouted. “No, you nincompoop! I am not evil. Your sense of morals are! Your Gothamite righteousness, your bats in the belfry ideas of justice- that’s evil! Trying to keep me, the greatest comedian of all time, from having fun! From telling some jokes, having some laughs. Well, let me tell you something, Batgirl!” Joker’s finger’s pressed against the top of the television like the talons of an eagle. “You’re not going to be Batgirl much longer. Oh no. In fact, you’re going to be the perfect replacement for a long time obsession of mine. One that chose to betray my legacy recently. You’ll make up for her flimsy mind. Yes. You’ll do perfectly.”
“Crazy... talk,” Batgirl said.
“Yes! Crazy talk! I love to go crazy! And you will, too! For soon, you will be my loving and doting daughter- Duela Dent!”
“N... no.”
“Duela Dent, the Joker’s Daughter.” Joker rubbed his hands together, laughing as Harley squealed and clapped for him. “Duela... damned rotten brat decided that she’d rather be Riddler’s daughter and help him solve Scobby Doo clues or something. Idiot... but you, Batgirl! You will see my perfect vision to a T! The ultimate domination and ruling of an ignorant Gotham metropolis. Why, me, you, and Harley will turn Gotham into a circus! And we all know Batman and Robin can’t stop us! No, not with you aboard.”
The mind controlling television continued to spin it’s spiral. Although part of Batgirl was going to get mummified, she was drooling a bit at the mouth as her mind was getting tighter, her control smaller... she could even tell the speed of the spiral was increasing. Her skin was sweaty, especially her forehead and her palms. She was straining. Mentally, she was trying to maintain who she was- Batgirl, the superheroine, the crimefighter. She tried to remember her alter ego, the librarian, Barbara Gordon. She had just seen her father that night, kept her secret hidden, for the good of Gotham, for the sake of the world. Batgirl, Barbara Gordon- those were her identities. Duela Dent, however...
“No... I can’t... be her.”
“You must! You must! You have no other choice, Bat brat! Accept it!”
“Boss,” Harley interjected, “I think you’re hurting her!” She smiled.
“Well, damn, I hope so!” Joker exclaimed. “What fun would this be if I wasn’t hurting her?”
“Shattering her mind,” Harley said.
“Making her brain tremble.”
“Losing all sanity and focus.”
“Helplessly feeling her old self fade disintegrate into dust.”
“Stop it,” Batgirl said. “Stop...” She was getting weaker. Her body was shaking. All sense was breaking down.
“Stop what, Batgirl?” Joker asked. “The spiral? The brainwashing? The screen? What should I stop? Because I can’t stop one without the other, and I can’t stop any without one.”
“S...”
“Perhaps you would like me to keep them all on?”
“S.... yes.”
“Huh?”
“Yes... keep them all on.”
“Now that’s more like it.” Joker chuckled before turning to Harley. “She what I said, Harley gal? Takes a little while to kick in with this heroic types sometimes.”
“Real die hards,” Harley said with rolling eyes.
“Buzzkills. But you’re not a buzzkill anymore, are you, Batgirl?”
“I, er.... the machine.”
“The machine? Yes. It’s getting you prepared for your new identity. Duela Dent.”
“Duela... Dent...”
“Yes. The Joker’s daughter. My daughter. It’s a way better name and title than.... say... Batgirl.”
“But... Batgirl...”
“Yes, Duela?”
“Batgirl... is...”
“Dead. She’s dead, yes?”
“.... yes.”
“Good.” Joker grinned, seeing Duela falling into her new role perfectly. “Now, Duela, we’ve got a lot of work because you’re very stubborn. Now, whenever daddy or Harley here says tells you, ‘let’s have some laughs’... well... you’d damn better get into your role as the Joker’s Daughter. Duela Dent. Got it?”
“I... er... yes, daddy.”
“Now that’s more like it. Heh! No more of this Batgirl stuff. Now... when daddy says “That’s enough Jokes for today” then you can get back to your boring, fake life as Batgirl, or whoever you are when that stupid cowls off... which we’ll find out soon enough before the night is out. Got it?”
“Yes... daddy.”
Harley nodded as she folded her arms. “Batgirl’s pretty obedient, Joker.”
“To me, at least,” Joker explained. “You just have to know how to talk to these types. Besides- I’m going to be the only thing she’ll need to be obedient to for the rest of her life. Now, Batgirl... I want you to just keep looking at that spiral. In a few seconds, you’re going to tell me everything about your alter ego- your name, where you work, etc. I’m going to need you, daytime and night. We’ll have so many laughs together.”
“So many... laughs.”
“Isn’t laughing fun, Duela?” Harley asked.
Batgirl laughed in response.
“That’s right, Duela.” Joker grinned. “You can only have fun doing bad. Crime is fun. Crimefighting is boring and bad.”
Batgirl seemed to catch herself in the brainwashing dilemma. No, her mind thought out of nowhere, no... this isn’t right. “No.”
“Yes, Batgirl. Crime is funny. Hilarious! Crime fighting is lame. Horrible.”
“No...”
“Justice dulls the senses... makes people bad.”
“It.... does... it makes people... bad.”
“Yes. And crime is fun!”
“Crime is... so much fun.”
Joker laughed hysterically.
“Crime is... fun. Crime is fun.”
“Yes! And justice is evil.”
“Justice... is evil. Like Batgirl.”
“Yes! That’s right! But Batgirl isn’t real anymore. Duela Dent is in charge now!”
“No... I’m not in charge...I... only make laughs... for Joker. THE Joker.”
Joker’s hands still held onto the surface of his brainwashing TV. The screen continued to hold the spinning spiral. It’s speed was so high.
“I’m... Duela Dent. Crime is... fun.”
“Yes! Crazy is fun!”
“Crazy is fun.”
“Heroism is for the birds!”
“Robins.”
“Hahahahaha!” Joker clapped his hands together joyously as Harley whistled and clapped like it was New Years.
“Here, here!” Harley said, commending her new comrade.
“That’s pretty good, Duela.” Joker walked up to his new Duela and pulled off the old Batgirl cowl. He gasped at what he saw. He recognized the face instantly. Standing before him was the one and only Barbara Gordon, Gotham Librarian, and most importantly, daughter of Commissioner Gordon.
“I can’t believe this,” Joker said.
“Believe it,” Harley said was a grin.
Duela stared at Joker with a devoted, brainwashed gaze. “Yes, Joker?”
“Y... you’re Barbara Gordon!”
“I was Barbara Gordon, secretly. It doesn’t matter. Barbara Gordon is dead. You can call me Duela now.” Barbara gave a wicked smile.
Joker grinned. “That’s what I like to hear.” Joker snapped his fingers. “Harley. Turn that TV off behind me, will you?”
Harley did as she was told.
Joker loosened the bonds and restraints on Batgirl.
Batgirl stood up, slipping an arm around Joker’s. “What would you like me to do now, daddy?”
“Well, you can’t be a proper Duela without assuming the proper role, darling.” Joker licked his lips. “It’s time to dress up.”
“Yes, Joker,” Duela said softly. She hadn’t fully slipped into her role yet, still in a puppet state of loyal obedience. Joker knew from experience that, sometimes, the assumed role would kick in when the mind controller least expected it, but he was ready for it.
Joker slipped Duela’s old Batgirl clothes down to the floor as Harley grabbed the articles up in her arms. Duela was naked. What a sight to behold, Joker thought. Perked nipples, brazen skin, and smooth features that looked like they were chiseled from clay. Duela’s physique was impressive, her legs especially strong. Joker couldn’t help but give her nipples a little pinch.
As Joker’s hands came to Duela’s red hair, he pouted. “Let’s do something about that... awful hair color before we get you dressed.”
Joker brought Duela to a nearby bathroom. There was some green hair dye that he prepared especially for her. Standing at the door, he watched as Harley dyed Batgirl’s hair on command. With the water helping the dye mix perfectly with the hair, Harley checked under the light to make sure she could get as close to the root as possible.
Looking at Duela’s hair when Harley was done, Joker gave his nod of approval. “Perfect.”
“Almost perfect, boss,” Harley said.
Harley pulled out her makeup kit and worked quickly. She covered Duela’s face and neck with white greasepaint before powdering away with talc and a powder brush. Making sure the white covered as much of her skin as possible, Harley then pulled out her red lipstick and rubbed it on Duela’s lips. The harlequin smiled as she inspected Duela’s face. “There we go! All better!”
“I’ll say,” Duela agreed before giggling a bit. “I was ready to get my real face on.”
“Weren’t we all,” Joker said with a nod and a grin, happy to see Duela’s personality slowly rise to the surface.
“It would be nice to get my clothes on now, daddy,” Duela said as she stared at Joker with delight.
“Alright, alright,” Joker said playfully with a chuckle. “Hold your horses. Let’s go.”
Harley and Joker lead Duela to her dress room. There, she saw her signature clothes, fit for the Joker’s daughter. There was her purple top with a matching green vest and bow tie so she could proudly represent the Joker, tight fitting purple shorts that would showcase her beautiful legs, and her own joke carnation that would be a perfect storage unit for acid. Along with her flower arsenal, she even had a cute little purple top hat to wear.
Joker grinned as he placed a hand on Duela’s back. “Well, don’t just stand there, babe- try them on!”
“Oh, of course, Joker,” Duela said with a sly fox smile. “I can’t showcase my father’s wonderful legacy without the beautiful clothes he’s provided for me... or the toys.”
Joker could hardly contain his glee as he watched Duela snap on her purple top without a bra. The nipples showed perfectly against the fabric before she slipped her new green vest on. After making sure it was nice and tight against her, Duela pulled on the shorts. No panties or lingerie would be worn at all, even though Joker had provided a magenta pair just in case. This was actually better, Joker thought to himself. As he saw Duela pull on purple socks with The Joker’s face emblazoned on them, he thought he would just lose it. After she finished slipping on some fine fitting green high heels, Joker could hardly believe his luck as he saw the perfect Duela Dent standing before him.
“Duela,” Joker said, waiting for someone to pinch him out of a dream.
“You were expecting maybe the commissioner’s daughter?”
Joker watched in awe as Duela crossed the floor towards him. Wrapping an arm around Joker’s neck and staring into his eyes, Duela rubbed her nose against his.
“No. I’m the Joker’s daughter. The one and only.”
Harley folded her arms jealously. “Hmph!”
Joker held Duela close before leaning in and kissing her. He was amazed with how soft her lips were. His hands moved through her hair with a strong grip before pulling back.
“Mmm,” Duela answered. “What next?”
“What next?” Joker grinned. “Well, for the rest of our night, we’ll have our little fun. But tomorrow, I’m going to send you into Gotham. You’re going to resume your little life as Barbara Gordon, not suspecting a thing. When I call you, and by my command, you will come back to your new identity as Duela Dent, my daughter, and commit whatever crimes I have in store for you. Is that understood?”
Duela Dent smiled as wide as a demon. “Of course, Joker.”
“Good.” Joker snapped Harley over. His moll slide under left arm as Duela slid under his right. “Now, we’re going to have a little slumber party.”
End of Part One