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“Wakey wakey, little bird!”
Duke opened his eyes blearily. The bleached white face and bright red grin inches from his face was enough to wake him up completely.
“Rise and shiiine, Signal! I’m soo excited to finally meet you!”
Duke scrambled back, but Joker grabbed his ankle and held it fast. He tutted disapprovingly. “Now now, that’s not nice, is it Sunny? You hurt your Uncle J, you really do.”
Duke glared at him, though he wasn’t sure how well it translated through the lenses of his helmet. From the way the Joker’s already wide eyes widened in mock hurt, he got the sentiment.
Duke wasn’t tied to anything, though his hands were tied behind his back. It seemed like a rush job- it would be fairly easy to get out of these knots. It would probably only take a few minutes. Joker had really underestimated him; or, he had heard that the Signal recovered from knockout gas quicker than the others, and hadn’t had much time. Either way, Duke was grateful.
There was an awful scraping sound as Joker dragged a crowbar across the warehouse floor. “Now, what shall I do with the little day-bat…” he mused. He swung the crowbar, slamming it into Duke’s side. He gasped in pain and started working at the knots faster.
He swung again, hitting the same spot on Duke’s side. He winced and scooted back. The Joker just laughed and stepped forward.
“You’re not quite as fun as Robin Two was,” he said, laughing, “but I think you’ll get there. We’re going to be the best of friends, you and I.”
“No thank you,” Duke gasped. He managed to free his hands, and reached for his escrima sticks- which were missing, of course. Dammit.
The crowbar caught him on the other side, this time. Duke suppressed a whimper. He moved back, scrambling to his feet and dodging the next swing.
“Stop moving, Sunny!” Joker laughed again, but he sounded annoyed. “C’mon, let’s have some fun!” He swung the crowbar menacingly.
“I’m good,” Duke said, stepping back. “Why don’t we- why don’t we talk about this, yeah?”
The Joker paused, considering. “Talk about it?” he asked. Duke knew he was just humoring him- giving him hope before yanking it away. He’d take what he could get.
“The Bats have told me a lot about you,” Duke said slowly.
Joker raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
“I know your parents abandoned you,” he started. “I know your adoptive parents were abusive. I know you were bullied in school.”
Duke stepped forward. “I also know,” he said lowly, “that you are a bold faced liar.”
Joker opened his mouth to say something, but Duke didn’t give him a chance.
“You can fool Gordon, and you can fool Harley, you can fool Nightwing and Red Hood and Oracle and Red Robin, and you can fool the goddamn Batman, but you cannot fool me, Jack Napier.”
For the first time that day, Joker looked genuinely unnerved. “You- how did you-“
“Wasn’t all that hard. Y’know the thing that gave it away? Your smile.” Duke laughed. “I found your old dental records, from before you came to Gotham. Matched perfectly with Arkham’s.”
He stepped closer. “Who would’a thought. The Joker actually made a good joke! I mean, Gotham’s own Prince of Crime being born and raised in Bludhaven? It’s hilarious!”
“Shut up!” he snarled. Duke saw the crowbar coming seconds before he actually swung it, and easily sidestepped.
“I know exactly who you are,” Duke said in a sing-song voice. “I know you.”
“No you don’t,” he said, sounding a little hysterical. “No one does. That’s the whole point.”
“Well, I do,” Duke told him. “I know that you didn’t kill your parents. Your mom died a couple years back from a heart attack, right? And your dad killed himself a few months later.”
“Stop talking!”
Duke giggled. “I thought you liked it when people talked about you.”
“Gah!”
Duke easily dodged his next three swings. He didn’t even need his future vision- Joker was much sloppier in his anger.
“I know that you had a wife named Jeanie. She died in an electrical fire- her and your unborn son.”
The Joker made a strangled noise. “Don’t- don’t talk about her.”
Duke hummed. “I’m so sorry for your loss.”
This time, Duke caught the crowbar and wrenched it from his hands. Joker fell forward, and Duke hit the back of his knees. Joker rolled onto his back, breathing heavily.
“I went to visit her grave the other day,” Duke told him, slamming the crowbar into his chest. “In Gotham Cemetery. There’s an empty plot right next to her.”
Joker scrabbled at the warehouse floor, trying to get to his feet. Duke didn’t let him.
He swung, over and over, hitting every vulnerable spot he could think of. Blood pooled on the ground, splattered on his armor, soaked the garish suit the Joker always wore. Duke could hear his bones snapping.
“You’re going to die here,” he said, swinging the crowbar back and forth, “quietly and quickly, like your father did. And no one will mourn. No one will celebrate. There will be no funeral, there will be no parade. No one will know, and no one will care. You will die like everyone else does. And I’m going to bury you in Gotham Cemetery, next to your wife and unborn child.”
“Because you are just a man, Jack,” he said, his voice soft and deadly, “and that’s how I’m going to bury you.” He brought the crowbar down, and Joker’s ribs broke with a sickening crack. He swung again and again, until the Joker was well and truly dead.
He stepped back, his chest heaving. The crowbar clattered to the floor. He reached for his comm, his hands shaking, and clicked onto the Red Hood’s frequency- the only person who might have their comms on, and frankly the only one he wanted to help him hide a body.
“Hood, you workin’?” he asked. His voice was surprisingly steady.
“Yup. Talkin’ with the working girls. You need somethin’?” came the answer. Duke relaxed a little at his brother’s voice.
“…Yeah,” he admitted. “Can you come down to East End? I’ll send you the address.”
Jason hummed. “Alright. What are we dealin’ with here?”
Duke bit his lip. “It’s… hard to explain.”
Jason snorted. “What, you need help with hiding a body or somethin’?”
Duke was silent.
“Holy shit, you actually do!” Jason said gleefully. “Sunshine boy actually killed someone! I’m so proud, Duchess. I’ll take you out for ice cream later.”
“Just shut up and get over here,” Duke grumbled.
Jason laughed. “Yeah yeah, I’m on my way.”
Duke grinned, and sat on a crate to wait for his brother.