Requested by anonymous for Coulrophobia 6 but i don’t know if the story can continue or whatever how about some jokerBatdad spending some family bonding time with the bat/joker fam
No one ever informed you how hectic being a public figure was going to be.
At least back in your stand-up days, nobody knew who you were.
But now, with Gotham starting to become actually a rather nice place to live, it means you and your family are finding less of a reason to go out on patrol.
There are still crimes, but there's not a supercriminal every week and even the more minor crimes are actually being handled by the police, and if not the police, then the Joker Gang.
You're far better off than you were, wow, so long ago now, when you first went into the vat.
You've redeveloped somewhat of a sense of boundaries, and you no longer burst out into inappropriate laughter - at least, you do so less often.
your skin and hair have completely returned to normal by now, and you've begun to feel comfortable in the Manor. For years, you had only been happy in the Batcave, but now... it was like you were returning to, not normal, but... feeling healthy.
You help Dick practice his trapeze and acrobatics, drilling all your kids and Bruce on how to fall properly, how to make your movements less predictable
You work with Prank to perfect his gadgets and tactics, and help Harley with her hammer
But more often, lately, Bruce has been letting you drag him out of the Batcave up to bed and letting you keep him there, and its much less of a struggle than usual
This helps you bond more with Jason and Damian, actually - you all have to struggle with returning to a normal that you've never really had.
And Bruce has to confront the idea that Batman may no longer be needed
It's an idea that is both fearsome and enticing, and Bruce wonders what it says about him that you voice his very fears when you tell him how scared you are that without being the Joker, you're just a traumatized crazy man.
Bruce simply kisses you that moment and goes to shut down the Batcave. "You were never the Joker, my love. He was you, and you are the most beautiful man I know. One who always puts a smile on my face. I don't know what we're going to do now, either, but I do know we'll do it together.
For a few weeks, everything is... peaceful. You and Bruce make sure a couple of people on the street who you've been profiling get some Batsuits and gadgets, and enough of them take to the streets to keep the Bat alive, even if it is no longer Bruce under the cowl.
The first month, Jason becomes the Bat and Tim his Robin, and for the first time, you stay home. Dick stays home. Damian stays home.
You spend the whole night in bed with your husband - it's hard to sleep when you've conditioned yourself over a decade to sleep during the day in shifts and you're stunned when morning comes and you haven't gone crazy.
Yes, there are times when it gets boring, but even this boredom feels like a gift. After years of overwork, having so much less to do feels illegal, somehow, but it's true. You spend time with Bruce, doing things you'd never have done otherwise because of the lack of time. You get to make up for lost time with Damian and Dick - and when Jason and Tim finally work the vigilante out of themselves, they join you.
Two weeks after Jason and Tim have retired, you and Bruce are visited by Clark Kent - whom Bruce has deduced is truly Superman, and Diana Prince, Wonder Woman.
They ask you both to join in on a plan to form a Justice League, to push back other supervillains.
But you. You've done so much work to cope with your trauma, to turn it into something beautiful. You've inspired Gotham, the world, with your resilience and strength. And now, you've found yourself a rest. You've done what was needed, more than what was needed. And Bruce can't take that from you.
He swore that night, during your grief for Jason, that he'd never lose you. That he'd do whatever that took.
And that means giving up Batman.
You don't let him decline - but the two of you join only in advisory capacity.
So you help out Bruce sometimes as he shows Diana and Clark how best to help people help themselves, giving little pushes where needed and taking down the worst of the villains
And the rest of the time, you spend it with your family, becoming... normal.
