Original prompt by: /u/bellchilton

At first he was comfortable.

He swayed back and forth. A gentle rocking motion that soothed. As time passed, as he slowly woke, he realized it was not soothing as he thought. His head was getting heavier and heavier, straining his neck. He was losing feeling in his feet, something tight encircling his ankles.

His eyes flickered open and he saw his world upside down.

The realization shocked him awake. The man found himself dangling by his feet. A thick rope tied around his ankles kept him from falling to the cold concrete above, technically below, him.

Mismatched eyes looked about, rolling before seeing a shadowed figure sitting before a fire. "Hey! Get me down, right now!"

The figure ignored the man. It stayed seated, it's features unclear due to the bright fire.

Eventually the dangling man heard a noise, something different from the creaking rope, the crackling fire, his own harsh breathing. It was the sound of flesh on metal, of air whistling around a small object. His eyes narrowed as he saw something glint, something that flipped up and down reflecting the fire light.

"That's MINE!" Harvey Dent, Two-Face, the fallen District Attorney of Gotham screamed. He hung with impotent rage, hands outstretched as if to summon his coin. "You scum bag! That's my coin you bastard and I'm going to kill you!"

The seated shadow's shoulders shook. At first it seemed the shadow was truly frightened by the criminal's curses. However no sounds of shock or fear left the shadow. They were not the hunch of those avoiding attention, curled to avoid attention. They shook with uncontrolled hilarity. They shook with laughter.

"Ha. Ha ha. Ha ha ha. Hahahahahahaha-"

A familiar laugh filled the dark factory. It rang from the walls, echoing weirdly on itself. The building amplified the laughter, deepening it, coloring it with sinister intent. It was a laughter of uncontrolled hilarity. It was a laughter unbound by sanity. It was a clown's laugh. The, Clown's laugh.

Two-Face gaped, his curses dying in the face of the laughter. He could only watch as the shadow rose and slowly meandered towards him. The shadow gained features as it strode closer to the hung criminal. A smart purple suit. Pale marble skin. Lips peeled back from ivory teeth.

The Joker walked slowly, flipping Two-Face's coin.

"Harvey...." The Joker stretched the word out into a long sibilant hiss. "How's it hanging?"

"Joker." Two-Face glared. "What's the meaning of this? Are you insane?" He flushed as the Joker laughed even harder. "Even more insane? Get me down and give me back my coin."

"Now why would I do that? It took me a long time to hang you up. I thought you would appreciate the drama of being trussed up like that. It's so much easier to tie someone to a chair. Don't you like hanging upside down? Like a bat?" The Joker spat the last word. His merry features turned ugly for a split second.

"No, I don't." Two-Face felt a different chill slide down, up, his spine. "I really don't. What do you want? Money? I got plenty for you. Someone put you up to this? I'll triple what they're paying you. Just get me down."

Joker flipped the coin and caught it, looking idly at the face of the coin. "I really don't feel like it Harvey. You see, I'm a bit depressed and it's so hard to find the motivation to do things."

Two-Face snorted. "You? Depressed? Don't make me laugh."

Joker grinned. "You know the funny thing? I don't try to... make people laugh. I really don't. In fact, lots of people don't seem to find me funny. Isn't that even sadder? A clown that can't make people laugh."

"I got better things to do than to listen you wax poetic." Two-Face resisted the urge to spit. He did not think it would have the same effect while hanging upside down. "Isn't that side kick of yours some kind of shrink? Why isn't she listening to you whine?"

Joker continued to flip the coin. "She's busy. Besides, I have a question for you."

"You could have just called." Two-Face did spit this time and he was right, it was not nearly as satisfying or intimidating like this. "Fine, I'll answer your question and you let me go."

"Can a person change? If they want to change, is it better to change the how, or the why?"

Two-Face stared blankly for long moments before he started to laugh. His laugh was deep, a laugh that was half pain and half amusement. It was a deep laugh that was dragged up from the core of his being, tinged with smoke and cruelty. "Oh you're a philosopher now? What brought this about? Why me?"

Joker did not join in the laughter. "Because you're Harvey Dent, now known as Two-Face. You were up there, among the best and brightest Gotham had to offer. You were one of the 'good guys'. One of the ones that took people like me and locked us away to keep people safe. And look at you now. I mean, not literally now hanging upside down. You went from the tippy top and slid to the-"

The former District Attorney tried to punch but he could only swat ineffectively without leverage. "Don't you bring that up," he snarled. "I know what I was, and know what I am now. I know you know, so don't you give me that crap. When I get out of here I'm going to make you pay."

"Really? Without this telling you if I should?" Joker flipped the coin. "The problem with gimmicks is that when you don't have one anymore, you're crippled. I see you staring at it, wanting it. Desperate for it to tell you what to do. You took a shtick and ran too far with it."

"You're not immune to that." Two-Face tried to ignore the truth in the Clown's words. He felt his stomach chill slightly.

"My thing is a lot less...material than this though."

"What's this really about Joker?"

"I TOLD YOU," the Joker screamed. "I am...depressed. The main reason I do things, the reason why I do anything, did anything, it's gone. A part of me is dead. I'm having trouble coping."

"What are you talking about-"

Joker's hand flashed. The crack of the impact spun Two-Face around. "Don't lie. You know exactly what I'm talking about."

"You're talking about the Batman."

"Yes, about how you and the others killed him."

Two-Face's laugh had a taste of hysteria. "Of course we did. We've always tried to kill the Batman!"

"I never did. I. Never. Tried. Why would I? How could I kill the other player in the Game? I knew that if he stopped playing, then there would be no reason for me to play. The Game would be boring. How would I fill my days?"

"Getting rich? Ruling the city? Literally anything!"

Joker snorted. "I didn't want any of that. I don't care about money or power."

"Then what do you want?"

"I wanted to keep playing! I want the smartest man in the city, no the world, to continue to play the Game! I wanted to try and outsmart him. I wanted to beat him. But I can't anymore! You took that from me!"

Two-Face could only gape. "Well...I don't...I mean...." He swallowed thickly. "Why did you ask me if people changed earlier?"

"Because the Game changed. If the Game changes, then I have to change. I can't keep playing it like I used to. There's no point. So I wanted to ask you if I could change." Joker laughed but it sounded like a sob. "Yet, I don't think I can change like you. We're too different you and I. I can't change the way I think, who I am. It wouldn't make sense."

Joker's grin returned as he lifted his hand, the one without the coin. A gun came up, the barrel pointed at Two-Face. "What makes sense though, is the why. I'm still the Clown Prince of Crime. I'm not going to change how I do things. But I can change why. I can't play the Game like I used to. So I'll play it like He used to."

"No! Wait! You don't have to do this! If you do this, you wouldn't be doing what the Batman did. He never killed!"

A look of sheer sadness filled Joker's eyes. It clashed terribly with his rictus smile. "But I'm not the Bat. I'm the Joker. You idiots took what mattered most to me. So I'll take what matters most to you. Ha. Haha. Hahaha. HahaHaHaHAHAHAHAHA-"