Chapter Text
Bruce overheard criminals talking during stakeouts or while patrolling the city pretty often. Their conversations were usually not a large worry or anything to pay mind to at all. However, he had heard two mafiosos talking about how their gang, the Pavone family, was planning to “get rid” of all the other “big” gangs in some sort of spectacle to prove their superiority. The conversation was shorter lived than Bruce had hoped, but he knew he needed more information. He needed to get close to this gang, so he found as much information on the Pavone crime family as he could.
From what he found, the Pavone gang was known for being extravagant. They threw many parties; for most holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, almost anything really. It turned out that their leader, Gianmarco Pavone, had an anniversary with his wife next month on August 14th. Perfect, Bruce would sneak into the party as Matches Malone, and gather as much information as he could about the Pavone’s plan to knock off other gangs in Gotham. Bruce wanted to prevent as much bloodshed as he could.
Eventually, the appointed night arrived. Bruce transformed himself into Matches Malone. He wore a simple black suit, a pair of sunglasses, and a fake, black mustache. He entered the Batmobile and brought it to an alleyway near the residence of the Pavone family. When he exited the vehicle, he sent it back to the Batcave before looking over the mansion.
It was as lavish as his research lead him to believe it would be. It was a large, off-white manor with ornate trimming outlining the building. The roof was a darker color than the rest of the abode, letting the cream stand out even brighter. There were plenty of windows and doors, so Bruce had no doubts that sneaking in wouldn’t be difficult.
He found a quieter, empty room near the back of the mansion to slip into through the room’s window. It seemed to be an office of some sort. He pressed his ear against the door separating this room from the rest of the manor before exiting safely. He wandered for a bit, but it didn’t take long for him to find the ballroom where the most people seemed to be. He sneakily blended in with the crowd, but not long after, he was noticed by someone.
“Hey, pal, don’t believe I evah seen you before.” The man stated, extending his hand to Bruce.
“Matches Malone. I’m new.” Bruce replied, placing on a fake New Jersey accent as he shook the man’s hand.
“Maurizio Pavone. Good ta meetcha. When did you get initiated? I feel like I usually at least recognize mosta the faces around here.”
“A month or two ago.”
“Oh, so you’re new new. Had ta make a good impression to be invited to one of these so fast.”
“Well, you tell me.” Bruce joked, earning a chuckle from Maurizio.
Just then, a woman approached the two of them. She had long, dark hair and dark eyes. She was gaunt and very tall, close to Bruce’s own height actually. She sported a heavy amount of makeup, smoky eyes and a bold, red lip. Her eyelashes were long and curved. She was wearing a long, violet dress, sheer, black tights, and black heeled boots. She had a purse that matched her dress hanging on her arm. Bruce swore she looked familiar.
“Matches, baby, I’ve been lookin’ for you everywhere! Where ya been? Who’s this?” The woman greeted excitedly as she grabbed Bruce’s shoulders. She had a heavy New Jersey accent, she sounded kind of like Harley Quinn, but lower.
Bruce was beyond confused before the woman flashed him a very distinct smile and Bruce’s heart dropped.
No.
How?
The height and the gaunt nature made more sense. This was by far the most convincing disguise the Joker had ever worn, no one except for Bruce would be able to tell. But why was he here? What did he want? Whatever, he had to play along for now to avoid raising suspicion.
“Maurizio Pavone.” Bruce answered, gesturing to Maurizio.
“Oh, of the family himself.” The Joker commented as if it was very impressive. “Hi, nice ta meetcha, I’m Fiammetta! But you can just call me Fia, most people do. I’m Matches’ girlfriend.”
It took everything in Bruce not to put the clown next to him in a chokehold.
“Charmed.” Maurizio responded, grabbing Fia’s hand and pressing a kiss to it.
“Well, so am I.” The clown giggled coyly.
“I’ll let you two enjoy the party. Welcome to the family.” Maurizio nodded before stepping away.
Bruce grabbed the Joker by the wrist, tugging him out of the room and into the hallway. He walked them far away enough that their conversation wouldn’t be heard if they were quiet enough.
“What the hell are you doing?” Bruce demanded with a whisper, earning a small laugh from the clown.
“I knew you’d be here. The whole Pavone situation was way louder than intended, huh?” The Joker claimed before sighing. “Listen, you can relax, I’m here to help.”
“Why would you want to help with this?”
“You really haven’t gotten the full story on this whole thing. I bet you didn’t know Batman was roped into all of this, did you?”
“What?”
“Oh, Bats, nothing in Gotham that involves your intended murder doesn’t go through me.”
“Intended murder?”
“You think Mr. Gianmarco Pavone wouldn’t worry about the one-and-only dark knight putting an end to his plot after people started to gossip? Please.”
“What are you proposing?”
“You let dear little Fia stick around and I’ll give you extra information.”
“Why would you want that?”
“I’m bored. And once I thought that you’d probably show up to one of these things, I had the idea of crashing the party. Then, I decided that this was much more entertaining.”
Bruce thought for a long moment. There was really no motivation for the Joker to stab him in the back during this. Bruce knew that the Joker didn’t ever really want him dead, even if neither of them acknowledged that. Also, any information would be useful right now. The only downside would be the unhelpful complications. If the Joker had any sort of scheme, Bruce couldn’t lock him up in Arkham because Fia needed to show up for the parties. This let him do as much as he wanted for however long the Pavone business would take.
“What do you say?” The Joker questioned smugly.
“What crimes are you trying to get out of?”
“Oh, Batsy, I’m wounded! Do you really think so little of me?”
“Yes.” Bruce responded bluntly, earning a laugh from the man in front of him that Bruce prayed wasn’t too loud.
“Nothing, Bats, I promise. Now, I don’t plan to pause our regular routine, but I also don’t plan for anything extra. Things will be completely normal for us, I swear. Other than this whole ordeal.” He added with an amused titter.
“And after this is all over, you will go to Arkham for all the crimes that happen during this period of time.”
“I know you well enough to assume no differently.”
“… Fine.” Bruce decided begrudgingly, earning a very enthusiastic smile from the Joker.
“Well, then, let’s get back to the party! I’m sure they’re expecting us.”
The Joker led Bruce back to the ballroom. They spent most of the rest of the night chatting with different members of the gang. Most people ended up being very fond of Fia. The Joker knew how to manipulate, and that was on full display. At the end of the night, the clown pulled him aside.
“We should talk to Gianmarco.” The Joker announced confidently.
“Why?” Bruce wondered with a concerned tone.
“I have an idea. Just trust me on this one… How long did you say we’ve been in the family?”
“A month or two.”
“Perfect.”
This may be where he planned for it to all come crashing down. Bruce thought. He had no idea what the clown was plotting and talking to the head of the family was risky. He didn’t know what possessed him to follow along, but he did.
They approached Mr. Pavone, who was leaning against a wall in the ballroom. He had a glass of wine in one and a cigar in the other. He was an older man, maybe in his 50s or 60s. He was tall with broad shoulders. He was wearing a black, pinstripe suit.
“Mistah Pavone?” Fia fluttered her eyelashes.
“Yes?” Gianmarco prompted gruffly.
“I’m Fiammetta, this is Matches. We’re very new ta the family, but everyone’s been so kind to us these past two months. So, I had… a proposition.”
“What kind of proposition?”
“The whole… Batman situation. I think we’d be able ta help.”
“How so?”
“I have family membahs who are closely attached with certain criminals, and I might be able ta give you updates on what they know about the Pavone’s plans. Ya know how most of Gotham’s underworld gets when ya bring up the Batman. I can try to make sure they don’t come aftah us.”
“What kind of criminals?”
“The Jokah.”
“… You could steer the Jokah away from the Pavone’s?”
“I can do my best, Mistah Pavone. And I’d tell ya if there was any trouble comin’ our way.”
“That would be appreciated… Fiammetta, was it?”
“Most people call me Fia.”
“Keep me updated, Fia.”
The clown nodded politely before the two walked away from Mr. Pavone. Okay, it turns out he would be helpful. Getting trust from the head of the family would be extremely useful. The Joker could keep feeding him false updates, so they had a larger chance on being let in on the Pavone’s schemes.
Soon enough, the event had wrapped up and Bruce and the Joker walked to the Batmobile, which was parked away from the manor. As soon as they shut the doors of the vehicle, the Joker spoke.
“Tell me these windows are tinted.”
“They are.” Bruce replied simply.
“Great, cause these contacts are killing me.” The clown opened the violet purse and rustled around briefly for the container to hold his contacts before he took them out and put them away. Then, he took his wig off as well. “Pain is beauty.” He sighed dramatically.
“You chose how it would look.”
“Well, the longevity is questionable, but I had to think about it. I thought it should probably be convincing if we’re in this thing for the long haul, you know?”
“Why did you choose Fiammetta?”
“It means little flame in Italian. I’m the flame to your matches because, well, I’d be surprised if this didn’t all end in some sort of wildfire, so to speak.”
“That’s what we’re trying to avoid.”
“Sure, but even if the all the mobs fighting each other can be avoided, Batman facing Ol’ Pavie is inevitable.”
“… Is the voice just your Harley Quinn impression?”
”Hah! It’s good, right? She hates it.”
After a bit, they arrived at the Joker’s apartment complex. Bruce pulled the Batmobile in an alley nearby so that the car wouldn’t be spotted, nor the Joker getting out of it.
“I’ll see ya soon, Bats.” The Joker waved with a menacing smile before shutting the door and heading towards the building.
That likely meant that Bruce would see him before the next party. He couldn’t be surprised after the deal they’d made. He pulled away and headed for the Batcave. After all, there was still plenty of further research to be done on the Pavone family.