At Fearful Ends [Bullock]

[Jonathan Crane - Scarecrow]

The diner just off Main Street was lit up brightly in the dark streets of Gotham. It was particularly full for being a late night already, but it was the weekend and people were willing to risk the streets. He had been watching him for some time, keeping his distance and waiting for his chance to get close to him. Bullock had sat down at the diner and ordered his food like he always did, but this time Dr. Crane was sat next to him.

His collar on his jacket was pulled high and covered most of his face while he was tilted down toward the counter. A single cup of coffee was put in front of him, but all it did was steam. It warmed his hands but he never made a move to drink it in the hustle and bustle around him. Once Bullock was served his food and settled to eat he caught his chance.

Dr. Crane leaned his head close and turned his eyes toward the man whom he knew was already his enemy. His stare was ice, it was frigid and unforgiving for the man in front of him, but it was deeper than that. It was a lifeless stare that had nothing for anyone but fear and despair. “ Before you take a bite into that greased death trap of 900 calories and let it slither down your throat, I advise that you listen to me. I am going to need a favor from you a favor that you’re not going to know much about and that you will not fail me in delivering” His voice was stern and left no room for argument. He shifted in his position to make sure he could see him and knew exactly who he was.

Although he kept his gaze directly upon Bullock he still wanted to avoid exposure to the rest of the room. His face was very noticeable, and as much as he’d been on television it would cause a beautiful panic….But that could wait. It could wait until he got done what he needed to. But Dr. Crane wasn’t a stupid man, he didn’t show up to the diner unprepared. It was likely that Bullock would cooperate with him without incentive to do so.

“ And before you stop chewing and decide to do something you’re already afraid of doing…I’ll tell you that it would be in this diners best interest to cooperate…”

[Deleted]

Harvey was loved here, be was a good customer with a great love of breakfast food. He was chatting up the lady who ran the place. Her name was Betty, but Harvey tended to call her bets. She was over six feet tall, there was a rumor the Rick James song "Brickhouse" was written about her. Her accent was a combination of East End Gotham and Georgia. She brought Harvey his food and leaned over the counter, her bosom caused her weight to shift with ease into the counter top.

"There you go, Bull, you enjoy that, boo."

Harvey winked to Bets and smiled.

"Anything you bring me is always somethin' you mean for me to like, ma'am."

Bets smiled, running her hand through Harvey's hair and then tugging his ear lobe. He smiled to her and she just let go, turning away to get to it.

"I make breakfast for you anytime, honey."

Harvey delved into his food slowly, watching her as she went about her work. He gave an appreciative grunt under his breath before focusing on his food. He stopped at the words of the man beside him with a look that only implied more rage built beneath the surface with each word from his mouth.

He knew the voice. He knew exactly who it was. Harvey did not easily forget the voices of people who had to go be jackasses that made his job harder with all their crazy bullshit.

"Yada, Yada, make me scared, blah, call me names, just keep at it and let me know when you're ready to make you're threat. Seriously man, let's get to the point because I'm sure running into you is only going to make my night longer and more excrutiating.

Harvey picked up his coffee, looked at the other man, and lit a cigarette.

"By the way, excuse you, I have lost weight, I work at least 70 hours a week, I got woman problems, I think I deserve some simple pleasures, including bacon and eggs, ya inconsiderate jerk."

Harvey shook his head. These super criminals, yes they were bad people, but jeez you'd think you'd play this game with em enough that they might at least say at least one nice thing once in a while. It was a job, for them out was just a bunch of jack assery.

[Jonathan Crane - Scarecrow]

Dr. Crane had sunk into his moment and had got into the mood of doing his work. When he had already had control it wasn’t often that someone was able to throw him off of it, but the distracting and pointless remarks that left the officers mouth did. He stayed silent for a moment, almost at a loss for what to say. Did he really expect him to compliment him? A pointless effort…it would have been a lie anyway. He could state simple truths, like he had lost weight.

But what would be the point in making him falsely feel better about an effort he already couldn’t control? His insecurity about being thing was just as bad as his insecurity about being fat. Dr. Crane wasn’t exactly the epitome of health in comparison next to him but he was on the opposite scale. The doctor was a frighteningly thin man, someone that looked as if they’ve been malnourished. His hair was unkempt and strung, from sweating and working too hard without caring much about his personal health. It didn’t matter, all that mattered was the job that he needed done.

In an effort to move the conversation forward he needed to state a truth not a compliment. The officer had derailed the conversation and he needed to get him back to focus on the threat in the room and not his own insecurities about the way he looked….Though it was a pleasant thought for him that he stored in the back of his mind. “You’ve lost weight.” He stated a flat truth with nothing behind his voice. It wasn’t a compliment, but he could take it as he wished. There was no more danger now than there ever had been of Bullock catching up to him as he scaled walls and jumped over objects.

He sighed as the smoke from his cigarette hit his face. It was another reason why the man would never catch him. But the doctor needed to get back to his work.” I have 7 canisters of toxin hooked to this building…right now…ready to open the eyes of this diner whenever I please…” he licked his lips and slid closer, putting his hand on the counter. Dr. Crane never was one to care about personal space when it came to others, just himself. “I just need you to do one favor for me…a small gesture of what you falsely believe as valor…Just one….thing…” He offered him again the deal without telling him what it was. The people around him should have been enough incentive to accept, but if it wasn’t he always had another way in mind.

[Deleted]

Harvey gave him an untrusting eye. He took a long drag and nodded at the truth if his weight.

"Yes, I have. See it's not so hard to see things, is it."

Harvey took the cigarette from his mouth and a drink if his coffee. He huddled down, his ear a bit closer now. He set the coffee down and sighed.

"What? What do you want? I told you let's get to the point. What do I gotta do, this time, to keep this diner full of people unharmed?"

Bets whizzed by with a coffee pot, warming up people's cups with some fresh brew. She smiled to Harvey when she refilled his and smiled to Jonathan as well in passing, noting he was not drinking his. She continued about her work.

[Jonathan Crane - Scarecrow]

This type of man infuriated every part of him, but he wouldn’t let it rise. He’d ignore him, or pretend to like it had all been done before. He’d seen the cycle of professionals in and out doing this before. But he hadn’t tangled with him for a long while. He hadn’t even began to understand what terror was, but Dr. Crane had every intention to show him exactly what it was, But would he comprehend it?....No probably not. Men like him couldn’t….They wouldn’t dare face something that was as real as that when they could just embrace it.

But again the man was pushing him, demanding now and demanding his way. He made a lot of demands for someone that had….just lost weight. Dr. Crane knew he could turn circles around this man, he could lose him in seconds. All he would need to do is find a hole to crawl into….But he had no intention of crawling away. No, what he had in store was so much more than Bullock would ever see now.

Dr. Crane cleared his throat and licked his lips. His eyes seemed distant at first but locked with his to ensure he was still there. His mind was traveling through his next moves and how well this man would take it. “I just need you to arrest me…” He said softly, trying to lure him to the bait. But it was the truth. That was exactly what he needed him to do, right here in public.

“But I’ll give you a reason to besides my name…” His voice darkened as he warned him and then shoved out the stood from underneath Bullock with a hard kick to its bottom legs. He stood up and shed the trench that had been covering his view from the public and began to straighten the cuffs on his arms. He wasn’t done. He had been watching Bullock speak to this woman since he sat down…She would be a good trigger.

Dr. Crane hopped over the counter and the crowd around panicked and began to split. Some moved further away and others left as quickly as they could. The shrill shriek of a woman behind him made his head tilt and his body shiver with the high that came from it. What sweet symphony….He came closer to the woman that was nearly his height. “Tell me….What…Do….You….Fear… He threatened and eyed Bullock and he went to get something out of his pocket.

[Deleted]

Harvey looked at him, a half smirk.

"You sure about that?"

And a moment later his chair was kicked. He was on his feet without hesitation. He Grabbed the counter and slung himself over it with more skill than likely expected. Harvey was a bit of a hoss before, but now he could throw himself around a little easier. Lighter feet...

He grabbed Crane by the wrist when he reached for whatever the hell was in his pocket and used his other hand to press the man's back down, the goal being to make him kiss that counter top. He pinned him down while the hand on Crane's wrist went to the back of his own belt to get his hand cuffs.

"You got the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right or consult and attorney and the right to have one appointed if you cannot afford one, and the right to have one present during questioning. Do you understand these rights, wise guy?"

[Jonathan Crane - Scarecrow]

Bullock was able to throw his weight over the counter with relative ease. It was a change he wasn’t used to or prepared for but it was certainly welcome. After all he had taunted him to come over the counter, he just didn’t expect it to happen so quickly. Unfortunately that he wouldn’t be able to take the woman to her deepest place of fear.

Slam! His wrist was grabbed and suddenly his head was on the counter. He had planned all of this from the start, but to be handled so abruptly he was almost impressed with him. Bullock had come a long way from being just another officer. But in his eyes he was still blind, Bullock would never learn what only he could see and that would be the reason why he would fail in this. But for right now he was performing beautifully.

Dr. Crane spat on the counter and struggled within his grip. It was difficult to move more than a few centimeters either way with the pressure on him. He was a thinner man than Bullock, regardless of his previous…..”compliment”. “Whatever you lost….You picked up something.” He groaned from the counter and hissed when his wrist was pulled back.

The people around them that had stayed through the chaos cheered and praised Bullock for his capture. Each click of the cuffs going around his wrist was a testimate to his work and they recognized him for it. Everyone wanted to see the Scarecrow where they believed he belonged. But they were wrong, they were blinded by what society had birthed them to be, not what they truly were. How could they still be so blind even though the truth was right infront of them. The praise that left their mouths for Bullock was a product of the fear they had for him being loose. People didn’t want to face their fears, they wanted to bury them. Men like Bullock wanted to bury the truth but even now he had a hand in releasing it.

The Miranda rights he read echoed in his ears. His eyes twitched slightly remembering the day they were read to him in this exact same position as he was thrown over his own medical sink in his wing. The blood on his hands, with no bodies was enough to do this to him and now he was deemed a murderer with no bodies. It was an injustice, it was their fear of his mind and what he could do. “Do I have a choice?” He mocked back to the officer that held him. “It looks like you’ll have to take your meal to go.” He refused to answer such a stupid question as he understood. Of course he had….The goal was to get back to the car and taken where he needed to go.

[Deleted]

Bullock huffed and pulled Crane along. He gave a nod to the waitress and grimaced at people cheering.

"Ain't nothin to see here."

Once they were out to his car he patted Crane down.

"Any weapons or bullshit I should know about or find. You tell me now things are going to go a lot easier for you, Dr. Crane."

Harry thought this whole thing was weird. He had this little scratching in his skull that was telling him something funny was going on. He shot a quick text to Bivins and Montoya.

Just arrested Crane.
Something's up.
He asked me to arrest him.
What do you guys think?

After all that Harvey called in for back up. He was sure as hell not going to be transporting a criminal as prevalent as Jonathan Crane in his own personal vehicle. Within minutes other officers arrived and witnesses were being interviewed. Harvey called in a bit of what he needed to call in and filled out paperwork . Eventually he was given a beat car. The officer that drove it over would ride around with another car that had arrived on scene.

As he drove to HQ he looked in the rear view mirror.

"So. Any big plans once you're back on the chain gang?"

[Jonathan Crane - Scarecrow]

Dr. Crane took the pat down after he was taken outside. He didn’t struggle now and he didn’t fight like he could have, his demeanor was calm and patient as he sifted thought his clothes. Each time his hand swiped a place on his skin, it pulled a little. He didn’t enjoy people touching him unwarranted, but it came with what was going to happen. A better way to think of it was that this was all his idea, so it was entirely warranted. Of course there were going to be things on him. Dr. Crane watched as he pulled out two pocket gas masks, 5 syringes – 2 clear and 3 a bright neon yellow, and two silver canisters in his left pocket. There was an arsenal of Scarecrow weapons on him and he had come fully armed.

When those were taken away from him he sat with Bullock and waited for the beat car to arrive. He would have been slightly offended by the gesture, but he had destroyed plenty of cars in the past and it had probably become a precaution at this point. They were always so cautious around him; the thought almost brought a smile to his lips.

As the car pulled up Dr. Crane did everything he was asked and slipped into the car with little effort. He was a tall man, but had gotten into plenty of these cars in the past. Once the door was shut on him he leaned into the window and stared out of it. The doctor was never one to speak often in vehicles; it gave him a chance to think and gave his mind an opportunity to wander. He was a man of very few words in the first place, especially when it came to speaking with those he didn’t feel worthy enough.

Finally, his eyes rose to the mirror when Bullock broke the silence and dared to speak. He was trying to get something out of him as to why he did this. It was his insecurity rising about having him in the car and taking him exactly where he wanted to go. “ Yes, actually, I want to be taken to headquarters and start my processing to be transferred out of Arkham and into Blackgate….Or wherever else the city deems my sentence fits.” He spoke casually. To them it make have been a big deal to request such a thing, something that would have gotten him the death penalty if he wasn’t diagnosed insane. He knew that there were ways to reverse the process, to wouldn’t be difficult to get cross examined and marked sane again, he was never insane in the first place.

[Deleted]

Harvey couldn't help but smile. Crane wanted a lot of things, but that didn't mean he was getting them.

"Oh, zat so, Doc? Hmmm, well, its like the wise man once said, 'you can't always get what you want."

Harvey raised the radio to his lips and pressed down on the button.

"Bullock, northbound on thirty seventh, transporting suspect to location 8259. Over."

A pause and then a response came from the radio.

"Location 8259 is ready to accept you, Bullock. over.

"Thank you, over."

A moment later Harvey began to make a right turn on a street called Hayworth. At the end of the block there was a precinct. Harvey drove toward the garage under it.

"You see, I don't trust you too much, Doc. I don't like the sound in your voice or your better-than-thou little mouth. You commited a crime in this precinct, you get processed and held here just like every other schmuck that commits a crime here. You think you're some hot shot, rock star criminal? Think again, Doc. Though I will admit, I think you deserve Blackgate more than you do Arkham."

Harvey pulled up to the door and another officer came forward. He showed his badge and he nodded, giving a look to Crane in the backseat. Harvey then handed the armed officer the paperwork. The officer began to look it over.

[Jonathan Crane - Scarecrow]

The doctor kept his eyes on the officer that he’d come face to face with over so many years, in one way or another. He was just another blind man, walking to the edge of oblivion with his eyes closed, a false hope in his heart. He would never find what he was looking for in this life, because he wasn’t actually looking. He let his head roll to the side as he reminded him of the procedure as if it had become clockwork.

Indeed, he was going to go through the same process as every other criminal but he knew it was different. He didn’t get to sit in a cell in holding with the others. In fact he wasn’t even allowed to be around anyone. They had tried that in the past, leading to an inevitable escape. It took them long enough, but much like Arkham Asylum they too had become careful as to how they handled him. He was right not to trust him, but if he had actually been listening and heard him the first time he would have realized that it was already far too late. The moment that he chose to do as he said he had given up his control in the matter. Now the control had been handed over to Dr. Crane.

Dr. Crane finally brought himself forward off of the back of the cushion from the back seat. It could hardly be called a back support, but they weren’t looking for his comfort any more than he was. The doctor pressed his forehead to the gate in front of him as they pulled up to the all too familiar precinct. His voice hushed lower and stayed just behind the officers ear. “If I am a rock star and you send me back to where you always do, you’ll simply be delivering me into the sea which keeps it alive.” He rolled his lips and tried to stray from his cryptics. He didn’t find Bullock unintelligent enough to understand that he meant being delivered back to his fans, but it wasn’t the point.

“It seems we’re on the same page then Officer Bullock….I simply want a chance to turn myself in and be able to tell the truth….Then you’ll be able to send me to Blackgate.” He leaned back to his seat when the approached the other man and he caught his look from the back. His gaze stayed steady as he looked through the work that he had created for himself, for Bullock.

“Or you can make the same mistake…Over…and Over…again”

[Deleted]

Harvey looked as though he ignored him. Once the officer cleared them to enter Harvey pulled in to the garage. he parked and soon he was escorting Crane in. A uniformed officer patted him down again and cataloged all the things that had been his possessions. Some of it would likely go to evidence, others would simply be returned to him, eventually if he ever got to leave.

Another uniformed officer would escort him to go get his mugshot done and all that jazz while Harvey filed the paperwork with a few others. This process took an hour. Eventually Crane would be led to an interrogation room, he'd have to sit there for about fifteen minutes before someone showed up. The officer that showed up to interrogate him looked like a young and upcoming detective in this precinct. She was so cruelly attractive it seemed a bit impossible that she wore no make up aside from a little mascara and a shade of red on her lips. She was blonde, buxom, and extremely professional.

She walked in with the proper paperwork. She was quiet at first, paying little mind to Crane as she sat down across from him and got situated with her paperwork. After two minutes she finally raised her chin, looking across to Crane with a smile much softer than one would expect from a Gotham Police Detective.

"Doctor Crane, such a pleasure to meet you, though I am disappointed in the circumstances.  No matter, I am Detective Stratford and I'll be interrogating you.  Before we begin I want to reiterate, as I'm sure Detective Bullock already made it clear, you have the right to an attorney.  If you wish to exercise that right I can go ahead and get out of here while you make the proper calls to hire yourself one.  So, do you wish for an attorney or do you wish for me to continue?"

She was impeccably polite, demure, and well put together.  She couldn't seem to keep warmness off her face.  As Harvey watched from the other side of the mirror he wondered if this young woman would look so nice and sweet in front of any of these other super criminals.  He looked over to the Captain of the precinct beside him.

"She always this nice?"

"You don't want to see her angry, Lieutenant, and neither does Crane..."

[Jonathan Crane - Scarecrow]

Getting the initial message to Bullock before he was taken away from him was the most important thing. What he had said behind his ear would stay with him, even if he decided to shove it away. If there was one thing that Dr. Crane could count on was that years of doing what the man did had made him wise, as he had claim, to how things worked here. If he was true to that claim then he would remember what he said. The rest would have to come later as he was drug through the process.

When he was separated from him he cooperated through everything, which was more than could be said for every time before. He was normally uncooperative, or at least much less willing to be moved. He wasn’t known for much violent out bursting, but it wasn’t as if it had never happened. It had been a long time since he was processed this particular way, since normally they would have taken him straight to the asylum from Batman. This time he had gotten himself caught by a different team.

He collected his mug shot and went quietly to the interrogation room without a fight. He didn’t even make the men than escorted him uncomfortable as they walked, which he often would with most people that thought they could touch him. Those that wanted to be around him needed to prove some kind of worth and thus far he had met very few whom were up to the challenge. In fact, those that met the criteria to even have a chance he could count on one hand. The rest of the world was simply oblivious to what it really was.

He waited, by himself in the interrogation room. Of course he expected to be chained to the floor and cuffed to the table top. It was standard procedure by any precinct at this time. He imagined their practices wouldn’t be as rehearsed as the asylums, but they still knew how well to chain him up. When the woman came in the skeletal figure of Dr. Crane reacted. He followed her polished form to the chair across from him and watched her she as she focused into her paper work.

The silence between them didn’t break until she decided to break it. The doctor had never taken his eyes off her, but had settled into such a still position, one would have thought he had left his body. Her immediate presentation of herself told him a lot about her. She had been briefed about him and was in no mood for a show. It was unfortunate, because she was going to get one whether she realized it or not. He waited for her to finish speaking completely before his chest seemingly came to life and he decided to speak. “There is no auttourney that would represent me…After my trial.” He paused and remembered that he wanted to represent himself in court, it would have been so much easier…..But indeed they would have given him death.

But that didn’t matter, he couldn’t die. Regardless of that way it could have happened it wasn’t the way it happened, and now he was trying to correct it. “I am the only one adequate enough to explain myself.” He clarified to her in a way that she would probably enjoy and agree with more. His hands rung at the ring he was attached to, clattering his chains a bit. “So I suppose I am ready for any questioning you have.” He confirmed and waited for her to begin.

[Deleted]

Stratford arched her brow a little dangerously. She was very interested in all this now. It was a high honor to be asked to interrogate someone as famed in the underworld as Doctor Crane. However, she didn't like to let herself get too enthused, they all knew what happened to Dr. Quinzel, after all.

"Alright then Dr. Crane, if you are ready to be questioned then I am ready to make that happen."

She smiled winningly and looked back down at her notes and then back to him. She was confident as much as she was fierce. She was tough, but had a soft and warm look and feel to her.

"So, first, and this is more out of my own curiosity, why did you target Detective Bullock this evening? Based on the way he talked about all this, I don't know if he sees it, but I do. It appears to me you were specific in wanting him to bring you in. Why is that?"

The young woman had heard plenty about Detective Bullock over the years. She'd even been involved in cases he had been working when she was still a uniformed officer. Initially she thought he was rather crass and gross, but she eventually came to learn he was in it for the right reasons and that was enough for her. Her own reasons may differ, but no one needed to know all about that, did they?

Harvey on the other hand looked interested and annoyed simultaneously at her question and her observation of what Harvey had told her before this interrogation. The captain smirked a little.

"Forgot to mention, she's a little bit cutthroat, Harv."

Harvey just grumbled.

[Jonathan Crane - Scarecrow]

He would have rather been out of cuffs for these kinds of things, but he didn’t need to be out of his seat to get his point across. Dr. Crane was very expressive in a way that no one ever noticed. He was claimed as the emotionless man, the void of feeling, the stoic and serious Master of Fear. Of course, all of these were true, but the passion and the expression was poured into the only thing that mattered. When he got into the depth of his field his true expressions of how he felt about it came out. The expressive nature of Dr. Crane was cryptic but people chose to be blind to it…It was always right in front of them.

He listened to her question carefully and pondered as to how he was going to respond. He had been through this process before, but he wasn’t trying to be careful before. After a moment of hard thought his eyes seemed to light with awareness again and he slightly rolled his head. “ The predatory never goes for the fastest prey.” He mentioned carefully, loaded with his cryptics. It was the truth through and through however. He didn’t choose Detective Bullock because he was going to immediately believe that the Asylum was the right place for him.

The woman didn’t intimidate Dr. Crane in the slightest. He had judged her the moment she walked in and sat down and so far his judgment had not been far off from the truth. She was driven by the same aspect of any many; it was the reason behind it, what kind of fear drove her that was the question. But he would reserve that, as much as it pained him to at the moment.

“ Turning myself in would have been impossible, so I did the next closest thing to it. Threatened to hurt others without actually doing so.” He clarified for her as to why he had chosen to do it at all. Under that statement he could have chosen any police officer, but Detective Bullock was needed in this case. “I suppose a man such as detective Bullock can relate to being worn and thin from tirelessly running the same cycle over and over…” His head moved slightly and his eyes glanced into the mirror as if he could see him on the other side.