Fear of Clowns
Title: Fear of Clowns
Author: AceofKnaves88
Table#/Prompt#: Table#3/Prompt#4 (Clowns)
Fandom/pairing: Batman
Summary: The circus isn't a good place to be if what you're terrified of most is clowns
Rating: SC for Sum Cussin'
Warnings: None
Disclaimers: These characters are not mine and are being depicted in a way not endorsed by their creators.
“I fucking hate clowns,” Alex said to Sandra as he flicked a cigarette butt into the dirt and stomped on it.
“Alex, we came all the way here from Metropolis to see this circus. It’s supposed to be the best in the country. If you don’t like the clowns, you can go to the concession stand.”
The two walked arm-in-arm into the tent through the big open flaps. The flashing neon sign proclaimed this to be “Gotham World Circus: Entertainment Extravaganza.” The tent, even bigger than the one used for the circus in Metropolis, was filled with people. The smell of cotton candy and popcorn hung thick in the air and Alex could almost taste it as he breathed in deeply. His mouth began to water.
“Man, I haven’t had cotton candy in years!” he said. “This is the first time I’ve even set foot inside a circus since we met.”
“Well, you can have some if you like.”
“I think we better find our seats, first.”
The couple pushed their way through the throngs of people, uttering various apologies as they stepped on toes and bumped against drinks. Already in the middle of the ring there were performing dogs and women dressed in feathery outfits. No sign yet of Alex’s dreaded clowns. They finally made it to their seats and took their place between some very distinguished looking people.
Sandra tapped Alex’s shoulder. “Alex,” she whispered in his ear, “I think that man sitting next to you is Bruce Wayne.” Alex rolled his eyes to his right to try to study the man.
“It can’t be,” he whispered back. “Why would a guy like Bruce Wayne be at the circus?”
“Because I have to be,” the man sitting next to Alex said. He extended his hand, and Alex shook it. “As you noticed, I’m Bruce Wayne. I don’t really enjoy the circus, I’m hear because my company donates large amounts of money to them every year and so they always invite me. I don’t want to insult them, so I come.”
“My name is Alex Hoffa,” Alex replied, “and this is my fiancé, Sandy. We came here from Metropolis to see this circus.”
“Metropolis?” Bruce said, “That’s quite a way to come just to see a circus.”
“Well, there’s another reason,” Sandra said. “We also came to see if we could see Batman.”
Bruce chuckled and shook his head. “Yeah, I hear that one a lot from tourists. Everyone comes to see Batman.”
“Well, we’re artists,” Sandra said, “and we just hoped that if we managed to see him, we’d snap a few photos so we could paint him later.”
“I see,” Bruce said as the dog show in the ring finished and the spotlight went out. “Well, it’s been nice talking to you folks, but it seems the show is about to start.”
The lights came up in the ring and the ringmaster began to speak. He introduced the first act and left. Some acrobats tumbled in and began their performance. After a few acts, Alex forgot all about clowns. This was the best circus he could ever remember being at. Sandra grabbed his hand and smiled at him. “See?,” she said, “I told you this would be fun!”
After four acts the lights dimmed again and a shadowed figure walked to the center of the ring. A hush came over the entire tent as everyone leaned forward a bit in their seats to hear what the next act was going to be.
“Meine Damen und Harren, Mesdames et Messieurs, Ladies and Gentleman!” the figure said. The voice, however, was not the voice of the ringmaster. Alex raised his eyebrow, an involuntary thing he did whenever he became confused or suspicious. He noticed that Bruce Wayne, too, had gone rigid, almost as if waiting for something bad to happen. Sandra grasped Alex’s arm tightly. He turned to look at her and saw that the voice had scared her.
The light in the center ring snapped on to reveal the figure to be a tall man dressed in purple. He was looking at the ground, so no one could quite see the face, but his hair was green. Alex turned to inquire if Mr. Wayne knew what was going on, but found him gone.
The man in the center ring lifted his head to reveal it to be a ghastly white and wearing a gruesome red grin. The face of the Joker. Alex recoiled in fright, his fear of clowns kicking in at the sight of this hideous harlequin. Screams erupted from around the tent as people scrambled to their feet, Alex and Sandra among them.
The Joker flung his head and arms back. “BRING IN THE CLOWNS!” he yelled and began to laugh. The laugh almost made Alex crumple with fear.
“We’ve got to get out of here!” He said to Sandra over the screams of the people.
“But Batman might come!” she said.
“Yeah, and we might die! I told you I fucking hated clowns!”
All three rings in the tent began to fill with clowns as the Joker continued to laugh. Gunfire suddenly exploded and more shrieks of terror followed. Alex and Sandra dropped to their knees behind some seats and began to crawl.
They didn’t get far. The clowns with the guns began filing up the aisles, trapping people and shooting them. Alex pulled Sandra to him and rolled under a row of seats, using other people passing him for cover.
The worst of the gunfire lasted no more than a minute , but it seemed like forever. Alex and Sandra watched in terror as bodies fell around their hiding spot. Feet passed by them that belonged to the crazy clowns with the guns, but no one found them. There were still shrieks from terrified people, and that terrible laughter every few seconds.
More feet came towards them and they kept still. These shoes weren’t like the shoes of the clowns, though. These shoes were polished dress shoes with spats. The pant legs that fell around the shoes were purple. Alex felt his heart begin to race as panic set in. He hated clowns, always had. They terrified him. But the clown coming toward them now was the worst clown he had ever seen his life. This was the famous Joker, after all, the clown who had once gassed an entire kindergarten class for a laugh. The shoes paused just an inch from Sandra’s face. Suddenly it flew at her and kicked her. She screamed as her and Alex were forced out of their hiding spot.
“Hello there, my sweet,” The Joker said with a grin, leaning over the two. “Enjoy the show?” Neither one of them answered. Alex was sweating, his breath was hard and he was visibly shaking now.
“Scared, fellow?” the Joker asked Alex. Alex nodded. “Why?” the Joker asked.
“S-s-scared of clowns,” Alex managed.
“Really?” The Joker asked, a look of glee covering his face. He grabbed Alex by the collar and dragged him off the floor until they were eye to eye.
“Don’t touch him!” Sandra yelled, getting to her feet. Faster than Alex could say anything there was a loud bang and Sandra crumpled back to the floor, blood quickly soaking her shirt.
“Tell me, fellow, still afraid of clowns?” Joker asked before beginning to cackle. He held fast to Alex’s shirt, even when Alex began to wiggle and scream. “Stand still!” the Joker yelled. There was another loud bang and Alex felt a searing pain in his stomach. He was shot! The Joker let go of his shirt and Alex crumpled to the floor.
At that moment there was more gunfire and someone yelled “Batman!” The Joker turned and ran out of Alex’s vision. Alex crawled over and embraced Sandra, who was already dead, and began to sob. The pain he had felt before was just a dull throb now. In fact, he couldn’t really feel anything, not even the tears he knew were running down his face.
A hand wrapped around the back of his neck and lifted his head. Alex found himself looking right into the face of Batman.
“Batman,” Alex said, his own voice just a hoarse whisper.
“Don’t speak,” Batman said, “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you…..either of you.”
“Just go get that son-of-a-bitch,” he said, and tried to smile.
Batman put him back down on Sandra’s shoulder, then turned and ran. Alex watched as he flew up out of the tent.
“I told you I hated fucking clowns,” he whispered into Sandra’s ear.
Author: AceofKnaves88
Table#/Prompt#: Table#3/Prompt#4 (Clowns)
Fandom/pairing: Batman
Summary: The circus isn't a good place to be if what you're terrified of most is clowns
Rating: SC for Sum Cussin'
Warnings: None
Disclaimers: These characters are not mine and are being depicted in a way not endorsed by their creators.
“I fucking hate clowns,” Alex said to Sandra as he flicked a cigarette butt into the dirt and stomped on it.
“Alex, we came all the way here from Metropolis to see this circus. It’s supposed to be the best in the country. If you don’t like the clowns, you can go to the concession stand.”
The two walked arm-in-arm into the tent through the big open flaps. The flashing neon sign proclaimed this to be “Gotham World Circus: Entertainment Extravaganza.” The tent, even bigger than the one used for the circus in Metropolis, was filled with people. The smell of cotton candy and popcorn hung thick in the air and Alex could almost taste it as he breathed in deeply. His mouth began to water.
“Man, I haven’t had cotton candy in years!” he said. “This is the first time I’ve even set foot inside a circus since we met.”
“Well, you can have some if you like.”
“I think we better find our seats, first.”
The couple pushed their way through the throngs of people, uttering various apologies as they stepped on toes and bumped against drinks. Already in the middle of the ring there were performing dogs and women dressed in feathery outfits. No sign yet of Alex’s dreaded clowns. They finally made it to their seats and took their place between some very distinguished looking people.
Sandra tapped Alex’s shoulder. “Alex,” she whispered in his ear, “I think that man sitting next to you is Bruce Wayne.” Alex rolled his eyes to his right to try to study the man.
“It can’t be,” he whispered back. “Why would a guy like Bruce Wayne be at the circus?”
“Because I have to be,” the man sitting next to Alex said. He extended his hand, and Alex shook it. “As you noticed, I’m Bruce Wayne. I don’t really enjoy the circus, I’m hear because my company donates large amounts of money to them every year and so they always invite me. I don’t want to insult them, so I come.”
“My name is Alex Hoffa,” Alex replied, “and this is my fiancé, Sandy. We came here from Metropolis to see this circus.”
“Metropolis?” Bruce said, “That’s quite a way to come just to see a circus.”
“Well, there’s another reason,” Sandra said. “We also came to see if we could see Batman.”
Bruce chuckled and shook his head. “Yeah, I hear that one a lot from tourists. Everyone comes to see Batman.”
“Well, we’re artists,” Sandra said, “and we just hoped that if we managed to see him, we’d snap a few photos so we could paint him later.”
“I see,” Bruce said as the dog show in the ring finished and the spotlight went out. “Well, it’s been nice talking to you folks, but it seems the show is about to start.”
The lights came up in the ring and the ringmaster began to speak. He introduced the first act and left. Some acrobats tumbled in and began their performance. After a few acts, Alex forgot all about clowns. This was the best circus he could ever remember being at. Sandra grabbed his hand and smiled at him. “See?,” she said, “I told you this would be fun!”
After four acts the lights dimmed again and a shadowed figure walked to the center of the ring. A hush came over the entire tent as everyone leaned forward a bit in their seats to hear what the next act was going to be.
“Meine Damen und Harren, Mesdames et Messieurs, Ladies and Gentleman!” the figure said. The voice, however, was not the voice of the ringmaster. Alex raised his eyebrow, an involuntary thing he did whenever he became confused or suspicious. He noticed that Bruce Wayne, too, had gone rigid, almost as if waiting for something bad to happen. Sandra grasped Alex’s arm tightly. He turned to look at her and saw that the voice had scared her.
The light in the center ring snapped on to reveal the figure to be a tall man dressed in purple. He was looking at the ground, so no one could quite see the face, but his hair was green. Alex turned to inquire if Mr. Wayne knew what was going on, but found him gone.
The man in the center ring lifted his head to reveal it to be a ghastly white and wearing a gruesome red grin. The face of the Joker. Alex recoiled in fright, his fear of clowns kicking in at the sight of this hideous harlequin. Screams erupted from around the tent as people scrambled to their feet, Alex and Sandra among them.
The Joker flung his head and arms back. “BRING IN THE CLOWNS!” he yelled and began to laugh. The laugh almost made Alex crumple with fear.
“We’ve got to get out of here!” He said to Sandra over the screams of the people.
“But Batman might come!” she said.
“Yeah, and we might die! I told you I fucking hated clowns!”
All three rings in the tent began to fill with clowns as the Joker continued to laugh. Gunfire suddenly exploded and more shrieks of terror followed. Alex and Sandra dropped to their knees behind some seats and began to crawl.
They didn’t get far. The clowns with the guns began filing up the aisles, trapping people and shooting them. Alex pulled Sandra to him and rolled under a row of seats, using other people passing him for cover.
The worst of the gunfire lasted no more than a minute , but it seemed like forever. Alex and Sandra watched in terror as bodies fell around their hiding spot. Feet passed by them that belonged to the crazy clowns with the guns, but no one found them. There were still shrieks from terrified people, and that terrible laughter every few seconds.
More feet came towards them and they kept still. These shoes weren’t like the shoes of the clowns, though. These shoes were polished dress shoes with spats. The pant legs that fell around the shoes were purple. Alex felt his heart begin to race as panic set in. He hated clowns, always had. They terrified him. But the clown coming toward them now was the worst clown he had ever seen his life. This was the famous Joker, after all, the clown who had once gassed an entire kindergarten class for a laugh. The shoes paused just an inch from Sandra’s face. Suddenly it flew at her and kicked her. She screamed as her and Alex were forced out of their hiding spot.
“Hello there, my sweet,” The Joker said with a grin, leaning over the two. “Enjoy the show?” Neither one of them answered. Alex was sweating, his breath was hard and he was visibly shaking now.
“Scared, fellow?” the Joker asked Alex. Alex nodded. “Why?” the Joker asked.
“S-s-scared of clowns,” Alex managed.
“Really?” The Joker asked, a look of glee covering his face. He grabbed Alex by the collar and dragged him off the floor until they were eye to eye.
“Don’t touch him!” Sandra yelled, getting to her feet. Faster than Alex could say anything there was a loud bang and Sandra crumpled back to the floor, blood quickly soaking her shirt.
“Tell me, fellow, still afraid of clowns?” Joker asked before beginning to cackle. He held fast to Alex’s shirt, even when Alex began to wiggle and scream. “Stand still!” the Joker yelled. There was another loud bang and Alex felt a searing pain in his stomach. He was shot! The Joker let go of his shirt and Alex crumpled to the floor.
At that moment there was more gunfire and someone yelled “Batman!” The Joker turned and ran out of Alex’s vision. Alex crawled over and embraced Sandra, who was already dead, and began to sob. The pain he had felt before was just a dull throb now. In fact, he couldn’t really feel anything, not even the tears he knew were running down his face.
A hand wrapped around the back of his neck and lifted his head. Alex found himself looking right into the face of Batman.
“Batman,” Alex said, his own voice just a hoarse whisper.
“Don’t speak,” Batman said, “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you…..either of you.”
“Just go get that son-of-a-bitch,” he said, and tried to smile.
Batman put him back down on Sandra’s shoulder, then turned and ran. Alex watched as he flew up out of the tent.
“I told you I hated fucking clowns,” he whispered into Sandra’s ear.