just_muse_me: 12.7 Five times you visited and one time someone visited you
[Shatter!verse]
Five times you visited someone else:
1. His grandparents’ house outside of Gotham had always been a retreat - a safe-haven. It was a calm in the storm. There was no fighting or yelling or TV blaring. He’d run around the barn, jump from the hayloft, scream as loud as he wanted and no one would yell at him. No one would move to strike him or tell him there would be punishment. When he was older, after he was at college and they’d passed away, all of those times would blend together - a blur of memories that he’d conjure up during sleepless nights in his cold dormitory.
2. The small blond-headed boy shouldn’t have been in the hospital room. Visiting hours were over but the nurses weren’t especially attentive. They knew their charge would most likely be asked to be released soon - it had happened before and there wasn’t much they could do about it. None of her injuries were life-threatening - at least not this time. The boy knew he’d probably get in trouble, shouldn’t have slipped away from the waiting area. His father had gotten a call on his radio, though, and when the man turned his back, Harvey was gone, quietly finding his way down toward the room he’d heard the doctor mention was his mother’s.
3. The meeting between them was supposed to resolve any uneasiness he had about the man. It had been ‘good’ as far as meetings went, but when Harvey left the Lieutenant’s office, he still felt uneasy. Sure, there was an alliance between the men now and he was sure that Gordon stood for what was good and right in Gotham City, but the district attorney still didn’t trust the men around Gordon. There wasn’t a lot he could do about it, though. Like Gordon, he had to work with what he was given. If he expected any help from the police, he’d have to let Gordon in on what he was doing.
Later - after - he would spend days and nights mentally beating himself up for not having fought Gordon harder, for not insisting that the cops he’d investigated at IAB be investigated further or at least thrown off MCU. Even though he’d pointed the gun at Jimmy Gordon that night, it was really himself that he blamed. Years later, he was still sickened at his behavior from that night-still couldn’t believe he was ready to kill an eight-year old, still wished the damn coin had ended it right then for himself.
4. The first time he saw the Caped Crusader with his own eyes, the night he visited the vigilante on the roof of Major Crimes, he had to admit to being slightly in awe. He also wanted to know who the hell the man was - who he thought he was. But unlike the Joker, Harvey didn’t have time for such games. Looking back, he wished he would’ve ripped the damn mask right off.
5. When he held her in his arms-when she clung to him-it would be one of the only times his world was consumed entirely in her. There was no Gotham City, no work, no Rachel-no one needing him except for her. He wanted so badly to fix things for her, to undo what Jonathan Crane had done. She looked so broken in the hospital bed that it was a natural reaction. He’d only come to wish her well, to assure her that they would get the man responsible. In the end, he stayed the night, Gotham’s D.A. turning from golden boy to rumpled, possibly unfaithful guard dog.
One time someone visited you:
1. Even now, a couple of days later, he is still struck by the absurdity of the event more than anything else. The nurse’s costume, the wig, the-the goddamn Harvey Dent for District Attorney sticker-everything about the Joker’s appearance that afternoon is still stuck in his head, like a twisted movie that won’t shut itself off. He hears the man’s voice over and over again - “Hi.” That moment was like the beginning - true, his mind may not have ever been truly right, but Harvey knows that with that one little introduction - “Hi.” - the reality that everything is truly changed sets in. Two days later, on the run, he’s still not entirely sure what that something is, or if he can handle it.
Five times you visited someone else:
1. His grandparents’ house outside of Gotham had always been a retreat - a safe-haven. It was a calm in the storm. There was no fighting or yelling or TV blaring. He’d run around the barn, jump from the hayloft, scream as loud as he wanted and no one would yell at him. No one would move to strike him or tell him there would be punishment. When he was older, after he was at college and they’d passed away, all of those times would blend together - a blur of memories that he’d conjure up during sleepless nights in his cold dormitory.
2. The small blond-headed boy shouldn’t have been in the hospital room. Visiting hours were over but the nurses weren’t especially attentive. They knew their charge would most likely be asked to be released soon - it had happened before and there wasn’t much they could do about it. None of her injuries were life-threatening - at least not this time. The boy knew he’d probably get in trouble, shouldn’t have slipped away from the waiting area. His father had gotten a call on his radio, though, and when the man turned his back, Harvey was gone, quietly finding his way down toward the room he’d heard the doctor mention was his mother’s.
3. The meeting between them was supposed to resolve any uneasiness he had about the man. It had been ‘good’ as far as meetings went, but when Harvey left the Lieutenant’s office, he still felt uneasy. Sure, there was an alliance between the men now and he was sure that Gordon stood for what was good and right in Gotham City, but the district attorney still didn’t trust the men around Gordon. There wasn’t a lot he could do about it, though. Like Gordon, he had to work with what he was given. If he expected any help from the police, he’d have to let Gordon in on what he was doing.
Later - after - he would spend days and nights mentally beating himself up for not having fought Gordon harder, for not insisting that the cops he’d investigated at IAB be investigated further or at least thrown off MCU. Even though he’d pointed the gun at Jimmy Gordon that night, it was really himself that he blamed. Years later, he was still sickened at his behavior from that night-still couldn’t believe he was ready to kill an eight-year old, still wished the damn coin had ended it right then for himself.
4. The first time he saw the Caped Crusader with his own eyes, the night he visited the vigilante on the roof of Major Crimes, he had to admit to being slightly in awe. He also wanted to know who the hell the man was - who he thought he was. But unlike the Joker, Harvey didn’t have time for such games. Looking back, he wished he would’ve ripped the damn mask right off.
5. When he held her in his arms-when she clung to him-it would be one of the only times his world was consumed entirely in her. There was no Gotham City, no work, no Rachel-no one needing him except for her. He wanted so badly to fix things for her, to undo what Jonathan Crane had done. She looked so broken in the hospital bed that it was a natural reaction. He’d only come to wish her well, to assure her that they would get the man responsible. In the end, he stayed the night, Gotham’s D.A. turning from golden boy to rumpled, possibly unfaithful guard dog.
One time someone visited you:
1. Even now, a couple of days later, he is still struck by the absurdity of the event more than anything else. The nurse’s costume, the wig, the-the goddamn Harvey Dent for District Attorney sticker-everything about the Joker’s appearance that afternoon is still stuck in his head, like a twisted movie that won’t shut itself off. He hears the man’s voice over and over again - “Hi.” That moment was like the beginning - true, his mind may not have ever been truly right, but Harvey knows that with that one little introduction - “Hi.” - the reality that everything is truly changed sets in. Two days later, on the run, he’s still not entirely sure what that something is, or if he can handle it.