Nightmares

He can fight off the demons of the night, but can he fight the demons of his own nightmares?

I do not own anything, Batman and the Dark Knight Tribology belongs to DC Comics and Chris Nolan.

His body felt like white, hot heat against the Kevlar plating on his body, the waves crashed against his boots, every bone ached, every muscle was torn, he knew he won, the league of shadows was gone, the bomb detonated, he won…he finally had a chance to be who he wanted to be.

"Oh come on Bats, you're not dead yet." The voice he recognized as the demon on his dreams

"You." Batman growled as he stood up against the roaring pain, the Joker grinned

"Now come on Bats, we both know you're too dead to even try to stop me. You're not the man you were when you beat me." The Joker sneered as Batman tried to throw a punch, only to fall short and nearly fell over

The Joker went crazy, sending a kick into Batman's side and stepped on him, laughing as he did so "You have nothing, nothing to threaten me with, nothing to do with all your strength."

"I'll kill you, I swear I will!" Batman roared

"Oh now how are you going to kill him, when you couldn't even stop me."

Batman turned to the new figure, his suit was tattered, face covered by a brown mesh mask and his right hand moved in his sleeve "Crane?"

"You look like you need to lighten up." Crane shot his arm forward and shot the fear gas into Batman's face

His arms flailed in front of him as his vision blurred, and the scene changed, he felt like he was in a dream, or a nightmare, the scene changed and he was face to face with the Joker, a smirk came over his face as he raced away "Come on Batman, we both know you have nothing to hurt me."

Batman raced after him, but not before turning to Crane attempting to strike him from behind with a pipe, he blocked him and sent a punch into his stomach and sent him down to the ground with a thud "Stay down." Batman growled as he charged

He continued to run through the dream, it seemed like a jigsaw puzzle, pieces of the beach was lifted from the ground and beneath his feet was a typhoon of sorts, a long spiral that seemed to reach into an endless pit, but he knew he had to go after the Joker.

His feet carried him and he felt the scene change, no longer was he on the broken subconscious, but he was now on a rooftop, he recognized it, the rooftop as the one where he fought the Joker, as he walked forward slowly, his eyes keeping a look out for anything suspicious, he was soon caught off guard by a pole swinging by his head, he quickly ducked to be face to face with the Joker again.

"I'll break you in two." Batman growled as he slammed Joker into a nearby beam

"Oh Bats, if you had the nerve for that kind of fun you would have done it years ago. I on the other hand…" Joker smiled and raised his arm only to draw his knife from his other and slammed it into Bruce's leg

He roared in pain as Joker kicked him in the stomach, sending him to the ground again, as a beam was placed on his neck, the Joker smiled as he stood over top of him "You know, it's a funny world we live in Bats, just nine years ago, I wondered why you threw yourself after Harvey's squeeze, but…now I know….and that secret is mine alone to know…Bruce."

His eyes went wide as Joker stood by his head, a gun pointed at him "It's true Batsey, I know everything, and kinda like the kid who peaks at his Christmas presents, I must say, it's sadly anti-climactic, beneath all the stern and batarangs you're just a little boy in a playsuit crying for Mommy and Daddy. It would be funny if it weren't so pathetic." Joker pondered for a moment "Oh what the hell I'll laugh anyway."

He laughed, and it didn't make him want to shed a tear, it made him want to kill him, He threw the beam off of his neck and snapped, his body launched forward with the pain in his leg and slammed into the Joker, the clown's body fell to the ground as a fist was slammed into his face, followed by another, and another, and he kept punching, he didn't stop "I'll kill you!"

And finally he stopped hearing it, the laughter, the grunting of pain, he looked down and backed away, falling to the ground in horror as the figure that he was punching….The Joker was Alfred.

"Leaving is all I have to make you understand. You're not Batman anymore."

His head felt light, his vision began to change as he was on his feet again and the last sound he heard was running water.

"Ah yes, I was wondering what would break first, your spirit," his body was lifted up in the air "or your body!" And he was brought down hard on his knee

Bruce fell to the ground, roaring in pain as he tried to stand, his pain and aches fighting him as Bane stood over him, an emotionless stare coming from his eyes "You've lost Bruce, you're not the man you used to be."

"Shut up…shut up!" Batman yelled and then the scene changed again

He was alone, lost in nothing but peace and quiet, as he tried to get a grip, he found that there was burnt chips under his body that was when he heard the sound of a coin flipping in the air, and he suddenly realized where he was.

"Hello Bruce."

Batman looked up into the darkness in front of him, coming out of the shadows in a half full and half burnt suit was Harvey Dent, he looked the same was when he died, one half of him was fine, the same as he always was, but the other half…the other half was burnt, torched, the formation of his jaw, his whole eye in the socket, the veins and bones of his face were showing as he continued to flip his coin.

"Harvey…" Bruce whispered as Harvey approached him "Harvey I'm sorry."

"It's too late to apologize Bruce, now, just like what the Joker made you do back then…I'm going to do now, you'll have to choose." Harvey squatted down "Heads." He showed the coin and the shadows revealed Selina Kyle tied to a chair, her chocolate brown eyes showed she was worried and pissed at the same time "Your kitten dies, tails, and you watch Rachel die all over again."

The other half revealed Rachel Dawes tied to a chair, Bruce didn't see her when she died, he wished he could have said goodbye, she looked exactly the same as when he returned to Gotham, a look of worry and terror spread across her face.

Harvey stood and approached the women, flipping the coin and letting it hit his hand, revealing tails "Let's go again." He flipped it again much to Bruce's dismay.

"Harvey, don't! We were friends once!"

"You thought we could have been decent men, in an indecent time. You were wrong, the world is cruel and the only morality is chance, unbiased, unjust. Fair." Harvey looked at him as he pointed his revolver at Bruce as he caught the coin, landing on heads "We have a winner."

Then he heard it, the sound he never wanted to hear, the gun shot hit Selina in the chest as she fell to the ground, Bruce felt the tears go down his face as he crawled, his body carried him as best he could as he went for Selina, the gun went off another two times…Rachel and Harvey both went down as he cradled Selina in his arms, her chocolate brown locks fell on his legs, her back against his knees as the scene changed one more time.

This time, there was rain, the middle of the night, he looked up and he realized where he was, he was back in the alley when he was eight, his parents lying dead a few feet away from him, he could hear the ticking, the ticking was coming from his right, the bomb was there, only seconds left…but he wanted to die, he was caught in an endless nightmare and he just wanted it to end.

"Bruce…" Selina spoke weakly as the blood went down onto the ground, he looked down at her "Don't be afraid handsome." She died in his arms as her last breath exited her body

As the timer hit zero…he felt his world end and the last sound he heard was the laughter of Talia al Ghul.

He woke up in a start, sweat trickled down his body as he looked over, there slept Selina, her chest gently rising up and down with the sheets of their bed, he gently let his body go down as he kissed her cheek, rising from the bed and moving onto the balcony, the sky line of Florence was beautiful at night, they had settled down there, Alfred knew he was alive, but he couldn't bring himself to go back, not after this.

"You okay handsome?"

He turned and smiled to Selina walking out of their bedroom, a black silk robe wrapped around her lithe body, her dark brown hair tied back in a ponytail as he held her close.

"Nothing, just a nightmare." He looked down at her "I love you Selina."

She looked up at him and nodded before pressing a hard and passionate kiss against his lips "I love you too." Then realized something "You wouldn't be this shaken up by a nightmare."

Bruce nodded and sat down on a nearby chair "I can't seem to leave my past behind me. Joker, Harvey, Bane…all of it has left a scar on my life that I can't seem to heal." He looked at her "You're the only good thing that has happened to me."

"Flattery now Mister Wayne? You must be worried." She moved down onto his lap and looked him in the eye "No matter what happens, I won't leave you."

"Really?"

"Well I have to figure, I'm nearly thirty years old and I'm sleeping with a former millionaire, I think I', not going to be doing any better." She smirked playfully at him as he took her lips into his

"I love you so much Selina…" Bruce whispered against her ear "Marry me."

"What did you say?" Selina looked at him with surprise

He looked up at her "I asked you to marry me. I don't have a ring yet so…"

He didn't finish his sentence as she captured her lips with his, it was a warm, passionate and delicate kiss, as they parted, a hand went to her neck and raised the string of pearls "These are all I need. Rings are out of fashion anyway." She winked at him

Bruce smiled, though he may have nightmares, Selina Kyle would be his dream.