Author's Note: I'm bad, I know. But this would not leave my head for a while. I don't know what can come of it, but I can't wait to see what's to come.

Prologue - Snapshot of Poverty

March, 1998

It was always a good sign when her mother and father were not yelling at one another about something or another. Angel was too young to even understand it, but she understood that when the tone changed, it was time to feign sleeping. Her mother always started the yelling, from things such as: "You spend your time with these bastards who do nothing but give you scraps after a heist. Man up and get us food on this table!" and her father always screamed back: "You can always try working yourself you lazy cow". It seemed that no matter how the yelling started, it ended up the very same. Her mother came to her room, sighed in relief seeing her sleeping, and began to run her fingers through her daughter's hair, murmuring on how it had to get better.

Angel knew that despite her parents' imperfections they had true love for her. Food wasn't always on the table, in fact, if they had any sort of meat it meant it was a good month. Sometimes, her Daddy would come in, kiss his wife, and inform her that they could pay the back rent this month. She didn't quite understand what that meant, but to her, seeing her mother happy, meant that they would be okay.

Today was a very special day. This month was the day they would finally celebrate her birthday. Despite her birthday being in December, they kept postponing the celebration of her 6th birthday by telling her that they didn't have the money. But Angel didn't mind, so long as there wasn't any yelling. And there wasn't because this Saturday afternoon, they would be going to the circus.

Angel had never been to the circus, but all she wanted to see were the elephants. She always remembered seeing Dumbo as a child and wondering if elephants could really fly. The thought flew over her head smiling softly at the thought. She was jittery at first as they waited in line, she just wanted to get in the circus tent already. As they moved to their seats, she wiggled in place and sat down awaiting the show to begin.

The elephants came in and she found herself jumping up, excited about the fact that they would start the show. It was bright, excited, lovely and awe-inducing. This was the best belated birthday ever, and she found herself wondering how this show could even improve.

The Flying Graysons

It started off with a family of acrobats. Angel gasped as the lights dimmed, and they formally introduced the family of talented people. She cried out in surprise as they began to jump without the safety of a net. Her mother covered her eyes immediately, only to receive a cry of frustration from their daughter. The shuffling occurred and it was in that moment that she moved that it happened.

The introduction of the young boy appeared, not too much older than her. The "flying" Robin was seen waving much to her shock. Could children like hers do that too? Her mother murmured disapproval of such dangerous act, but her words were choked back as the room shifted. It all happened once the beam began to shake and soon thrown the bars began to fall. Screams filled the stage and her mother pulled Angel close to cover her tightly.

Angel wasn't sure what was happening, but it was clear that she felt her mother trembling in tears. That scared her, and she found herself clinging tightly to her mother as she too cried. What she did miss was the suspicious look that her mother gave her husband, who shook his head signaling his innocence. The couple held their daughter tightly as they were escorted out, the evening immediately taken over by the fear of impending doom. It seems that in this world, nothing was guaranteed.

…

July 2001

Gripping her mother's hand tightly, Angel knew that they would be spending a late night at the police station. She could tell her mother was furious at the situation, all because her husband was stupid enough to get caught. But for the nine year old, it meant that her Daddy would not be coming home.

It had been a few years that she understood exactly what her father did. He had calmly explained that what he did wasn't necessarily good, but that it was necessary for them to have some chance to survive in this world. Her Daddy explained that the world was dark and that despite that she could not let herself fall into it. Since then he would ask her to lock herself in her room while business was conducted. The rule was clear: You're never to dip your toe in crimes.

So as her mother tugged her along as they shuffled through the busy streets of Gotham, they paused as soon as a scene was occurring in front of the police station. As always there were people being taken in the station and it was none other than Mr. Joker. Angel knew Mr. Joker well, he was always very funny, but her mother never wanted her to interact with him. It was clear that he had malice in his heart and he would not hesitate to kill anyone. Angel wasn't sure about that but always did what her mother said.

It seemed her Daddy had been caught during their heist. She frowned as she hid behind her mother, especially as Batman and his sidekick stood outside the police station, separating the lower level lackies from Mr. Joker who would be going to Arkham. Mr. Joker was currently being taken pictures of by the busy newspaper people, while Batman sneered hoping they would stop glamorizing the crime.

"I cannot believe your father did this to us? Does he even know how much it'll cost to get him out."

Angel looked up curiously. It was clear that her mother wasn't upset that he was committing the crime, but rather that it was with Mr. Joker. She was never fond of him, and oftentimes complained that he was gaining too much attention from Batman. Her mother hated him with a passion, always complaining that he didn't even help the poor but rather ruin the one chance they had of moving up the hell that was Gotham.

And for her, she wasn't sure what to think that is until she saw her father. Tugging her hand from her mother, she found herself pushing through the reporters uncaring of their curses. All she needed was to see her Daddy, the one person that loved her more than the world. So as she managed to push through everyone, she found herself almost touching her Daddy's hand before boy wonder stepped in the way.

Looking at the boy that was her height, she grew furious at the thought of being stopped by some brat from seeing her Daddy. "Angel!" she heard her father call out to her as they were taking him inside the station and away from her.

"Look kid, you're not allowed near this area. Perhaps you should return to your-"

That was as far as the Boy Wonder got before he was punched in the stomach. It was not the worse hit he had ever received, in fact it was a lot weaker, but the surprise that had him pull back. That little brat managed to get the upper hand and immediately ran towards her father. Dick growled as he heard the Joker laughing over the scene. Incredible how the little girl managed to get the best of him, worse of all in front of so many people.

But this was nothing for the girl who was unfazed by the whole situation and instead she clung to the criminal being taken in by Inspector Gordon.

"Daddy are you okay?" she whispered softly as she dug her hands tightly into his cheap coat.

"Baby you can't be here, it's dangerous."

"Why Daddy? Why take this one?" It was clear she meant the job.

"Because you're too good for this shithole of a city. You are too good for this world my dove"

Every word he said was punctuated and it was clear that he meant it. Of course he did it for her. She fought anyone that got in her way or tried to pull her away from her father. It was until Batman stepped in and actually pulled her away did they manage to take the criminal is.

"Let me go!" she cried out. "I need to be with him!"

"Sweetheart, your father did something bad and he needs to pay for his time. The Joker is not someone that he should be around"

The fury rising within her grew tenfold as the man treated her like a baby. She wasn't a baby! She understood perfectly what desperation caused people to do. Struggling she demanded to be let go screaming that Batman wasn't a hero but a true villain for separating her father from them.

"Angeline!" her mother cried finally being able to push through the crowd. "Get away from him this instant!"

Dick was surprised at they actually villainized Bruce. Where they crazy? The eleven year old tween simply didn't understand why Gotham was so strange. In the three years he had began to live in the city, he failed to understand how there were so many bad people and so many crimes to take on. Bruce had made it clear that the police were overwhelmed and needed help. But even then, it was the first time that he had seen people think badly of "Batman and Robin". But the hate in the mother's eyes as she pulled her daughter away from the police station had surprised him more than he cared to admit.

"Don't worry Robin, it's clear that there are some people in the world that legitimize crime. Come, we have to take Joker to his cell"

Dick still took one last look at the mother who was trying to soothe her shaken daughter before they properly left. Gotham city never stopped surprising him.

...

December 2007

Fifteen. Today was her birthday and it was in the midst of one of the worst winters in Gotham. As usual, her family was hiding from their landlord since they were two months behind in rent; her mother was gripping the whiskey bottle tightly. Her mother's excuse was that it would keep them warm since they couldn't use too much of the heater, but the reality was considerably sadder. In reality, her mother would revisit that bottle more and more often since Angel could remember. And her father...bless her father. In the promises of wealth, he fell into the trap of illegal and petty crime.

Angel shook her head as she drank her tea wondering just how fucked her life was. Her mother did nothing but drink all day and her father was neglectful and spineless. 'Lovely Christmas time' she thought morosely. Closing her eyes tightly she gripped her mug tighter as she heard the glasses break from the kitchen. 'She fell again' She felt a bit guilty because she didn't get up to help. But if she was perfectly honest she was tired. She was tired of working after school, trying to get enough to just have food on the table. She was tired of pulling her mom to bed and making her father some dinner if she showed up. It was tiring.

It was the knock on the door that surprised her. Her mother groggily called out her name and she knew it was to ask her to see who was there. Huffing, she found herself heading to the door uncaring of her looks. She looked through the peephole but saw no one. She sighed in relief that it wasn't her landlord again. When she walked away, she heard the knock again and had no choice but to tentatively open the door.

Their apartment complex was one known to house shady people of the city. It was a rare instance to find a friendly neighbor, or someone that didn't deal with drugs or other sorts of crime. There was one clear rule within their neighborhood: If you don't want to get involved, keep to yourself and don't ask too many questions.

So as she tentatively popped her head out she came face to face with the Caped Crusader: Batman. She immediately tensed, and shrunk into herself; she could tell that he was the reason that the commotion had died outside. Sliding her glasses up, she gripped the door tighter. She didn't close it (there would be no use), but she wouldn't invite him in.

"May I help you?" she asked softly unsure what to make of the situation.

In Gotham, you saw Batman as either your enemy or your hero. If you were rich, you clearly saw him as a good vigilante who kept the city safe, if you were poor but committed crimes he was your worst nightmare, and if you were in the middle, you simply wanted to ignore trouble. This is where she stood.

"Can we come in?" he asked before lightly pushing the door back.

There was no use in her trying to push back, but what did catch her curiosity was the fact that he had said "we". The 'we' became clearer once she realized that it was Robin. She remembered growing up and seeing the young boy take out the 'villains' of the city. It was fascinating then, but now it seemed more problematic than anything. He seemed to study her too; she awkwardly shifted as she closed the door behind them. She just didn't understand why they cared to visit.

She could feel their judgment of their apartment. It was shabby, infested with cockroaches when the lights were off. Her mother didn't help with the empty bottles of cheap alcohol that she drank to ignore the depressing living situation they were in. Angel herself felt exposed as her large t-shirt and sweatpants were worth nothing compared with what the vigilante's wore.

"Is this about my father?" she asked out of nowhere just feeling a rise of dread rising within her.

Her statement had taken the Caped Crusader by surprised as well as the boy before her. It seems she wasn't far off, especially as she saw them swallow their words for a second. This meeting wasn't the first, she had a hazy memory of hurting the teen beside Batman. It was clear he somewhat remembered her too; a small smirk rose on her face. The moment of smugness immediately disappeared from the noise that came from anywhere was the kitchen where another piece of glass fell. Batman immediately tried to investigate but she found herself stepping forward in an attempt to block him.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't snoop further into our home"

"There was a breaking noise in your kitchen" He tried to push through.

Immediately her hands went out in hopes of pushing him back. She simply refused to let him see just the destruction of her life in shambles was. There was only so much shame her family could take and no one could see her mother this way.

"No, she's fine!" she cried out as he kept walking. "She'll fall asleep soon, please just tell me what you need to say and leave!"

Her voice was indignant, defensive and wobbly. She felt herself suddenly go from shame to anger, how dare they make their presence known and just think they can bombard themselves into the shithole that was her home. Still, the larger man's hands moved to her wrist and calmly moved her to the side as he kept going to the kitchen.

"Robin" he signaled the teen to handle her.

As if he was a trained pet, the precious Robin came forward and tried to handle the situation. His hand immediately reached for her wrist to keep her in the sitting room. She tugged wishing to be let go, but he wasn't even budging. The boy was already taller than she would be getting and this wasn't helping.

"You let go of me now before I hurt you!" she hissed as she tugged her wrists.

"Hey it's okay. We're only trying to help" he murmured, his voice cracked a bit much to her brief amusement. "And it didn't hurt last time and it won't hurt now"

She blinked back tears of frustration as a bitter laugh was emitted.

"Are you kidding me? No one asked you to come here! We don't need anyone to help!"

His eyes hardened; he was angry, she could tell as his jaw clenched. But she didn't care, they were intrusive and judgmental. They had no right.

"You clearly need our help if you're in this dump"

"This place might be a shithole but it's ours for the time being. And neither of you are welcome. So what? Is my dad in jail? Did he get caught? Did Mr. Joker finally get tired of seeing his face?"

The annoyance in his face turned to surprise, and she only scoffed in return. She knew what he did; she knew her moral compass frowned upon it, but as survival became harder and harder, she understood how those jobs seemed more desirable. Her father was once a good man, she knew that this was a tale of many in her neighborhood. But she refused to play stupid or be a victim in this situation. The only relief that she could think of, is that if her father was incarcerated, that meant there was one less person to take care of.

"How did you-"

"I'm young, not stupid" she murmured.

"You're mother will be fine...she seemed a bit tired" Batman returned curious as to what he had missed.

"Whiskey tends to do that to her" she smarmily replied. "So when can I bail my dad out?" she asked.

The shift in the room was palpable where the dread began to rise within her. Was he in Arkham? No, she loved her father, but he was far too stupid to be taken in that kind of place. And his jobs were never that dangerous or criminal compared to others. Her mind shifted from one idea to the next until the words were properly taken in.

"He's dead. He was in a chemical plant when the explosion took many within the building. We tried to-"

But she was no longer listening. She swore that her body lost its ability to stand as she fell against the teen who simply kept gripping her wrists; Her father was truly gone; her only stable parent was now dead, chasing after a job that had killed him. For some reason it seemed like a lie. Her father was always just a driver, a delivery man, never a hit man or anything substantial within the crime caste system.

She felt her chest tighten all the more, so much so that she didn't realize her tears began to fall down her cheeks. How many times had she wished to stop taking care of another parent? How often did she wish he was doing something substantial? He always did it for her, she knew it was all for her. She shook profusely as she slid down to the floor. She didn't even notice that Boy Wonder lowered himself down with her.

She blearily made eye contact with him, and she noticed how he tentatively pulled her into him hoping to bring some disgusting comfort her way. She couldn't hear what he said, but felt the vibrations in his chest as he spoke. Limply she stayed still trying to make herself just...understand.

Still the heroes continued to talk to her, but she was no longer listening. She simply had thoughts roaming through her brain. She didn't want to be reminded of what had happened and possibly what responsibility they held for her father's death. It must have been so easy for them to sleep at night, knowing they broke another family simply trying to survive in this miserable world.

It was not until they looked taken aback, that Angel realized that her bitter thoughts had actually been spoken. Slowly she felt herself build a wall around her emotions; her tears slowly stopped falling; she refused let them see another broken family. Getting up, she tugged herself away from the teen and walked bravely to the door. She gripped the doorknob tightly before pulling the door open.

"You delivered your message, you did your duty to sleep at night. All I ask if that you leave our home immediately" she muttered coldly.

Slowly they moved towards the door, clearly neither of them were happy with her reaction. What did they think? That she would beg for help? As more questions about her father's demise? Why would she do that to herself, knowing how much deeper that cut would be? No, her father made it clear, that what actions he took were for their survival.

"If you and your mother or you need help or any money, Mr. Wayne is always gracious in helping out the families with a harsh lost."

A scoff was emitted from her before a bitter laugh took over. "I'm sorry Batman, but Mr. Wayne doesn't need to give us charity. If he cared at all about the people in Gotham he would spend less time in glamorous events and instead help the communities that need his scrap money to survive. But my family doesn't need anything, my father would never let us"

With that she slammed the door close. She heard them shuffle on the other side but she didn't care. She allowed herself to slide down the door before the tears began to fall. Those tears soon turned to angry sobs. Just why was the world so hard?

…

Hours Later….

Her mother had yet to wake up, but Angel did not have the energy to get up. The death of her father had rocked her to the core, so much so that she found herself in the same spot she was in when she had kicked Batman out.

She gripped her glasses tightly, as she looked down at her hands. The glass was dirty smudged from tears and furious scrubbing from her. She wondered just why this had to happen. Why was it her father? Why did he take that job?

Her muddled thoughts were interrupted by another knock at the door. She had no energy nor want to get up, but the knock was an interesting one. Direct, short and important. She mumbled softly at the door before shakily getting up. She opened the door without peeking out, what was the point now? If it was a thief they had nothing of value and if it was their landlord, they would have gotten kicked out anyway so there was no point in delaying the inevitable.

She pulled the door open only to be taken aback by the visitors on this night. Mr Joker and his henchwoman Harley Quinn entered without being invited in. The Clown Prince of Crime had no real joy in his expression and neither did his girlfriend and it brought a tightness in her stomach immediately. Did they know that Batman had left but a while ago? Did he think of them disloyal?

Before she could say anything, the odd man pulled her into a hug. It was not a comforting one, especially since so out of character.

"Poor little Ace" he murmured.

She had known Mr. Joker for a long time, and he was a staple in the background of her childhood since as long as she could remember. She had memories of him taking glee at the thought of the knowledge of her fear of clowns and relished her screams as he purposely scared her. He had called her Little Ace, as her father was his Ace; he never bothered to remember her name or her father's even. Afterall names were meaningless the moment he renamed them. He was never overly warm, but not harsh; he was never harsh with the lackies families.

"Thank you Mr. Joker" She murmured softly too scared to touch him and instead let his arms around her stay there until he decided when it was time to let go.

"It's so sad isn't it Puddin'?" Harley cried before taking over and hugging her softly too.

Harley was an enigma to Angel. There were moments, flashes of sanity in the beautiful woman, but if there was one thing that was easy to spot were her emotions. There was no insincerity when it came to the blonde, so as she hugged the teen, she was reciprocated with a hug of her own.

"Indeed sad Pooh, I must say, the company you have little Ace is very unseemly" the Joker casually said as he took in the dump before. "Didn't know you were into batsy"

All color drained on her face and she shook her head profusely even pulling away from the danger that could be Harley. "No Mr. Joker, I would never he killed my father" she exclaimed, a bit shaky at the thought of being on his bad side. "They visited, they came to give me the bad news since mom is...my mom" she shrugged. "They had the audacity to offer charity, even after everything!" The venom in her tone brought a smile from the assassins.

She flinched a he moved closer, that is until she saw what he was actually pulling out from his suit. He pulled out his green handkerchief and dried her tears before offering his sympathies. Angel was no fool, she knew he had probably played a part in killing her father but she stayed quiet. He went on and on about her father and his false heroics. In turn, Angel nodded sadly as his Harley Quinn hugged and patted her head

"And for that little Ace we have a little something for you and only you" He snapped his finger as Harley opened her purse and took out an envelope handing it to the teen.

She didn't dare open it without their permission and it was only when signaled that she tentatively opened it and was surprised by what was inside. Money, lots of it and she immediately closed it before shakily trying to hand it back.

"M-Mr. Joker, what is this? Why? We can't-" she shook her head.

"Nonsense, Ace was part of the Jokerz and we knew why he did what he did. And it was for you, so we are merely doing what he wanted."

There was no joke behind his eyes, but rather some seriousness. Her stomach tightened at the thought of them practically buying her off. They were not the first family to be bought off and they would certainly not be the last. Still, the way he said it made her know her father had done a bigger heist than usual for this money, to perhaps move them.

"Oh Honey don't worry! Once a Jokerz always a Jokerz!" Harley chirped.

"I...Thank you" she murmured softly. "My mother and I will very much need it."

She knew her mother would never work, she somehow thought the world owed her something and she refused to dirty her hands with anything. This would get them by for a bit, and then when Angel was old enough she would work.

"You know, that money and two mouths to feed...that certainly is a struggle don't you think?" the Joker began.

"I-I suppose so Mr. Joker. But the money is more than enough since I'm still working. I'm very grateful for your charity"

"It's not charity when your father worked for it and he did it all for you Hun" Harley commented softly.

It seemed the two of them had talked about something. It was obvious by the way the couple played off of one another. They were trying to get her to come to the conclusion herself but Angel didn't dare.

"Your mother was never fond of me you know" Joker pretended to pick link from his immaculate purple suit. "And the feeling is mutual for all parties involved. To put it simply...she's far too much baggage for a person to take"

He wasn't wrong, but she didn't wish to admit it. She loved her mother greatly despite her many disappointing qualities. Yet the desperation in their situation began to voice itself louder into a very immoral thought: leave her.

"I-I don't know" she tightened her grip on the money.

"Honey Bunny" Harley cooed putting her hand on the teen's cheek and lifting her gaze. "Imagine what kind of protection you could get yourself alone without bad vices following you? A less cockroach infested place? No more bottles of glass thrown on the kitchen floor. Never have to wonder when you'll get out. Imagine that?"

And she did allow herself to that. She imagined running out and not looking back, perhaps then her mother would get clean, and find her and they would be okay. Her eyes shined in thinking of way out of this cocaine criminal bound building.

"Go" Joker murmured softly.

Nodding she knew that they had done their job; they were buying her off, letting her break away from the hindrance that was her mother and going for something better. It was the moment the door closed that she found herself running to her bedroom.

She began to pack what she could. They never had enough money for a suitcase (they never traveled), but she knew her father had duffle bags from heists that she ended up using. It was incredible how all her belongings fit in one medium sized duffle bag, small enough to simply be a gym bag. Her clothes nicely fitted and her one pair of good shoes fit perfectly there. Taking out her backpack she began to pack her personal items: a photograph of her and her father, the money tightly wrapped in a sweater, and her toothbrush. That was all she owned and she knew she would be leaving all she knew.

Slipping on her father's cheap coat she paused by the doorframe. Could she truly leave her mother behind? She swallowed unsure of her actions. She couldn't simply leave her, but Mr. Joker had made it clear that his suggestion had a tone of finality. She shuffled through her bag and took out a thousand dollars and left it on the corner table. Enough for two months rent; enough time for her mother to find a job.

Locking the door, she threw the keys in the mailbox before running away. She pulled her coast tightly around her as winter blew on her. It was for the better, Mr. Joker said so and she wasn't going to disagree with the Clown Prince. As she ran down towards the subway entrance she failed to notice two pairs of eyes taking note of her running.

"He visited them" Robin said softly.

"That he did, I'm only curious to see exactly what he was up to" Batman replied softly.

The answer was given but an hour later as they heard gunshots in the same apartment complex they had visited hours ago. The scene before them was a gory one: the woman did not stand a chance, as she was already incredibly intoxicated. In her hand was not a bottle of whiskey, but rather a card: An Ace of Hearts. By the door was a thousand dollars left behind by the naive girl who only strived for the better.