Story Notes:

Well this story is mainly Alternate Universe. As it doesn't start off as "Harley is a psychotherapist". This tells the story of how they were more than just doctor and patient long before that.
Based on the song Descending Angel by the Misfits. But not really based on it.

I don't own any characters in this fanfiction, unless mentioned. This is for entertainment based purposes only, and unfortunately, I am making no money off of it whatsoever.

Author's Chapter Notes:

Inspiration is difficult.
This is based on Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker.

Please don't flame me about the dates, as nothing is certain. Also I have mentioned it is AU. Quite different from your normal Joker/Harley stories.

'I am just a girl'

She was made to write this constantly. Every day, on the same paper, with the same red margins. The doctor babbled on about her day, and what it really meant. What her mind was really about. Surely, she was the best person to talk about the ins and outs of her mind. It was frustrating.

But that was a long time ago. At Arkham Asylum. Where the insane were not helped in the slightest. At least that's what she thought. But after a majority of tests, she was claimed mentally stable. Free to roam.

Harley looked at her writing. She was more than just a girl. She was an escaped criminal. Arrested for assisted murders, robberies and assaults. She was a pawn in a madman's game. The paper was flung into the trashcan sat in the corner of her room. She knew the Joker a lot more than people thought she did. It wasn't just the doctor patient relationship. Criminal and side kick affair. No, it was much more than that. And even with the drug cocktails the Asylum fed her, the memories were as clear as day. He wasn't the Joker, or Mistah J. He was Jack. Just Jack.

December - 1987

Harley was only eighteen.

An eighteen university student. Winning the scholarship through gymnastics, she decided to take a different career approach. Psychotherapy, seemed a much more appealing choice. Criminals, in all their fame and glory. There was nothing more interesting than learning about psychopath's pasts.
She didn't have many friends to her name. She had a few friends from her classes, but they didn't pay much attention to her on weekends. Her main interest was this man she had seen around. He'd talk to her sometimes, not any main topics of conversation, just random lines of speech. There was no formalities, no questions. He would talk and she would listen.

Jack was tall with dark brown hair. He seemed to be a lot older than the other students. He stuck out like a sore thumb. A man in his early thirties, with stubble gracing his chin and dark eyes, telling stories that only prophets knew. People stayed away from him, like he was an incurable disease. Everyone but Harley.
"Hello Jack" Harley said sitting down next to him on a bench. Jack looked at her and then back to the floor, scratching his stubble.
"He failed me Harleen." Jack spoke simply. His voice was incredible, masculine and deep. She rolled her eyes with a smile, he would always call her Harleen not Harley like she asked every time.
Harley didn't know an awful lot about Jack, only that his lecturer kept failing him, no matter how hard he tried. She never asked questions, only listened.
"I don't know where I'm going to get the money from this time Harleen. I have to succeed" Jack said to her, as he moved his brown bangs out of his face. Harleen took his hand in her own, and his worried look softened.
"You'll support me?" Jack asked and Harley nodded.
"Of course Jack" Harley said with a smile.

Harley never asked Jack why he wouldn't speak to someone high up in the university about his lecturer. She didn't understand why he didn't ask for someone else to grade his work. Jack only muttered about his lecturer changing his work around, making him fail every time. Harley wanted to talk to this lecturer himself, but when it was brought up, Jack shot her down with an angry look.
"No Harleen, this is between me and him" Jack said sternly.

*

Harley had heard of the Batman. Anyone who hadn't lived under a rock. She ran a hand through her blonde locks and sighed. Sitting up from the bed, she lit a cigarette and let out a sigh of relief. She had been trying to quit, but once she got going, there was no stopping her. Her apartment was small but spacious. Her bedroom was the biggest room, it was purple, with white furniture. Furniture that she had once when a teenager, or she had scraped by to afford.
"Harleen?" The voice came from beside her.
Jack sat up and lent against Harley, placing a small kiss on her shoulder. They sat there for a good few minutes, just staring at the walls of the room.
"I'm too old for you Harleen" Jack mentioned, his voice gruff. Harley exhaled her cigarette smoke and flicked the unwanted ash into the ashtray on the bedside table.
"Only you seem to think so Jack. I however like older men. And you particularly excite me" Harley said with a giggle.
Jack let out a playful growl and kissed Harley softly.

*

Harley sighed, looking at the wall that they both once looked at, sane. Her Jack, the name was thought of with a smile. He was beautiful, inside and out. She couldn't help but feel partly responsible for his change over.

But realistically, there was nothing she could do. She still loved him, whatever he was. Harley was moving on now, a new life, a new start.

Harley knew Batman was keeping a watch on her. She could feel it when she went out for groceries, or when she went to walk her dog. It was a big shame of what happened between her and Jack. But he wasn't Jack anymore, and after all the pushing and trying she did to find the Jack that lied deep inside that criminal, all she had to show for it was a black eye. Harley convinced herself that she was in love with the Joker, but there was only so much she could take.