Happy Daze Chapter 1
Joan Leland raced down the hallway towards the medical wing. The asylum was in utter chaos. As she turned the corner she was forced to slide to a stop because the hallway was blocked by a mob of bodies. Three orderlies were restraining the Joker and two others were trying to pull Poison Ivy off of him as she screamed and throttled him.
"You bastard! If she dies I'll kill you myself!"
"It's not my fault she didn't get out of the way!" He bellowed back at her. Her hands managed to circle his throat.
"You lobbed a grenade directly at her, you prick! Her back was turned, how was she supposed to get the hell out of the way?" The orderlies managed to pry Ivy off of Joker.
"If she had done what I told her to, none of this would have happened!"
Ivy had an orderly on either side of her grasping her upper arms and she used this to her advantage. She lifted her feet, swung forward and planted them directly in the Jokers face. He saw stars as he felt the sharp pain of his nose breaking. Blood immediately spurted from it, running down his face and onto the front of his suit. He licked the blood from his lips, and started cackling hysterically. Joan needed to get this under control and fast. She pushed her way into the center of the fracas and pulled out two hypodermic needles loaded with sedative. She headed for Ivy first since she was struggling and being combative and stabbed the needle into her upper arm administering the medication. She then quickly turned and did the same to Joker. Sedatives didn't work normally on either of the rogues and she knew it, but it did take the fight out of them rather quickly.
"Get them out of here and put them both in solitary!"
"What about his nose Doctor Leland?" asked one of the orderlies handling the Joker.
She walked over to J, roughly grabbed his nose, pulled and twisted until she felt the bones pop back into alignment. J screamed in pain at the rough handling.
"Jesus Doc, take it easy will you?" Joan glared at the sadistic clown.
"Get him out of here. NOW!"
They dragged the two criminals down the hallway towards the solitary confinement cells. Joan quickly jogged down to the medical center and pushed open the doors to see the staff there working on an unconscious Harley Quinn. Harley may be a criminal, but she was once Joan's protégée and friend and she cared about her. It broke her heart to see Harley constantly in the throes of addiction and obsession over that psychopathic clown. She knew it would come to no good and here was the proof. Harley's head was wrapped in bandages and much of her body was covered in first and second degree burns. There was blood crusted in her ears and at the corner of her mouth. Joan walked towards the table Harley was laying on and addressed one of the doctors.
"What's her status?"
"She's alive and stable Joan, but she's completely unresponsive. There are a few broken bones that need to be set and the burns need to be treated. She suffered a fairly serious head trauma and we need a CAT scan to determine if there is any swelling in the brain. I'll contact you once we've completed our assessment."
"Thanks Bill, I appreciate it."
She left the medical wing and headed to the intake offices. Karen was on the desk tonight and was very obviously frazzled.
"Karen, who brought them in tonight? Was it Batman? Is he here?"
"No it was the GCPD this time. Batman is on the scene from what I understand, there are civilians still trapped in the rubble."
Damn it, the one time she wanted to talk to him he wasn't there. She wanted to know what had happened, not that it really mattered. Harley was still seriously injured and knowing the how and why wasn't going to make her any better.
"If he shows up, page me." Karen nodded.
"Of course."
Joan headed to her office to take some ibuprofen and finish notating her patient files as she waited for an update on Harley's condition. Her shift was almost over but she decided to stay until the prognosis was complete. Hours later Dr. Foster knocked on her door.
"Hey Bill, how is she?"
"Stable. Her vitals are normal. Besides the obvious injuries she's in fairly good shape. The problem is she's still unconscious. Nothing we've tried has worked to bring her out of it. Joan, she's in a coma." Joan sighed and rubbed her face.
"I told her that sick bastard would be the death of her! Damn him!" Bill had only joined the staff a few years ago, but he knew Joan had a soft spot for Harley.
"I'm sorry Joan. I wish I had better news."
"Thanks Bill. May I see her?"
"Of course. Go on down, take as much time as you need."
She made her way back down to the medical wing. Harley was lying in one of the medical bays, tubes and wires attached all over her body, bandages covering the majority of her skin. Joan gazed down at her small form, her heart breaking for her former colleague. She pulled over a chair, sat and took one of Harley's small hands in hers.
"Harley, it's Joan. I hope you can hear me. You're going to be okay you know. Your wounds will heal in time. We need you to come back to us now. If you can hear me, I need you to wake up. Wake up Harley. Wake up."
oOoOoOoOo
"Time to wake up. Harleen, come on, wake up honey." Harley cracked her eyes open as she felt herself being gently shaken on one shoulder. She blinked several times in mild confusion.
"Mom?"
"Good morning sleepy head. Come on sweetie, breakfast is ready and it's almost time for school. Your bus will be here in an hour."
Harley looked around the room bewildered. The walls of the bedroom she had woken up in were a pale pink. It was filled with white furniture, stuffed animals, trophies and ribbons and she was lying under a pink floral quilt. She looked at her mother. She was wearing a blue plaid dress that cinched at the waist and flared out widely at the hemline which was covered by a white apron. She was wearing heels and her makeup was already done. Her hair was impeccably styled into neat finger waves and curls that fell to just below her earlobes.
"Why does my head hurt?" Her mother gave her a puzzled look.
"You don't remember?" Harley shook her head. "You fell off the bleachers last night at the football game and hit your head. You were always such a clumsy little girl." She said with a smile. "No harm done though sweetheart, just a little bump is all. Now come on, time to get dressed and get a nice nutritious breakfast into you before that math test today."
Her mother turned and left the room as Harley tried to remember how she got there. She really must have bumped her head because she had no recollection of it at all. She shrugged and got out of bed to get dressed. She opened the closet to reveal a row of full skirts, button down dress shirts, cardigan sweaters and modest dresses. She went with a pink polka dotted dress, a white cardigan, white bobby socks and saddle shoes. She put her hair up into two high pigtails then followed the aroma of pancakes to the kitchen. She froze in the doorway.
"Daddy?" Her father looked up from his paper and smiled at his daughter.
"Good morning Princess! How's Daddy's little girl today?"
Her father was wearing a blue suit with a crisp white dress shirt and a diagonally striped tie. She stared at him confused for some reason. Something didn't feel right. She was distracted by the sound of small feet running towards the kitchen. Her little brother Barry burst into the room. He was wearing dungarees, a striped shirt and Buster Brown shoes. His hair was cropped in a crew cut and he was carrying a hobby horse in one hand and a cowboy hat in the other. He put the hat on his head and pointed his finger like a gun at Harley.
"Bang, bang! I got you Injun, you're dead! Bang!" Harley's mother walked over and plucked the hobby horse and hat away from Barry.
"No cowboys and Indians at the table Barry. Now both of you sit and eat your breakfast."
Harley glanced around the kitchen. The floors were black and white checkerboard tile, the cabinets were a butter yellow with white appliances and a floral wallpaper covered the walls. She cautiously walked to the table and sat down while her mother set a plate of hot pancakes and bacon down in front of her.
"What's wrong Princess?" She looked up at her father.
"What are you doing here?" Nick Quinzel started then looked at his watch and grinned.
"Thanks for reminding me Pumpkin. I almost forgot about that meeting this morning." He stood and kissed Sharon on the cheek. She handed him his hat and briefcase. "Well kiddos, I better get to the office." He kissed both of his children on top of their heads. "Good luck with that math test today Harleen. See you later."
"Have a good day honey." Sharon turned to her children. "Eat up kids, or you'll miss your busses."
Once the breakfast dishes were cleared Harley found her books and walked down to the corner to wait for the school bus. She had a nagging feeling that something was wrong but she just couldn't put her finger on it. It must be the bump on her head. It was making her confused. The bus arrived and as soon as she stepped onto it she saw a gorgeous redhead who was waving to her from the very last seat.
"C'mon Harley, I saved you a seat." She walked to the rear of the bus and sat down next to her best friend Pamela. This was the first encounter of her day that actually felt normal for some reason. "How's your head?" Harley rubbed the back of her skull and felt a small lump there.
"Okay I guess. Just a bump but it's making me feel all weird." Pam gave her a curious look.
"What do you mean weird?"
"It's hard to explain. I couldn't remember how I got home last night and I didn't recognize my room when I got up. Then I saw Mom, Dad and Barry and had this strange feeling that something wasn't right. Like everything was too perfect or something." Pam rolled her eyes.
"That's because your family is too perfect. Well I'd be more than happy to trade your family for mine Harls. My family is a nightmare."
Her memory seemed to suddenly flood her brain. Pam's father had passed away years ago and her mother remarried. Pam's stepfather was a city bus driver with a bad temper and a drinking problem and her mother was a depressive with little interest in anything other than her soap operas, cigarettes and valium. Harley gave Pam a once over. She was wearing black pants that were rolled up to her mid-calf, a green off the shoulder sweater and black flats. She was about to ask Pam a question when the bus pulled up in front of Gotham High. They filed off the bus and walked together into the building. She saw a number of familiar faces and that strange feeling finally started to drift away.
"So Harls, you have a date for the dance on Friday yet?" Did she? She wasn't sure for a moment but it suddenly came to her.
"Um, no. Actually I can't go to the dance, I have to work at the drive-in on Friday." Pam gave her a haughty look.
"Oh come on! Ditch Dunbar's and come to the dance. It won't be the same if you're not there. Besides, I hear that Bruce Wayne is going to ask you to go with him." Harley rolled her eyes.
"That blockhead jock?"
"That rich blockhead jock!" Pam said with raised brows.
"No thanks, the guy just isn't my type." Pam shook her head in astonishment.
"Harley, he's a millionaire! Any girl in this school would die to go out with Bruce Wayne. Marry a guy like that and you and your family are set for life!" Harley pulled her books to her chest as they walked towards homeroom.
"Any girl but me. I want a guy who can make me laugh and that blowhard has no sense of humor at all. Anyway I thought he and Selina were steadies?"
"Well he hasn't asked her to wear his ring, but if he did I know she'd say yes."
"Harleen!" She turned to see Jonathan Crane, a tall, skinny bookish boy she'd been friends with since primary school, coming up the hallway behind them. She waited for him to catch up. "Good morning Harleen, Pamela. May I carry your books for you ladies?"
"Why thank you Jonathan, that's very nice of you. How are you?" He piled their heavy books into his arms and struggled slightly under their combined weight.
"Just splendid! My project for the science fair is coming along quite nicely. I'd like for you to see it before my big debut." Harley smiled kindly at him. Jonathan was socially awkward but a very nice guy and she often humored him when he got excited over one of his experiments even though she wasn't really interested in the subject.
"What are you working on?" His face lit up at the prospect of thrilling her with his intellect.
"I am studying the effect of the fear response in laboratory mice. It's quite thrilling work." Ivy rolled her eyes. She was not a fan of Jonathan, he seemed to get on her nerves whenever he was around.
"Oh look Harls, here we are. Sorry Jonathan but we've gotta run now. Thanks for carrying our books though."
"Oh well I thought perhaps you could come over this weekend-" That was all he got out of his mouth before Pam pulled Harley through the door.
The bell rang and the students sat down at their desks. Harley looked around the room. She recognized most of the people in the classroom. Selina Kyle, captain of the cheerleading squad, sat at her desk applying lipstick in a compact mirror. Their foreign exchange student, an unfortunate looking young man named Jervis Tetch was seated in the front row. He was mercilessly picked on for his short stature, buck teeth and English accent. Harley felt sorry for him. To her right was Jenna Duffy, a tomboy to the nth degree who would rather be enrolled in shop class than the home economics course they made all the girls take. Maximillian Zeus, a Greek immigrant whose father was a shipping magnate, was in the desk in front of her. To the rear of the room was Oswald Cobblepot, another odd looking boy, who thanks to his family's money, power and connections, was able to avoid the kind of bullying poor Jervis experienced even though he was short and rotund with beady eyes and a beak-like nose. Next to Oswald was a hulking tank of a boy named Bane Dorrance who was the captain of the school's wrestling team. She wasn't positive where he was from originally but he spoke with a heavy Hispanic accent.
As their teacher, Mrs. Leland sat down at her desk to call roll, Bruce Wayne, pampered millionaire and captain of the Varsity Football team, swaggered into the room, late as usual. He sat in the empty desk directly next to Harley. She could feel him looking at her but she did everything in her power to avoid his gaze. As roll was called Bruce leaned over and tossed a note on Harley's desk. She inwardly groaned and opened the note.
'Want to go to the dance with me?' she quickly scribbled a reply.
'Can't. Working.' And tossed it back. He wrote another reply and tossed it back to her and she sighed.
'Play hooky.' She wrote her response and tossed it back.
'We can't all be millionaires, so NO.'
He read the note with disdain. She had to be crazy to turn down a date with the richest, most handsome and eligible boy in town. He shrugged. Fine, it was her loss. After homeroom she and Pam parted ways. Pam had honors Biology but Harley had her favorite class of the day, Psychology. Jonathan was in this class with her, in fact they belonged to the same study group. His face brightened as she walked into the room.
"Hi Jonathan. Sorry about earlier, you know how Pam gets."
"Yes, I know she doesn't like me very much, but really you are the only person Pamela truly likes in this entire school."
Harley giggled, it was true. Pam would rather be out in her garden alone than be around people. She was fascinated by ecology and felt the human race was eventually going to destroy it. She didn't play well with others.
"But to answer your question from earlier, yes I'll try to stop by to see your mice. Is Saturday okay?" A grin slowly spread across Jonathans face.
"Saturday would be delightful Harley. I can't wait to show you my findings." A voice came from over Harley's shoulder.
"I'm sure that's not the only thing he wants to show you."
Harley turned to see Roxanne 'Roxy' Sutton with a glib expression on her face eavesdropping on their conversation. Harley pursed her lips in annoyance. Roxy was a pretty girl with auburn hair who was well known throughout the school for being loose.
"Roxy don't be crude. It's not very ladylike. And anyway butt-out, it isn't any of your business."
"I just call it like I see it Harley and that boy is crushing on you hard."
Jonathan went ten different shades of red. It was true, he'd loved Harley from afar for years now but didn't have the confidence to ask her out. He sputtered and tried to form a retort but Harley beat him to it.
"Ya know Roxy, Jonathan is my friend and that's all we are. Unlike you, not everyone around here thinks with their privates."
"You little bitch."
"At least I'm not the town trollop. Why don't you go find someone else to annoy? Jonathan and I have work to do." She stormed off with a huff.
"Don't listen to her Jonathan, she just loves stirring up trouble."
"Thank you for that Harley. I wasn't prepared for an altercation."
Their teacher, Mr. Arkham, brought the class back to attention and before long the incident was forgotten. The next period was gym, another of Harley's favorite classes. She changed into her school issued black shorts and white shirt. They were working on tumbling and rope climbing today, both of which she excelled at. She was on the school's gymnastics team, although it was currently the off season. The following period was lunch and she was happy to see Pam waiting for her in the cafeteria. Harley's mom packed her a bag lunch which included a ham and cheese sandwich and a crisp, shiny, red apple. She grabbed a carton of milk from the cooler and joined Pam at their usual table.
"So Harls, are you feeling any better?" She shrugged as she unwrapped her sandwich.
"I guess so. I haven't exactly had that feeling that something is wrong, but I don't know, it still doesn't feel quite right either." Pam was eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, she paused and looked at her friend.
"Maybe you should tell your folks when you get home."
"Nah, I don't want to worry them. I'll be fine." Harley took a bite of her sandwich then looked back at her friend. "He asked me." Pam's head popped up and her eyes widened.
"Bruce? What did you say?"
"I didn't say anything, he tossed me a note in class. But I turned him down. I told you, I have to work."
"Was he mad?" She shrugged.
"Not mad, but he wasn't happy. I don't think boys like Bruce Wayne are used to rejection. So who are you going with anyway?" Pam smiled.
"I don't know. I may just go stag to tell the truth."
"Riddle me this, I am earth, I am water. Fire gives me strength. I hold earth, I hold water and beauty rises from me. What am I?" Pam rolled her eyes dramatically and sighed heavily.
"A flower pot."
"Very good Pamela. I am very impressed." Harley looked up at the freckled ginger.
"Hi Eddie."
"Good afternoon ladies."
Edward Nygma was the smartest boy in their class. He wasn't unattractive but his demeanor was a bit off putting as he was very egotistical and loved to flaunt his intelligence. He had a raging crush on Pam and no matter how many times she turned him down, he still kept asking her out.
"So Pamela, I understand that you don't have a date for the dance and I thought perhaps I could help you with that."
"Eddie, what did I say the last time you asked me to a dance?" He deflated slightly.
"You declined my invitation." She smiled.
"That's right Eddie, and my answer hasn't changed. So no."
"Don't take it so hard Eddie. Pam's going stag."
"Pamela, just think about it. We'd make a stunning couple." As he walked away Pam threw her head back and laughed.
"Is he ever going to give it up?"
"Well he's tenacious, you gotta give him that."
"Yeah he is, but it will never happen. I like a bad boy, a rebel. Like James Dean."
"You mean a greaser." Pam shrugged.
"What's wrong with greasers?"
"You mean besides the fact that they like to rumble and drag race and generally cause trouble? Nothing I guess." The girls giggled and finished their lunches.
Her next class was Math. Harley took her test and was pretty confident that she passed. She got through the rest of the day and took the bus home. Her mother was in the kitchen baking cookies when she walked in and Barry was watching the Lone Ranger in the living room.
"Hey Mom."
"Hi bubby, how was school today?"
She walked over and plucked a warm chocolate chip cookie from the cooling rack and took a bite. The gooey chocolate melted in her mouth and her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she savored the sweetness on her tongue.
"School was fine. Wow Mom, I think this is the best cookie I have ever eaten. What did you do to make them so good?" Her mother turned and gave her daughter a lopsided grin.
"I baked them with love silly."
Harley smiled. She considered telling her mom about the strange feelings she'd been having all day. Even now she was having this strong intuition that was telling her to be cautious. It was unnerving but she was afraid of freaking her mother out so she kept it to herself. Sharon moved the last of the cookies to the cooling rack and looked at the clock.
"Your father will be home soon. I better get his martini ready. Why don't you run up and do your homework and I'll call you when dinner is ready okay sweetheart?"
"Okay mom."
Harley went up to her bedroom and sat on the edge of her bed. She looked around at the photos and trophies and tried to remember the events associated with each. She picked up a picture of her family at the beach and focused but no memory of the event came. What was happening to her? Surely a bump on the head couldn't wipe a good portion of her memories away could it? She started her homework. An hour later Sharon was calling Harley to the dinner table. She sat across from her father who had loosened his tie a bit and was drinking a vodka martini straight up. Her mother brought over a meatloaf and placed it in the center of the table next to the peas, mashed potatoes and hot biscuits. Nick looked over at Barry.
"You want to say Grace tonight sport?"
Wait a minute. They were saying grace? Weren't they Jewish? Harley tried prying the memory from her brain but was still coming up empty handed. The family bowed their heads and folded their hands.
"Thank you for the world so sweet. Thank you for the food we eat. Thank you for the birds that sing. Thank you God for everything. Amen."
"Okay, let's eat!" said Nick grabbing the potatoes and spooning a large portion onto his plate.
The family bantered throughout dinner, although Harley remained mostly silent. Alarm bells kept going off in her head and it was making her a little crazy. She didn't understand what was happening. Maybe she just needed to ignore it. She looked at her family. She had never remembered them being happier. They were living a perfect life. Something was wrong.
After the dinner dishes were done and put away, the family crowded around the black and white television and watched The Honeymooners. Harley couldn't concentrate on it. When she finally got to bed that night she stared at the ceiling disturbed. She could swear they were Jewish. She was surprised to see her father that morning, but why. The sun shone too brightly in the sky, the flowers smelt like the best perfume ever and the food tasted like a gourmet chef had prepared it. Her brain was telling her that Sharon had always been a mediocre cook so why was that meatloaf the best meal she had eaten, at least since the pancakes that morning? Something was very, very wrong. She had snippets of voices trying to make their way into her head but she tried forcing them out. Was she losing her mind? Was she going to end up locked away in some sanatorium or asylum? Asylum, why did that word sound so familiar?
Eventually exhaustion overtook her and she fell into a fitful sleep filled with visions and voices of a life that didn't exist.
