Another look inside Jokers mind. I think I've made him a bit soft but as I've said before, Joker and Harley are still human. Plus everyone is asleep so its not like anyone will see. It does jump around a bit between what Joker is thinking and what he is doing so I hope its clear, if not lemme know and I'll try to make it more obvious. Hope you enjoy :)
For Joker his insomnia was both a blessing and a curse. It allowed him to stay up all night working or terrorising whatever poor unfortunates he and Harley happened to come across, but at the same time it meant he had almost no break from the nagging voices in his head. They were nearly always there, pointing out flaws in everything, or just being annoying as hell by arguing amongst themselves about complete nonsense. It was enough to drive anyone crazy!
Tonight, they were shouting about their favourite topic, Harley. Tilting his head, J watched as his lover slept, still snuggled up against him from their earlier passionate love making. She'd dozed off some time after, whilst he remained awake for the fifth night that week. He knew if he didn't get some sleep soon, she'd knock him out with a strong dose of drugs and whilst he was immune to the majority of them he didn't mind her attempts. Sometimes he needed the break and she was successful the majority of the time.
Ever since she had waltzed into his life the voices had repeatedly bombarded him with reasons to get rid of her or trying to convince him that, despite all she did, that her love for him was merely fictional. But no matter what they said Harley had continued to prove them wrong, so he ignored them, or told them to shut the fuck up if he was in a bad mood. Tonight they were really going for it, focusing mainly on her earlier flashback.
Absentmindedly J played with her hair, winding it round his fingers as he listened to their continuous racquet.
Get rid of her, some of them were shouting at him, She's weak, you don't need rubbish like that holding you back! She was crying for god's sake!
She doesn't love you, the rest were jeering, she's afraid of you, why else would she flinch away from you like that? Just dispose of her and move on. This isn't the Harley Quinn you made.
"Piss off" Joker muttered as he pondered that last part. Did he make Harley? He definitely played a part but she did her bit as well, never letting up until she had proven beyond a doubt her feelings for him even after everything he had done to her. Since then he hoped he'd managed to prove he felt the same way. Gone was the Harleen Quinzel he'd first met, replaced with this little monster who had stayed by his side no matter what happened, proving over and over that she was strong, dependable and just as insane as he was if not more!
As for whether Harley had changed, he had to admit that despite being the same crazy girl he'd fallen for, there were a few subtle changes in her that he had picked up on since breaking her out. For example, every now and then she'd find an excuse to touch him, not that that was out of the ordinary it was something she often did, but it felt different now, like she was reassuring herself that he was there and not about to vanish in a puff of smoke, he had nearly died in a helicopter crash. Before J would've found her persistent touching rather irritating after a while, however now it seemed to reassure him as much as it did her. After spending months without his queen, a small part of him hadn't quite gotten over the fact that she was back, safe in his arms.
A small noise distracted Joker from his thoughts. Glancing back down at his girlfriend it was clear that she was having some sort of nightmare, her pretty face screwed up into a vicious snarl as she muttered various insults and threats in her sleep. Her fists were clenched tightly and her whole body had tensed up as if ready for a fight. Was this related to her earlier flashback? He could only assume so as this wasn't something he'd seen her do before.
Despite some of the insults making him chuckle, he'd never realised how much of a potty mouth Harley had, it was clear to him that being in jail had messed her up more than he had and that was saying something. He could only hope that whatever damage had been done wasn't permanent, he wasn't used to the feelings recent events had stirred in him and he had almost no idea how to deal with them. All he knew was that he didn't like seeing his lover this way.
Pulling her small body tighter against his own, J repeatedly ran his hand through her luminous hair, quietly murmuring reassurances in her ear and silently praying that it would help. This whole situation was completely alien to him and he had no idea how to handle it. It wasn't as if it was something he could control.
Seeing Harley cry earlier had come as a massive shock to him, having never seen a vulnerable side to her before. Clearly his reaction had frightened the hell out of her, but he hadn't been angry at her for crying. Never before had Jokers defensive, possessive and protective streaks made themselves known so strongly or aggressively and it was all aimed towards the thugs who had made her shed those tears. His poor office was needed redecorating big time. Considering how well Harley knew how he felt about crying he wasn't surprised she'd been scared, she probably thought he was going to shoot her or something.
However, just because Harley had cried, it didn't mean she was weak. She had proved otherwise a thousand times over. It had taken a lot for her to tell him what was on her mind, even if he had forced her by pointing a loaded gun at her head but he hoped his reaction had shown her she could trust and rely on him in the future. They may not be a normal couple that talked about things, but they were still a team and needed to work through whatever obstacles life through at them, even if they did get over them in their own twisted way.
Joker continued his comforting actions until he felt Harley's body relax, all tension leaving her and her face relaxing into a sleepy smile. The constant mutterings of threats and insults ceased and it was clear that whatever had just plagued her sleep, was now over. Satisfied that the problem was over, for now, J rested his head against hers, closing his eyes and focusing on the soft sound of her breathing in an attempt to drown out the voices that still raged in his head. To his amazement, it worked and for the first time in a while he actually felt tired. After a few peaceful moments he was sleeping soundly, his mind empty of the cursed voices.
