A/N: Wow, sorry I've been MIA for a while. Here's the update...I got a writer's block on this chapter but I'm back on again so I should be able to crank out a couple more in the next week or so.

I don't own DC Comics characters.

Chapter 7: Prove Myself to You

I'm trying, I'm trying

To let you know just how much you mean to me

And after all the things we put each other through and

I would drive on to the end with you

A liquor store or two keeps the gas tank full

And I feel like there's nothing left to do

But prove myself to you and we'll keep it running

"Demolition Lovers," My Chemical Romance

The Joker led me into the open room of the newly improved (or not) warehouse, where his henchman had gathered impatiently.

"Gentlemen, look who has graced us with her presence today." He announced, sneering at me.

I knew it was all an act, but it was really fucking annoying.

The henchmen all booed and made cat-calls, but I just stood there and took it, knowing there was absolutely nothing I could do to stop it. I wasn't exactly in the position to be giving out orders. I was just biding my time anyway until I could get him to trust me again. And then…well, I think the end result should be obvious by now.

"I think a certain someone should change now." He said pointedly.

"Huh?" I had been spacing out.

"Well, air-head, I was talking to you, and I think you should get into your costume now." He smirked. Did I mention I hated his smirk? Ok, yeah, I know I did.

"Fine," I muttered, and headed for the nearest room that had a door with a lock.

I was not taking chances with these perverts.

I emerged from the room a few minutes later, and braced myself for more derogatory remarks about my appearance. To my surprise, they were all completely silent. They just stared at me in this eerie way, like I was some sort of alien or something.

"Um, hi," I said awkwardly.

"Very nice, Miss Quinn," the Joker winked at me, but not in any sort of lascivious way. It threw me off-guard a little.

"Yeah, well, I try." I said, and gestured for him to continue.

"A de-briefing, gentlemen, before we embark on our venture of the day," the Joker said, "Well, to set the scene for you chumps, we're going to Randolfini's place today."

A couple of men started whispering amongst themselves. I had a feeling that they knew the guy. I, on the other hand, didn't know who the flying fuck that man was.

"Yes, that Randolfini, men; I know a few of you were under his employ until recently. I suppose you will like this turn of events. We are going to infiltrate his gang of miscreants and break up this little birthday party they are having in his honor. I want no one left alive. You hear me?" he leaned an ear toward his captive audience.

"Of course, boss," they all affirmed.

"Good." He pointed to me, "On the next order of the day, this is Miss Harley Quinn. None of you are to address her as anything but that, got it? You'll have to answer to me if I hear any sort of mistreatment or lewd comments directed at her. And you all know that I'm not the forgiving type."

Some of the men's eyes widened in fear, nodding fervently, "Wouldn't think of it, boss!"

"Alright, now that we have that settled…" he glanced around the room, "Back to work until I tell you otherwise."

He left the men, and left me standing there, not sure whether I was to follow him or not. After a moment, I decided to scamper away from the scene as quick as humanly possible, brushing up against him as he walked in huge strides.

"You certainly have a presence." I remarked.

"I take that as a compliment." He said in response, not even looking at me.

"Are you sure that what you're doing is a good idea? I mean, this is the mob, for Christ sakes. They've got security up the ass." I frowned, "Aren't you getting the notion that this is rather reckless?"

He grinned at me, "That's exactly why I'm doing it. Harley, do you really think I'd do the things I do without thinking it might get me into trouble?"

I bit my lip, anxious, "I'm not going to be in any sort of danger, am I?"

"Yeah, probably." He shrugged.

"What?!" I stepped in front of him, "I am going to be in mortal peril here? You're going to let me risk my life for you?!"

"Yeah, do you have a problem with that?"

"Well, uh, yeah, I fucking have a problem with that!" I snapped, "I thought you loved me! You're just going to purposely put me in harm's way?"

"It's not purposely, in any case. You chose this, Harley." He pushed past me.

I followed him, struggling to catch up, "I'm not done talking to you yet, young man! You haven't even told me what my part in this scheme is yet!"

"Oh, that will come in time, my dear." He said.

"I don't like your ambiguity." I said, annoyed.

"You don't need to impress me with your fancy words, Princess. I already know that you're all educated." He chuckled.

"That has nothing to do with the topic of conversation, alright? Stop steering me 180 degrees from the point! You are so fucking frustrating." I threw my hands up in the air to illustrate my proclamation, "You want me to forget that we're committing all sorts of terrible criminal acts and you expect me to be ok with that?"

"You broke me out of an asylum and a county jail. I don't think the law exactly is on your side anymore." He said.

I had nothing to say to that. It was true, after all. I just folded my arms across my chest and made a pouting face.

"Cute," he remarked.

"I don't need your condescension right now."

"No, I meant that it was cute, Harley. God damn, take a compliment, will ya?" he rolled his eyes. We reached his office again, and he opened the door, gesturing for me to go in. I obeyed, having no choice but to.

As I closed the door behind us, he pulled me into his arms, "Harley, I'm sorry."

This sudden display of affection totally threw me off. I patted his back awkwardly, "Well, um, ok…sorry for what?"

"Lying to you all this time. I let you believe something truly horrible of me. I just wanted to tell you that killing your sister was never part of my agenda, I promise." He said into my hair.

I pushed him away, "Oh quit the act. I still can't forget what else you've done, and acting like a whiny, sniffling moron isn't going to help."

He smiled fondly, "I love it when you're angry."

"Can we just get to the point? Why did you drag me in here?" I sighed in total exasperation.

"So we could have hot sex, why else?" he laughed.

My face was dead-pan. I raised an eyebrow skeptically, "Yeah, ok, and that will happen…um, NEVER. What's the real reason?"

"You mean you won't even consider it?"

"Nope."

"Not even a little touchy-feely?"

"Unless you want your dick chopped off and shoved up your ass, I'd suggest not."

"Ok, I see this is not a time for sexually awkward banter right now." He shrugged, "I have a little job for you."

"Finally, you tell me." I plunked myself in the chair across from him ungracefully.

"Alright, so here's the idea. Randolfini has been taking a good deal of my dynamite in the past few weeks. I'm not sure if he has informants within my midst; I'm pretty sure I would have weeded them out by now." He began.

"Well," I interjected, "You said a lot of your men worked for him before?"

"Yes, that's true. They still may have some loyalty, some sort of unspoken allegiance." He said pensively, "That's why you need to be on guard. I'm not sure who will turn on me in the last second. People are fickle that way; in the face of death, their only allegiance is with themselves. Remember that, if you have to remember anything. That, and nothing ever gets done right unless you do it yourself. I live by that code of honor very closely."

"There's a code of honor among criminals?" I had to offer a half-smile at the notion.

"As ironic as that may sound, we all live by it in some way or another."

"I guess I can agree." I said thoughtfully, "I've always lived by that dogma, too. I don't exactly like working with others."

"Yeah, I can see that." He remarked.

I glared at him, and he just gave me a smirk.

"Anyway," I snapped, "Does everything I say have to be turned into sexual innuendo or some way of you insulting me?"

"You set yourself up, Princess." He put his feet up on the desk, leaning back in his chair.

I clenched my fists and unclenched them, "You know, I really don't take kindly to that stupid nickname."

"Well, I think I'll keep it, then." He grinned.

I narrowed my eyes at him, "I want to know what my role in this whole scheme of yours is. Don't sugar-coat anything."

He appeared pensive, "Well, to be put it a somewhat blunt manner, you are the distraction."

I raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"I thought you might do that." He said, with a trace of a smile, "Allow me an explanation."

"Allowed," I said.

"If there are a few life lessons I have learned, Harley, it is that women are the downfall of men. They become too distracted by them, you see, and they let their guard down. They lose themselves by trying to impress a woman only to be let down by her. They try to change, and the woman still can't see it. All they care about is what they want out of the relationship, and that's all there is to it. Women are selfish – don't get me wrong, men are, too – but they believe in this perfect little fairytale world where men are perfect and should sweep them off their feet. I hate to burst your bubble, but there's never the reality. Believe me or don't; that's your choice." He said warily, "Do you see where I'm coming from with this?"

"Yeah," I said quietly. What he had just said…it was all because of me that he had become jaded towards all women. And, well, I sort of…felt bad about it in a way. I knew I shouldn't have, but I did. What he had just said…it sort of broke my heart.

"Ok, well, I didn't mean to get all analytical about it. Basically, you're the hot piece of ass that distracts men while I rape, pillage, and steal." He shrugged.

And that just ruined the moment.

"Thanks. Glad I can be of help." I said bitterly.

"I can't do it without you." He winked.

"Whatever," I sighed, "I guess I have to do it."

"Yeah, I guess you do."

…

Night had fallen upon Gotham City. The perfect time for all the vermin and scum of the earth to come out to play.

And tonight, I was one of them.

His henchmen had all taken off on their various measures of transportation, and that left the Joker and me standing at the warehouse.

"What are we waiting for?" I inquired.

"Anxious, Miss Quinn?" he chuckled.

"Not exactly, Mister J." I frowned, "How do you plan on getting to this gig?"

"I have my ways." He said elusively, "Plus, I like to be fashionably later than my henchmen. It would be rather ridiculous if I appeared before them, wouldn't it?"

I suppose I had never considered that. But then again, why would I have to?

"Fine," I rolled my eyes.

A silence fell between us for a moment.

"Harley?" It was he that broke it.

I turned to answer him, but instead was grabbed and pulled into his arms, his mouth on mine. I again felt the familiar curve of his lips and the harsh cuts of his scars. I leaned into the kiss, feeling no reason to let go. He was scared, nervous; I couldn't imagine why, but I felt the desperation in the way he held onto me, like I was going to run away again. The moment seemed to last indefinitely, but he finally pulled away, "I've missed that."

"I could tell." I wiped the red make-up from my own lips, "You certainly make a mess of things."

"That's my job. Destructive versus constructive."

"You come up with that all by yourself?" I asked, shivering against a cold wind.

"I'm much smarter than you take me for, you know." He smiled.

"Oh, I know you're smart. You're smarter than all of us, which is the part that scares me." I looked up as a black car with tinted windows pulled up to the curb, "Is that our ride?"

"Yup," he hopped off the porch and started going toward the car.

"Um, isn't that a little suspicious? You know tinted windows are illegal?" I called as I followed him to the car.

"Oh, please, you think too much, Princess. And really, since when have you known me to follow the rules?" he laughed, and opened the door for me.

I climbed inside the car, alarmed to see Antoine driving it, "Oh, hello."

"Miss Quinn," he nodded.

"Hit it, Antoine. We're already late." The Joker commanded.

As the car squealed away down the dimly lit streets of Gotham (after all, it was almost 2 in the morning), I glanced over at the Joker, who was staring out the window absent-mindedly.

"Um, you plan on explaining what the kiss was about?" I said, drumming my fingers on the leather interior of the car.

"Quit doing that," he said, "The noise is grating on my nerves. And I kissed you because I felt the need to, that's why. What else do you need to know?"

"Well, I was just caught off guard. I thought you didn't care about me that way anymore."

"Are we really going to have this argument right now?" he sighed.

"Yes, it seems like a good opportunity."

"Fine, since you have to have it your way…" he turned to face me, "Ok, so I still have feelings for you. Like I'm supposed to let that go so easily?"

"I did." I said matter-of-factly.

"I didn't see you pulling away quickly." He smirked.

"What was I supposed to do?" I said helplessly.

"Turn me down, like you have been doing. You kissing me tonight proved to me that you still have feelings for me, too, and I'm going to take advantage of that fact." He looked at me straight in the eyes, and I squirmed a little, "You are going to love me eventually."

"Or what?" I asked, noticing the threat in the statement.

"I don't think you'd like to find out." He said grimly.

I swallowed, but stood my ground, "I don't love you, and I never will."

"Keep telling yourself that." The conversation turned light-hearted again, "I'm just stating the facts, Princess. You didn't shy away from kissing me like you used to, and that is good enough for me. You're not over me."

"I'm not over John, either." I muttered.

"When are you seriously going to stop talking about that prick?" he snapped.

"When you admit that you're sorry for killing him!"

"I will do nothing of the sort." He said firmly.

"Then you're going to have to hear about it for a good long while, because he was going to give me the life I deserved." I said, "And you took that away from me, and I will never forgive you for that."

"Yet you kiss me?"

"No one is without the urge to be loved once in a while." I rationalized.

"You never felt anything for the doctor. You just convinced yourself that you did, and you know it. You wanted to get over me, so you jumped on the next good thing that came by. And then he dies, and you are barely mourning for 3 months before you kiss another man. Well, well, you sound like a little whore."

"I'm getting the fuck out of this car!" I exclaimed, "Antoine, unlock the doors!"

"I can't do that." He said.

"For all the sanity that you have left, let me out!"

"I can't, ma'am. I am under strict orders."

"Fuck you then!" I said, enraged, and turned my anger on the Joker, "How dare you say that to me! I was nothing but fucking loyal to you, and this is how you talk to me? You'd be stuck in Arkham now if you didn't meet me!"

"You didn't have to release me. That was your choice." He said calmly.

"It's because you are one manipulative mother-fucker that I'm stuck in this situation!" I cried, "I hate you so much!"

"Yeah, you may have mentioned that."

His glibness was really starting to piss me off, "Let me out of this car."

"Uh…let me think about that…no."

"I will not do any of your bidding. You can just shoot me in the head and get it over with, because I am so not dealing with this bullshit anymore." I didn't even notice the tears running down my face, "I will not take this from you, not again. Kill me now."

"I'm not going to kill you." He rolled his eyes, "You're so fucking melodramatic."

"I am, huh?!" I shoved him, "You're horrible! This is my life you screwed up! And you're not even sorry at all!"

"What, am I supposed to be or something?"

"Umm…hmm…YES!" I shouted.

"I hate to interrupt, but we're here, sir." Antoine said loudly over the din.

"Alright, thank you, Antoine." The Joker said, and grabbed my wrist tightly, "Now, you're going to shut up. Just do this job for me and I won't make you come back for a few days until you cool off. You're being unreasonable."

I struggled against his grasp, but he held fast, "Do you understand me, Harley?"

"Yes." I said, sulking.

"Ok, let's go."