The Clown Prince of Crime had made a clean escape from Arkham only to be chased down by none other than the tool that allowed his freedom, Doctor Harleen Quinzel. His psychiatrist and future partner in crime. She'd pursued the Jokermobile on a motorcycle and forced Joker to a stop mid-traffic.

"Get out of the car!" Harleen slams her hands on the hood, furious her patient had manipulated her. She'd just barely made it out of Arkham herself. Joker contemplates running her over and going back to his life but something about her thrilled him. Frost was a good soldier but the Joker needed an heir, someone to carry on his legacy should the worst happen. He throws the door open and gets out of the car, stalking around to face Harleen.

"What do you want from me," Joker knew he was wasting time "Get lost Doc, I don't need you anymore."

Dr. Quinzel raises a gun and trains it on Joker's forehead.

"I want to know why you did this to me," Harleen was relentless "Take me with you I have nowhere to go from here!"

Joker sways from side to side, forcing Quinzel to follow him with the gun.

"You want to come with me, be like me?" the Joker waggles his eyebrows. Harleen bites her lip, thinking it over.

"I want to be with you," she lowers the gun "Isn't that enough?"

Joker grabs her hips and plants a passionate kiss, tangling one hand in Harleen's hair and taking her gun with the other. He jerks away from her and puts the gun to his head.

"Would you be with me in death," Joker clicks off the safety "Would you die with me right here right now?"

"I would," tears stream down Harleen's face "I'd die for you!"

Joker puts the safety back on and puts the gun away. Harleen tries to kiss him again and he strikes her, hard. Quinzel crumples to the pavement clutching at her jaw.

"Fine," Joker goes back to the car "Get in."

Harleen scrambles to her feet and gets in the passenger side of the car. Sirens echo throughout Gotham, Jonny Frost was leading the police and the Bat on a merry chase. Joker drives in silence to Ace Chemicals, the place he was reborn. Quinzel fires questions as he drives but he just shushes her. They arrive at the old chemical plant and Joker parks. He gets out of the car and opens the door for Harleen.

"What are we doing here?" she gets out of the car and looks up at the mammoth building.

"Shut up and follow me." the Joker takes her hand and guides Harleen Quinzel through the plant. It was strange to visit the place of his transformation again with a guest. What was he doing? If she survived this there would be another Joker, an embodiment of the chaos he stood for to command as he pleased. The duo enters a huge, warehouse-like room with huge vats of acid bubbling below metal scaffolding. Harleen clings to the railings, looking down into the tanks with curiosity.

"I don't understand," she looks back at Joker "You were pushed in and the acid bleached your skin?"

Joker comes up behind her and wraps his arms around her waist, digging his fingers into her hips.

"We're not here for me," he whispers into her ear "Do you want to walk the world with me, be by my side always?" he bites down suddenly, causing Harleen to flinch at the clicking of teeth so close to her face.

"Yes," Harleen gathers her nerve "I want this."

"Oh my poor, sweet Harley," he buries his face in her hair and breathes down her neck "Jump!"

"What," Harleen grabs the railing harder "You want me to die?"

"I want you to be reborn," Joker murmurs into her ear again "You have to earn your stripes I won't force you to be like me, turn back and be Dr. Harleen Quinzel jump and become my Harley Quinn."

Harleen turns to face him and lets go of the rails.

"Goodbye, Mr. J," she raises her arms and his fingers linger on her hips "See you in the next life!"

Quinzel ignores her gymnastics training and lets her balance go, she free falls backward with her eyes open, locked on the Joker until she hits the acid and disappears underneath it. All goes black for Harleen Quinzel and the acid strips the color from her clothes, electric blue swirls in the vat. The Joker looks down at the bubbling chemicals and lets out a string of laughter.

"That crazy bitch," he stands in the same spot Harleen had "She actually did it."

Without wasting another moment the Clown Prince rises to this new challenge. He strips off his jacket and takes a few steps back for momentum before diving into the acid after Harleen. He swims to the bottom of the tank and gropes around until he finds her. He surfaces with the newborn Harley Quinn in his arms. The Joker laughs maniacally at the ceiling and kisses her hair.

"Welcome to my world," he says as he pulls her out of the tank "It's time for Gotham to meet my Harley Quinn!"

Joker's moment of nostalgia is shattered by the Cat hissing at him. The Joker and Catwoman were still locked in Penguin's holding cells under the Iceberg. As far as Gotham knew both were dead and Harley was the Joker's successor. She would run his businesses while he eliminated this threat to his throne once and for all. Occasionally Scarecrow stuck his head into the cell, he was dismayed to see Joker alive after briefly believing he died in the alley but that was why the Clown Prince was being kept on ice. The charge to capture Harley had failed and Joker's throne hung in the balance.

"Someone slid this under the door." Catwoman holds up a Joker card. The very same card Joker had given to Rabbit before this entire mess went down. Joker snatches the card from her and flips it over. Rabbit had written 'Alive?' on the back of the card. Joker pulls out the deck and shuffles it back in with the rest of his cards, this time he chooses a king of spades.

"It's too soon." he says to the Cat. She shivers and glares at him.

"Too soon for what?" she watches him scratch a message onto the card.

"That Rabbit is going to bust us out," he flicks the card under the door and waits "But not yet, I need to know whose behind this so I know who to kill first."

"Isn't it pretty obvious your buddy Penguin set us up?" the Cat watches the door.

"Penguin's another piece in this game of human chess," Joker winks "I need to smoke out the coward behind the chess board."

A moment of silence passes before the card comes back from under the door. Joker snatches it up and reads Rabbit's message before shuffling the card back into the deck.

"What did she say?" the Cat was getting frustrated with Joker keeping secrets where her life was involved.

"We're getting out of here," Joker stands up and leans against a wall "Take a catnap and be ready to fight."

The cat groans but doesn't bother trying to squeeze answers out of her employer. They had kept each other alive up to this point and Selina was no Harley.

"Tell me one more thing then I'll leave you alone," the Cat sits up and looks Joker in the eye "You've never put a hand on me and we've all seen the way you treat Harley."

"What are you getting at," Joker looks at his watch "Are you asking for a beating?"

"I'm asking why all the special treatment," Selina hugs her knees "You could have sacrificed me more than once to save yourself what gives, Jokes?"

Joker's face splits into his signature grin and he sits down next to Selina.

"You're useful," he says simply "Harley needs me to control her the way I handle her gets the best results."

"So Harley doesn't deserve free will?" the Cat snorts. Joker shakes his head and waggles a finger.

"You do your best work without my guidance," he says after a moment "I could smack you around but then I'd probably lose my favorite thief and what can I say, I love having a staff of beautiful broads."

Selina holds up her hand to silence him. Rabbit was no longer at the door and someone else was coming down to the cells. Joker winks at the Cat and stands up again, pulling her with him. It was time to face whoever laid this trap and end this war once and for all.

Ivy has Frost digging a pit for bodies to be burned and buried. After the Bat left Ivy's mansion she tasked Frost with cleanup. There were dead henchmen scattered around the yard and after the Bat's visit Ivy needed to appear squeaky clean if Gotham PD showed up. Poison Ivy herself was exhausted, her power needed a rest after all she'd expended fighting for Harley's freedom. All the work Ivy had done to flush the Drug from Harley's body had been undone by the battle. Harley Quinn was high again, sitting in the kitchen bawling her eyes out while Paola tried to get her to eat. Harley truly believed she was the cause of her Puddin's death and no longer wanted to live, a secret she was keeping from her best friend Ivy. With Selina dead too the mansion felt so empty. Harley had been so happy to be free from captivity and back with her lover and friends. She was in so much more pain now that her only love had been murdered after being reunited so briefly. She didn't even get to say goodbye. Harley pretends to be tired, worn out from the battle and the havoc Scarecrow's drug wreaked on her body. Ivy was keeping her sedated but awake enough to move sluggishly around the mansion. Harley was furious Ivy had let Batman go with his life and refused to speak to Pamela. She pretends to go to bed after eating a meal to get Paola off her back and waits until she hears Ivy come in from the greenhouse and retire to her own bedroom. Today was meant to be a victory but Harley only felt the loss of her Joker. Satisfied that Ivy was down for the night Harley gets out of bed and sneaks out of the mansion and heads for Ivy's lab. Harley enters the greenhouse and goes straight for the section Ivy used as a lab. Harley passes up the samples of watered-down Drug Ivy was using to wean her off and goes for the hard stuff. Pamela had unwillingly become Joker's doctor over the last few days and kept a variation of medical supplies and drugs in the greenhouse. Harley just wanted to sleep until her Puddin came back and that was never happening. Harley felt like Sleeping Beauty without her prince to wake her she was just a lovesick psychotic. Harley loads up a syringe with an overdose of tranquilizers and sits at Ivy's worktable to write a note.

Dear Pammy, I don't want to leave you but please believe I have to go. With me gone this war will end and you can carry on in my place for Mr. J. I'm not afraid to die and be reborn to be with him again. I know you won't understand so I won't ask you to. I'm so sorry Pammy but I can't allow this fight to continue with him gone. Jonny is a moron don't trust him and don't let him take over the businesses. I'm sorry Pammy I'm so, so sorry this is what has to happen.

Harley is interrupted by Jonny entering the greenhouse with a shovel. He sees Harley sitting at the table and the syringe next to what appeared to be a note. Frost drops the shovel and draws a gun, keeping it pointed at the floor so Harley didn't spook. He didn't know exactly what she was up to but it didn't look good.

"What are you doing Harley Girl?" Frost edges closer keeping the gun low. Harley picks up the syringe and holds up a hand for Jonny to back off.

"Keep back," Harley stands up and puts more distance between them "Tell Pammy I'm sorry!"

"Come on Harley we just did this!" Frost drops the gun and scrambles over a table trying to get to Harley faster. All the agility in the world wouldn't have stopped Harley. She wastes no more time and gives herself the fatal dose. The last thing Harley Quinn sees is Frost kneeling next to her clutching the empty needle in his hands. Frost shakes Harley frantically trying to carry out Joker's final orders to protect her.

"What have you done," Frost yells "Harley stay with me!"

He's too late. Harley doesn't hear him nor does she care to as her vision blurs into a tunnel and closes one last time.

Author's note: Na na na na Batman! I'm curious how many of you have been reading from the beginning? Say hi in the reviews it helps me get the new chapters out so much faster. Thanks for reading and leave your favorite villain or cameo requests in the reviews too I like to make my stories interactive. Stay tuned and roll credits ;)