A/N: First of all, I need to give a well-deserved shout-out to my dear FF pen-pal/friend for YEARS, Lily Luna Lestrange III, not only for being my most loyal reader and reviewer but ALSO for letting me use her wonderful OC Bonnie Hatch from her story Seven Words, whom you'll all be seeing for a while over here! :)
(I highly recommend and almost insist on checking her story out, and you'll see why Bonnie is such an interesting character and why I was so excited to use her!) I couldn't have been more excited to get permission to bring Bonnie over, and I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I am with writing her! :)
"Quinzel!"
The deafening sound of her name startled Harley despite the energetic, bouncing steps she took as she followed behind Dr. Leland. For a split second, Harley felt her mind was playing a cruel trick on her because as she glanced inside one of the glass windows of a cell she passed by, she could have sworn the Joker was standing at the window grinning widely at her.
"Quinzel, Harleen!" sneered the Joker, laughing maniacally.
Harley shook her head and her vision of the Joker vanished, and she saw the real person behind the voice - Scarface. The Ventriloquist, of course, said nothing as he held the wooden puppet up.
"Good to see ya again, Toots!" Scarface continued with a hearty laugh escaping his wooden mouth. "It's been pretty boring around here withoutcha!"
Harley didn't answer him, but she did give a tiny smile at the tired-looking Ventriloquist. Dr. Leland also didn't respond to Scarface as she led Harley away to the cell she was already very well acquainted with. Harley saw her usual Arkham "outfit" laid out on her bed, and the photo of the Joker with lipstick-stained kisses on the frame glass still glistened in the fluorescent lights.
"Heh," Harley huffed, another tiny smile forming on her lips. "I see you all kept my bed nice and welcoming, didn'tcha?"
Dr. Leland smiled as she used her card key to open the cell. "You know we just want to make your stay here comfortable, Harley."
"Yeah, I know," Harley replied, as she entered the cell without so much as a protest. "You're one of the good guys around here, Dr. Leland, that's for sure." She paused as she glanced at the picture of the Joker...her ex-puddin. Her throat tightened. "Uh...speaking of good guys, do ya think could you be a good guy and get me a few things?"
Dr. Leland smiled as Harley whispered something in her ear. "Of course I can, Harley. If you grab your clothes, we'll go and get changed. It's almost breakfast time, after all. You and Ivy made it just in time."
Harley's smile didn't break as she quickly grabbed her clothes off the bed. "And..." she began softly. "And will we see those little...delinquent kids anytime soon?"
It was plainly clear to Dr. Leland just which delinquent kid Harley was referring to. She smiled and shook her head as Harley exited the cell with her new clothes in hand. "I'm afraid not, Harley," she said, gently. "Not right now. Every since the AAJD was formed, the minors stay clear of this part of the Asylum...for safety reasons. It's better that we keep them segregated for the most part."
Harley thought about this as they walked towards the changing rooms. "And...and is there gonna be a chance to see them?" she asked, quietly.
Dr. Leland put her hand on Harley's shoulder as they walked together. "We'll talk about those details later, okay? Let's just get you settled in, first."
Buuuuuzzzz!
From the other side of the asylum, the deafening sound of the buzzer made Sophie's heart skip a beat as she jumped a few inches into the air.
Dr. Fluffay smirked a little as he turned around. "Scared, Miss Quinzel?"
Sophie bit her lip but didn't say a thing, although she was able to crack a smile as she heard him use her new name...the name she now felt whole with. She looked up at the long hallway they were now walking down and felt her chest grow tight. She had since changed into her Arkham attire - which was different for the minors. Unlike the inmates at Arkham, the minors at AAJD were given colored clothes - and in Sophie's case, she was clad in a hot pink shirt and pants, but she had no idea what that meant.
"We have 24 offenders residing in the AAJD," Dr. Fluffay suddenly continued even if Sophie hadn't asked for an explanation. "10 boys, and now, 14 girls, all between the ages of ten to sixteen. In order for you all to learn to "get along" with each other, each one of you has a roommate. So...think of it kind of like bunking with friends at summer camp. Doesn't that sound like fun?"
Sophie could hear the sarcasm as it dripped from his last word, and she wished she could punch the smirk off his huge, square face...but she knew she couldn't. Also, since she had never been to summer camp, Sophie couldn't really say "bunking" with someone sounded like fun. Nor did she have any friends to ever bunk with, for that matter. She just continued walking and said nothing, her emotions still bottled up inside her. When they reached the door the doctor apparently wanted, he stopped in front of it.
"This is your new home-away-from-home, Miss Quinzel," he said, stiffly. "Pink Wing, Room 3."
Dr. Fluffay stuck the pink-painted key into the keyhole and jingled it until it turned and clicked. As he opened the door, Sophie timidly looked in, her body filled both with curiosity and anxiety. There, sitting on one of the two beds in the tiny room, Sophie caught sight of a large girl of about thirteen or fourteen years old. She had jet black hair save her roots, which were dyed a vibrant shade of neon-blue. The girl looked up as the door opened, but she didn't smile. Actually, to Sophie, she looked rather annoyed and angry to be disturbed.
"Make yourself...at home," Dr. Fluffay said to Sophie in the mocking tone as he seemed to love to use when speaking to her. "The Pink Wing has breakfast shortly, so be prepared for that." With that, he slammed the door, leaving Sophie standing in the middle of the room in a stare-off with her new roommate.
A potential friend, perhaps?
"H-hi," Sophie began, nervously gulping as she bit her lip. "Um...my name's Sophie."
The girl continued to awkwardly glare-stare at her through her dark brown eyes but kept her mouth in a straight line, completely unwilling to even attempt at showing any sign of wanting to answer.
"Wh-what's your name?" Sophie continued politely, feeling her cheeks flush crimson as she tried desperately to fill the silence which surrounded them.
In an instant, the girl bounded up from her bed, making Sophie gasp and take a frightened step backward. The girl grabbed Sophie roughly around her shirt collar before she spoke. "Listen here, small-fry," the girl snapped. "I had a room all to myself for months before they woke me up in the middle of the freakin' night to tell me I finally needed to share my space. They said it would be good for me." She gripped Sophie's collar tighter. "But, ya wanna know something? I liked having my own space, and I didn't need to have a roommate. Especially not somebody like you, Shorty!" She slammed Sophie back against the wall before continuing. "So, if you know what's good for you, you'll just stay out of my way! Ya got that?"
Sophie was in too much of stunned silence to say anything as she stared into the girl's eyes, which were filled to the brim with pure hatred.
"Ya got that?" the girl repeated, shoving Sophie back harder against the wall.
Suddenly, a loudspeaker voice called overhead before Sophie had a chance to say a word. "Pink Wing, breakfast in the mess hall!"
Both girls heard the key to their door turn, and the snarling girl immediately let go of Sophie's collar as Sophie gulped back the frightened tears she had in her eyes. Suddenly without Harley or Ivy by her side, Sophie felt much less confident and secure in herself, so she couldn't will herself to fight back against her new "roommate," even if she knew she could.
"Pink Wing, let's move!" said an orderly, loudly.
The girl snickered as she noticed Sophie quickly wipe the tears that had slipped from her eyes. "Crybaby." As she stepped out of the room, she turned back to the wet-eyed Sophie with a smirk on her face. "My name's Billie, by the way. Welcome to the AAJD."
Sophie could hear the snickers Billie emitted as she walked out of the room and into the now noisy hallway. Sophie sniffed and swiped her face clean of tears, took in a deep, shaking breath, and exited the room as well. Careful not to follow too close behind Billie, she joined the sea of 11 other hot pink-clothed children as they followed the stern orderlies towards the mess hall. Sophie glanced around her at the other members of the Pink Wing. Most of the kids looked to be around her age or a bit older, and as she watched them all file out into the corridor, she felt a bit claustrophobic in her tiny stature as they engulfed her like a pink cloud of cotton candy. Her eyes focused on two boys, both with black hair. One of the boys somehow reminded her of her own personal pesky caped nemesis, and she cracked a half-smile as she imagined Robin being trapped in Arkham like she was. The boys were pushing and being rowdy, and one of the orderlies immediately called them out on it.
"Ruffeo! Banning! Knock it off or your rec-yard privileges will be revoked again this week for minor physical misconduct!"
In an instant, the boys stopped pushing each other and calmly followed the rest of the group towards the smell of breakfast. Sophie could tell that clearly, they wanted to keep whatever privileges they had. She glanced down at her wrist at her light pink wrist band that Dr. Fluffay had hastily strapped on her after she had changed earlier that morning. Their tracking devices. Distracted, Sophie began trying to memorize her AAJD ID number when suddenly, she felt herself crash into something. Gasping, she realized she had crashed into someone with black hair and blue roots. Without missing a beat, Billie shoved Sophie backward so hard that she fell onto the floor with a thud.
"I told you to stay away from me!" Billie snapped as Sophie lay on the floor, staring up at her with huge, terrified eyes.
"Eilan!" one of the orderlies shouted. "Your rec yard privileges are revoked for two days for minor physical misconduct!"
Billie huffed and glared down at Sophie, who had still not been able to stand up out of shock and fear. Before Billie could say or do anything more, Sophie scrambled to her feet and quickly escaped into the hot pink crowd like a flamingo trying to fly.
"Blue Wing, breakfast!" The intercom voice called out, just as the Pink Wing entered the clean, shiny cafeteria.
Sophie looked around, anxiously. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to do next, so she awkwardly stood, waiting for another inmate to do something first. She watched as a brown-haired boy from her wing grabbed a tray, slammed a flimsy-looking plastic knife, fork, and spoon on it, and made his way down the long line. Sophie had a moment of deja vu from when she had attended public school as a young child and had seen a similar setup. She bit her lip, took a tray, and followed behind the brown-haired boy.
After everything that had happened in such a short time, Sophie was admittedly hungry and was actually looking forward to getting some nice, hot food into her stomach. But, her face fell the moment the lunch worker slammed a bowl down on her tray, and a second one slopped a huge glob of something gray and steamy into the bowl. Sophie was speechless, as she had never seen...or smelled anything like what was now living in the bowl before in her life. She continued to stare at it as she took the tray and made her way to an empty table and sat down. Sophie looked around and noticed the other kids, now dressed in bright blue start to file into the cafeteria. They also looked quite young, some looking about fifteen, sixteen, and the others, about Sophie's age, just like Dr. Fluffay had said. Even as unrealistic as it sounded, and even if her first attempt at making a friend had been a bust, Sophie hoped she could make a friend while she was stuck in the AAJD. Then again, she knew she was only stuck until Harley and Ivy found a way to break her out, and the thought of that gave her a sliver of hope and lessened her desperation for friendship...but only slightly.
As she glanced down at her bowl of mush, Sophie could have sworn that it gurgled and bubbled as if it were alive. Sophie dipped her spoon in and bravely took a bite, but the moment she swallowed the horrible substance, her face turned green and she thought she would barf on the table. She sighed at set the spoon down, realizing that she would probably go hungry until lunch...unless they were also going to be served hot mush as well, and in that case, she would starve.
"Ahem," Dr. Fluffay's booming voice rang out clear as day as he spoke through a microphone. "Good morning, children."
Instantly, the buzzing of the kids' voices died down to a whisper, and all eyes focused on him like tiny robots.
"First off, I'd like to say how very impressed I am by both sectors of the AAJD. You've all shown great improvements as far as the steps to your rehabilitation, as well as an overall rise in good behavior. Dr. Martinez and Dr. Chang have both told me that each of their respective wings has truly made leaps and bounds. And for that," he said, waving his hand behind him. The children watched as one of the orderlies wheeled a huge TV in on a stand and parked it in front of their tables. "I've decided that you all receive extra TV privileges this morning while you enjoy the delicious and nutritious breakfast Mrs. Cookie has prepared for you."
A few of the kids in the Pink Wing started clapping excitedly as the TV was parked next to Dr. Fluffay, and Sophie noticed Billie and a few of her "groupies" happily nudge each other.
"I'll allow the morning news," Dr. Fluffay continued as the noise of the excited squeals died down, "because I believe it's important that you young ones all stay up-to-date with current events around your beautiful, glorious city of Gotham."
A few tables away from her, Sophie's eye caught a Blue Wing girl with red hair and glasses mumble something angrily as she glared at Dr. Fluffay. She caught Sophie's eye, to which she quickly looked away again, almost embarrassingly.
"So, I wish you all a pleasant breakfast, good school lessons, wonderful therapy sessions, and a nice time in the rec yard getting your fresh air and exercise!" Dr. Fluffay finished, as he turned on the TV and walked to the long table which he and the rest of the doctors, therapists, and a few orderlies sat.
Sophie's stomach rumbled in hunger as she noticed Dr. Fluffay was the only one of the adults who was served a decent-looking breakfast: a steaming hot pile of pancakes slathered in butter and syrup, scrambled eggs, bacon, and orange juice. The rest of the staff seemed to be eating what the children were given, but, oddly, none of them seemed to mind as they ate it without a lick of complaining. Sophie dipped her spoon into her sad, gray mush and sadly stirred it, wishing to somehow make it seem even the slightest bit more appetizing. In her imagination, the mush was transformed into chocolate chip pancakes and a huge pile of honey bacon, but her hunger visions didn't help with the harshness of her reality. She blinked her eyes hard until the mush was back to being mush once again. Sophie almost broke into a grin as she thought about the times when she had been living on the streets. Oddly enough, she was able to at least steal better food than what they served them in this place. She sighed and let the spoon drop to the table as she turned her attention to the newscasters on TV in hopes to forget her noisy tummy's annoying protests.
"In news from our sister city of Metropolis," the dark-skinned newscaster said. "Here we see live footage of a fiery explosion from Metrolpilis City bank that seemed to be the cause of two costumed arsons, which we now know to be the two newest rogues from Gotham City...Ying and Yang. Unfortunately, the two menaces successfully robbed a few locations around Metropolis, but they have most likely made their way back to Gotham City."
Upon hearing the names of the twins, Sophie felt her blood boil. She watched the video footage of Ying and Yang bounding around Metropolis away from the police, pure joy in their eyes with every flip and twirl they perfectly executed.
"Putting these two criminals behind bars is the top priority of the GCPD at this time, says GCPD Officer Rene Montoya," the newscaster read. "Montaya adds, 'Getting the streets of Gotham safe from these vicious rogues and other criminals is what we strive to do. and what we will do.'"
The co-anchor picked up another piece of paper and started to read, seriously, as he turned his gaze to the camera. "In other news, Gotham's trio of no-do-gooders, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and their young counterpart Sweetie Pie, have all been cleverly apprehended in the early hours of this morning by the MCPD, with help from Metropolis's own caped crime-fighter, Supergirl. The trio had apparently carelessly tripped up the alarm, which made catching them quite easy for all involved."
Sophie watched as they showed a picture of herself, Harley and Ivy all grinning, mischievously. The next clip was of Harley and Sophie flipping crazily in the air, Sophie's giggles echoing loudly throughout the cafeteria as they boomed from the speakers. She balled both fists up in anger as she listened to the news report. "It wasn't our fault we got caught," she mumbled quietly to herself through gritted teeth.
"Because of the sheer carelessness of the three rogues, they were easily taken into custody. They have all been transported to Arkham Asylum and are now successfully off the streets," the newscaster continued.
Sophie swore she heard a slight tone of smugness in the newscaster's voice, which completely set her off. "We weren't careless! Those stupid twins tricked us! Ivy had a great plan and we coulda got away with it if-" Suddenly, Sophie realized she wasn't whispering as quietly as she had originally thought she was. Instead, in her haste and fury, she had jumped up yelling as loudly as she could, and was now standing up next to her table, red-faced and panting with her fists balled up together. The entire cafeteria had clearly heard her loud rant, and they all now stared at her, open-mouthed. Sophie felt her cheeks flush a deeper crimson as she slowly slinked back down at her table. "Oh, shii-take mushrooms," she mumbled, gulping.
Suddenly, the news report was the least interesting part of breakfast, and Sophie could hear the growing whispers that now surrounded her on all sides.
"Is that the real Sweetie Pie?"
"That kid?"
"It can't be!"
"No way! Is it really her?"
"Oh, my God! It is her!"
"Geez! She works with Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn!"
"And she worked with the Joker!"
Dr. Fluffay didn't waste a single moment as he stood up from his table and walked towards the TV. "Well," he said, casually switching the TV off. The whispers died down instantly. "I guess some of us just don't know how to behave properly when special priveledges are allowed, do we? Therefore, said privilege will be revoked for all of you. Starting now." Dr. Fluffay smirked a bit as he noticed the whisperers of awe had now changed into huffed, angry, slit-eyed glares directed at the now even more red-faced Sophie. "You can all thank the loud-mouthed little clown for that." He wheeled the TV away with a slight spring in his step, chuckling as he left.
Sophie wisely didn't look up from her bowl of mush for the remainder of breakfast time, despite the ongoing whispers of awe, confusion, and now anger that continued to swirl around her. She couldn't believe she let her emotions get in the way and she had caused a scene. If it wasn't for that, she knew no one in the asylum would have known who she was, and she could have stayed anonymous until Harley and Ivy got her out. If only she could learn to keep her big mouth shut sometimes, she wagered she'd get into a lot less trouble. If anything, she knew she should have learned a bit of self-control from Harley, seeing as she knew the consequences when she had laughed at Scarecrow last time. She should have known that biting your tongue is something the best way to keep your neck out of a noose, but she just hadn't learned how to, yet.
Suddenly, before she could ponder anymore about anything, Sophie felt a hand grab the back of her head and shove her face directly into her bowl of mush.
Gasping, Sophie jumped up from the table, wiping her now cold, sticky face with her sleeve. "Hey, what's the-" Sophie turned, angrily, but stopped when she saw the person behind the shove.
Billie towered over her, her, fists clenched, and Sophie felt weak in her knees as she stared up at her dark brown eyes. "I don't care who you are, you little crybaby. Not only did you get my rec-yard privileges taken away, but also my TV privileges!" Billie roughly grabbed Sophie by her collar, again. "Hope you're a light sleeper, Sweetie Pie, 'cause who knows what could happen while you sleep."
"Hey! Break it up, girls!" cried a buff orderly who had come to the rescue. She grabbed Billie and started to pull her away, roughly. "That's it! Eilan, you have one week of banned rec-yard privileges for minor physical misconduct!"
Billie shrugged her shoulders. "Oh, well." She turned to see Sophie now shakily wiping her face with a napkin as Billie's friends chuckled. Sophie glanced up at Billie with petrified eyes, causing Billie to laugh, herself. "It was worth it."
Harley also hadn't eaten much breakfast that morning, despite having a much better choice of meals than the children had. Food was the farthest thing on her mind at that time. She had ignored the constant chatter of her random tablemates as they discussed their road to recovery, their therapy sessions, and the movie night they would be having on Friday night. Once they were dismissed from the cafeteria, Harley had quickly gone to locate Ivy, whom she hadn't seen since they had been taken into custody. On the way, she passed Harvey Dent and Killer Croc attempting to play a game of ping-pong, but between both their tempers, hadn't gotten very far.
"Hiya, Harley!" said Killer Croc, after angrily slamming down his paddle on the table. A small dent appeared after he lifted the paddle again. "How's about a game? You can play with this cheater, here, if you can stand it!"
Harvey's lip curled into a snarl as he advanced towards him. "I ain't no cheater, cheater!"
Harley shook her head. "No thanks, boys. I got a lot on my mind right now. Have either of you handsome young fellows seen Ivy around?"
"I saw her talking to that hunky young doctor that brought her in," came a deep voice.
Harley looked down and saw the tiny Mary Dahl standing near them.
"I don't think she kissed him, though," the little blonde woman grinned, mischievously. "But, who's to say she won't?"
Harley sighed. "Okay, thanks, guys. I'll see if I can find her."
As she started to walk away, Killer Croc called after her. "Hey, why the long face, Harley? You're usually so...chipper!"
"Annoyingly so," added Harvey with a grumble.
Harley smiled a little and shrugged her shoulders. "Yeah, well. I guess I'm just worried about the kid is all. Especially 'cause of that creep Dr. Fluffy or whatever the heck his name is who's in charge of those kids. Boy, he seems like a real pain in the a-"
"Ahhh," interrupted Harvey with a nod. "You mean Dr. Fluffay, right? Yeah, we know him. He's been around for months, but nobody knows anything about him. Came outta nowhere, rambling on about how terrible the streets of Gotham were being run rampant by delinquent kids. He just showed up one day with a truckload of credentials and established the AAJD right after that." He grinned a little, almost as if she was envious of him. "If you ask me, I think he's just a power-hungry man who gets his fill by being in charge of those poor, defenseless kids over there. I heard even his staff are scared of him!"
"Awww, your poor wittle Sweetie Pie is over there all alone," Mary suddenly piped up in her Baby Doll voice. "I betcha she's scared out of her mind, huh?"
Before anyone could answer, a loud, sinister laugh suddenly came from behind them. Each rogue turned at the same time and saw Scarecrow standing behind them, his eyes shining brightly. "I bet she is scared out of her mind. I bet it's just delicious!" he said with a snicker.
Harley didn't speak at first, for she still hadn't forgiven him for the pain he caused both her and Sophie, but she glared at him, nonetheless.
"Oh, giving me the silent treatment, are you?" Scarecrow asked, a small smirk forming on his face. "Whatever for, dear?"
Harley scoffed and shook her head as she started to leave once more. "As if you really needed an explanation, Puppet-Head."
Scarecrow chuckled. "Well, I honestly can't say I blame you."
Harley stopped in her tracks and turned to look at him. "You don't?"
"No, I don't," he replied, sincerely. "I'm well aware of what I did to you both...and what I put you through. Honestly, I simply loved the idea of having a new, sweet little test subject...because as everyone knows, I just love finding people to test my toxins on! But, my main goal, of course, was to teach you a lesson, Harley. Lest you forget. That's all! Lucky for me, it was two for the price of one!" He snickered. "I got my free test subject and I got to teach you a lesson about proper decorum in the workplace!"
Harley gritted her teeth as she stomped back towards him with her fists clenched. "You terrified the crap out of that kid! You...you almost killed her, you piece of sh-"
Scarecrow threw his hands up into the air with a shrug of his shoulders. "Harley, my dear," he interrupted. "I'm an evil, murdering rogue who specializes in terror. That's just what I do! After all, you wouldn't squash a spider for simply catching a fly in his web, would you?"
Harvey, Mary, and Killer Croc mumbled in agreement, but Harley said nothing...even if her eyebrows furrowed just a tiny bit.
"Either way, I understand your feelings towards me, child. But, if you think about it, the horrific ordeal you both were exposed to actually brought you and your sweetie closer, did it not?" Scarecrow continued. "Of course, had she perished like I originally wanted, it would be a different story, but because of the whole thing, you got to see that your heart really is big enough to love somebody else just as much as the Joker. You thought the sun and the moon revolved around your love for him, but when push came to shove, you left him to find us, right? I gave you the strength not to rely on him all the time, but mainly, I got you to do something out of your love for someone else!"
Harley was still silent, but she listened, intently.
"And by showing that small child just how dangerous Gotham City's underbelly can really be, I taught her how to be more self-aware and cautious in her actions, didn't I? She can successfully co-exist with all of us peacefully, now, because she knows that we're serious criminals. So, in a way, you should be thanking me," Scarecrow added. "I taught your kid how to withstand the worst thing imaginable and still come out on top. Now, she's ready for anything anyone can throw at her...even me!"
Harley ignored the continued murmurs from her prison-mates but didn't argue with Scarecrow again. She didn't have time to process the facts he had just told her, and she also didn't have time to argue with him about what he had said...nor could she find anything to argue. But, she didn't want him knowing that, so she simply scoffed and headed out the door.
"Oh, Harley? If you're thinking about trying to bust outta here, I'd hurry it up," Harvey called after her, with a snicker. "Even before I got thrown back here, I saw the Joker's new girls are becoming more famous by the day! And since they also pulled a heist in Metropolis, it seems like there's no stopping them. I suppose the Joker and the Ying Yang Twins are gonna be taking over Gotham, soon." He grinned before continuing. "He sure looked like he was having fun when I saw him, last!"
Harley growled and angrily knocked over a game of chess that Edward and Jervis were playing, but neither man seemed to care once they saw her crimson face and the fury in her icy blue eyes.
"Oh, my dear Harley Quinn," Jervis said, carefully. "You seemed distressed! I'd offer you Alice in Wonderland to read to calm your nerves, but I seemed to have misplaced my copy, somewhere! It's been missing for months, and I've been going mad with worry. Suppose I carelessly accidentally dropped it somewhere? Oh, I could just kick myself for that!"
Harley just huffed out of the room with both fists clenched as tightly as she could manage, red-faced with steam pouring out of her ears as she thought about how, despite the twistedness of it all, that Scarecrow was somehow right in his justifications of his actions, but most importantly, how the Joker could possibly be happy with any other girl besides herself.
After breakfast...or lack thereof, Sophie was feeling increasingly miserable as she trudged down the long corridor behind the rest of the Pink Wing. Billie, who had been walking behind her, suddenly elbowed her as hard as she could in her ribs as she walked by, causing Sophie to wince and gasp out in pain. Luckily for Billie, none of the guards or orderlies had seen her "mistake."
Billie turned around and put a fake worried look on her face. "Oh, sorry about that, Sweetie," she chuckled, loudly. "I would say see ya in the rec yard, but because of you, I won't."
Sophie gulped as she watched a guard unlock their room, and hoped Billie would simply enter without trying anything else. But, that wasn't the case, as Billie turned to her with a huge grin on her face before walking inside.
"So, see ya when you get back!"
Sophie could hear Billie's Joker-like cackles even as the guard closed and locked the door, and she sighed, heavily. For whatever reason, Billie really seemed to hate her, and she didn't have any strength inside of her to fight back...not without Harley and Ivy behind her. Otherwise, Sophie felt strangely weak and vulnerable and she wasn't sure she could ever get her strength back. In reality, Billie somewhat frightened her to a certain extent, and she was nervous as to just what she would do to her if she ever got the chance. Sophie gulped and just hoped that Harley and Ivy found a way to break her out before anything did happen to her.
A few orderlies walked by and started ushering the Pink Wing towards another long corridor, but the children were so excited about finally getting to have some time outside and barely needed any reminding to "hurry it up." Sophie noticed they were starting to mesh with the Blue Wing as they were told they had exactly two and a half hours of outside time where they were free to do whatever they wished. Despite her stomach rumbling, Sophie welcomed the change of scenery, but she didn't feel too enthusiastic. She saw some of the sheer disgusted looks on the faces of the other 22 kids around her as she passed by and exited outside into the blazing sunshine, and she felt horrible. Sophie had a feeling that her outburst had caused her to have even more enemies than just Billie, and she wondered if she would be stuck as the loner kid for the duration of her hopefully shot stay.
Many of the other kids had already paired off together or gone off in groups to do their own thing, so Sophie was left standing alone as she gazed around the yard. The yard itself was quite large and impressive, as it covered the entirety of both the AAJD and the Main building. Even still, the two areas had cleverly been fenced off so even if they "shared" yard, the minors were still separated by the huge gap between the fences. Sophie felt a few tears well in her eyes when she realized that even if Harley would be outside at that very moment, too, there was no chance of her seeing her, as the space between them was too great.
Hastily wiping her eyes clean of her tears, she began to explore her surroundings in hopes of suppressing the sad, lonely, empty feeling in the pit of her stomach. She saw a group of kids, two Blue Wing boys and three Pink Wing girls playing a card game at a little table, and her eyes lit up. She remembered a few times when she had been stuck inside waiting for Ivy's anti-toxins to work, how Harley had kept her company by playing card games, and she loved them.
"Hi, guys!" Sophie said, a grin forming on her face. "Ya need an extra player? My name's Sophie, and I-"
"Sorry, Sweetie Pie," one of the boys interrupted loudly, as another player nudged him. "We already got five, and we wanna keep it an even number."
The other kids snickered as Sophie looked at him, confused. "Hey, wait a second! Five's not an eve-"
"Bye!" cried one of the girls, cutting her off before she could finish.
The kids grabbed the cards and quickly scattered, leaving Sophie standing alone, again. She heard their chuckles as they scampered off.
"She's out of her mind if she thinks we wanna be friends with her!"
"She works with the Joker and Harley Quinn! Of course she's out of her mind!"
"I bet some cartoons were gonna come on after the news, and she ruined it for everybody!"
"Yeah! It's just her first day and she's already behaving like a jerk!"
Willing herself not to burst into angry tears, Sophie took a deep, calming breath before scanning the yard, again. She saw a Pink Wing girl she recognized from the cell next to herself and Billie. The girl was sitting on the grass making a daisy-chain, and Sophie smiled a little. She knew if Ivy would have seen it, she would have given the girl such a lecture...or would have snatched the flowers away from her and made her pay for picking them in the first place. But, Sophie had no intention of being awful to the girl, she simply wanted a friendly conversation. She slowly made her way over, hoping that maybe this girl would want to talk to her.
"Hi!" Sophie cried cheerfully once she reached her.
The girl gasped and looked up in shock. Upon seeing who had greeted her, she dropped the flowers in her hand and jumped up.
Sophie giggled. "Hey, don't be scared! It's just me! I'm Sophie, and I-"
The girl's huge brown eyes grew wide. "Get away from me! D-don't hurt me!"
Sophie's smile slowly faded. "What? Hurt you? I won't hurt you! I just wanna talk, and we could be fr-"
The girl quickly shook her head and backed up. "I don't wanna talk to you, Sweetie Pie! I know all the crazy crap you and the Joker and Harley Quinn do! You're all insane!"
Sophie's face fell, and her voice quivered. "But, they won't hurt you, either!"
The girl snatched the flowers from the ground and gripped them tightly in her hand. "Just do me a favor and don't talk to me ever again, okay? I'm trying to get better and get out of here, and I don't need someone like you messing it up for me!"
The girl left so fast that Sophie was surprised a trail of fire didn't materialize behind her, and her shoulders slumped a little as she sighed. Sophie began to feel completely hopeless as she glanced around the yard once more. All the different groups of kids were watching her, cautiously and judgementally. They seemed to have either a look of pure hatred or a look of fear and confusion on their faces.
"Just great," Sophie mumbled quietly, kicking a stray rock away from her. "I bet half the kids in here hate me 'cause I got their TV time taken away, and the other half is scared of me 'cause of the Joker and Harley." She sighed again and hastily wiped the rogue tear that slipped from her eye. "I guess I really am on my own."
Sophie didn't try to seek anyone else out to talk to, seeing as she figured no one would want to talk to her, anyway. Instead, she moped her way to a huge tree and slowly slumped down under it. If no one in the whole asylum would talk to her, she knew it was going to be a long, long two and a half hours by herself. Sophie sat under the tree for what seemed like ages. During that time, her mind wandered to Harley and Ivy and how much she longed to see them again, how much she hated the Ying Yang Twins for putting them into their current situation, and how lonely she felt. She was always quick to wipe any stray tears that might have fallen out of her eyes because she didn't want anyone in the AAJD to see just how sad and weak she really felt. Sophie knew that being stuck in the asylum wouldn't have been so bad if she could only see Harley again, even for a moment. To hug her, to talk to her, and to make sure she was doing okay. But Dr. Fluffay's silly rule about not allowing the minors to mingle was torture in itself. She looked up at the huge wire fence that surrounded the yard on all sides and realized there was no way she'd be able to climb it even if she wanted to. Even if she and Harley used their Allez hop! move, she still would only come halfway up the tall fence. But boy, did she sure want to try, especially if it meant she could sneak her way over to the main building to Harley.
After sitting for what already seemed like hours, Sophie flicked away a stray tear from her freckled cheek, and suddenly, her eyes caught sight of a blue pants leg sticking out from the opposite side of the very tree she was sitting under. Sophie gasped and jumped, then slowly took a step closer to the leg. There, she saw the same red-haired Blue Wing girl with glasses who had angrily mumbled something when Dr. Fluffay had been talking about Gotham earlier that morning in the cafeteria.
The girl was reading a book very intently and didn't bother glancing up, even as Sophie took one more cautious step towards her. Sophie treated this meeting as if she were a lion cub hunting animals - she didn't want to make any sudden movements and frighten her prey away, so she took a deep breath before speaking quietly.
"Um, hi," Sophie began, carefully. She gulped, nervously. "Can I...can I sit next to you, please?"
The girl still didn't look up from her book, but she shrugged her shoulders as if to say, Do whatever you want.
Sophie slowly sat down close to the girl and glanced at the book, but she couldn't tell what it was. "What...what book are you reading?"
Still not speaking, the girl held up the book cover so Sophie could see. At that moment, Sophie gasped loudly, and the girl flinched under the loudness of Sophie's sudden noise
"Oh, I love Alice in Wonderland!" Sophie squealed happily, forgetting her plan of being calm and quiet. "I haven't read it in a really long time, but it's so interesting, isn't it?"
The girl shook her head to try and get the ringing out of her ears that Sophie's high-pitched energetic squeal had caused. "Yes." The girl finally spoke. "But..." she paused a little, almost nervously. "It would be even more interesting if I could read it in peace."
Sophie nodded and zipped her mouth for all of ten seconds, which was a great feat if you asked her. "So, what's your name?"
The girl closed her eyes tightly for a few seconds, then opened them again. "Bonnie." Her eyes went right back down to the book after she answered.
Sophie suddenly brightened even more than she already had been. "Oh!" she giggled. "It's nice to meet you! My name's Soph-"
"I know who you are," Bonnie said, surprisingly interrupting her.
Sophie stopped. "Y-you watched the news this morning, right?"
"Before you got it turned off for everybody, you mean?" Bonnie said, quietly.
Sophie felt her cheeks flush as red as a cherry.
"Yeah, I saw it," Bonnie continued, more gently, not wanting to be unkind. "But, I watched the news even before I...ended up here." Bonnie paused, almost as if she was debating on finishing her thought or not. In the end, she decided she might as well. "Anyway, everybody knows that gang." She swallowed hard. "Harley Quinn, Sweetie Pie, and..." for a split second, Sophie thought she saw a little frightened spark in her brown eyes. "The Joker."
Sophie flinched under hearing his name and wondered if Bonnie would also tell her to get lost because of who she had associated with in the past. She took in a deep, sad, breath. "Well, now, me and Harley work with Poison Ivy, 'cause the Joker got himself some new henchgirls."
Bonnie paused again. "Yeah, I heard that, too. They seem pretty...interesting."
Sophie felt her fists clench and she shook her head. "No way," she snapped. "They're not interesting at all! They're vile. I'd love nothing more than to hang them both up by their toes and dip-drown them in a vat of boiling hot acid!"
Bonnie was a bit taken aback at the brashness of Sophie's suggestion, but then again, she knew this was the Joker's ex-henchgirl and had been working with Harley Quinn for ages, so of course, she would have such intense methods of dealing with people she didn't like. Sophie suddenly clamped her mouth shut and hoped she hadn't scared Bonnie with the way she was speaking. After all, Sophie didn't know a thing about her, but she hoped their newfound comradery would stick, at least for a little while. She needed someone to vent to...a friend, and she knew there was something interesting about this girl, too. Bonnie had evidently had enough chatter, so she went back to reading her book, and Sophie let her...for about a minute. Then, she was ready to talk, again.
"So," Sophie said, a bit more quietly.
Bonnie blinked her eyes and kept them closed for longer than necessary before she opened them again.
"It seems like you're almost finished with that book."
Bonnie said nothing.
"Can I read it when you're done?" Sophie asked, smiling and reaching out her hand. "I love the part when-"
"No!" Bonnie jerked the book away from Sophie before she came anywhere near it. Her heart suddenly beat faster, but she felt a bit guilty upon seeing the shocked look on Sophie's face as she hadn't meant to be so rude. "I'm sorry. It's just...this means a lot to me," she said, apologetically.
Sophie smiled a little as Bonnie's heart rate slowly went back to normal. "I'm sorry, too. I didn't mean to just try and take it. I wasn't thinking. I...I have a stuffed animal that Harley got me for my birthday that's my most prized possession, so I totally get it." She giggled. "I mean, I'd just assume cut your hand off than give it to you!"
Bonnie flinched again, both in how casually Sophie spoke about dismembering someone over a cuddly stuffed animal...and the fact that Harley Quinn was one to give cuddly stuffed animals to kids. She surely didn't seem like that kind of person to her. "But then again," Bonnie thought to herself. "What do I know?"
Sophie didn't seem to notice the silence between them when she wasn't the first one making conversation, so she just continued saying whatever was on her mind. "So...do you know what the other kids are in for?"
Bonnie, who was normally very shy, really wasn't in the mood to talk to her talkative neighbor, but she had the sinking feeling that the only way to get Sophie to stop talking was to just answer whatever questions she had...and then Bonnie knew she could get back to reading by herself. "I don't know," she said, finally.
Sophie glanced towards Billie's group of friends, who were giving her a glare. "I wonder what Billie did to get in here."
Bonnie looked where Sophie had been staring, and she quickly averted her eyes. Suddenly, she found herself speaking a bit more freely than she usually did, which couldn't have been any more of a shock for anyone. "I...I saw how much she seems to hate you. What'd you do to her?"
"I didn't do anything!" Sophie shrieked, causing Bonnie to flinch again. Sophie quieted her voice after that. "All I did was walk into our room and she suddenly freaked out on me 'cause I was her new roommate. All I did was say hi to her!"
Bonnie nodded and still, oddly, felt herself making more conversation. "Well, you got rotten luck having her as a roommate. Everybody knows she's the bully of both wings. I think she's been in the Black Wing...the solitary confinement wing, at least five times already. She...she was supposed to get out last month, but she keeps getting sent for extra therapy sessions 'cause of...bad behavior."
"Just my luck," Sophie mumbled. "Of all the people I get stuck with, it had to be the meanest one in here. But...I wonder what her friends did to get here. They look just as mean as Billie does!"
Bonnie shrugged her shoulders and felt her mouth become dry from talking so much. It was something she definitely wasn't used to. "I don't know. I...don't really talk to anyone, here...and luckily, they don't talk to me."
Sophie didn't get the hint, so Bonnie was forced to continue speaking, even if she was starting to have enough of it, now.
"Although, if I had to guess," Bonnie continued, forcefully. "I'd assume they're like some of the others, here. Minor offenses and stuff like that. But, one thing's for sure..." Bonnie paused, and Sophie noticed her grip on the book tightened. "You're the most high-profile inmate in the AAJD. By a long shot. Now that everyone knows who you are, that's all I heard anyone whispering about all morning."
Sophie felt herself blush wildly. She supposed if only she knew how to keep her big mouth shut, no one would have ever found out she was Sweetie Pie, but it was her own darn fault. "Yeah," she said sheepishly. "Sometimes I guess it's better to be the strong, silent type, huh?"
Bonnie shrugged her shoulders, again. She was usually shy and definitely a silent type...and that's just the way she liked it.
"So uh...what did you do to get in here?" Sophie asked, obviously not taking her own suggestion about being silent.
Bonnie took in a deep breath, wondering if she should answer. She, after all, was a very private person and didn't just open up to anyone...ever. But, seeing as Sophie was the first person to actually seemingly want to talk to her, she reluctantly decided to tell her...a few things about her background. But, only a few things. She gulped, trying to ease her dry, nervous throat. "Well, I...I burned things."
"You...burned things?" Sophie repeated as a huge grin burst onto her face. "Oh! You mean, like, marshmallows?" She giggled. "Well, that sure sounds like fun!"
Bonnie's eyes grew wide and she stared at Sophie as if she couldn't believe what had just come out of the bubbleheaded-blonde's mouth. "No. Not like marshmallows." Bonnie was starting to feel a headache coming on, and she had a good idea of what was the cause of it.
Sophie stopped giggling at once as she noticed the serious look on Bonnie's face, which seemed even more serious than she usually had.
"I mean...I burned big things." Not wanting to be mean, but Bonnie wondered if she wouldn't have to draw a picture for the confused girl in front of her. "And this time...I just burned the wrong thing at the wrong time and I got myself caught."
Sophie noticed the sheer look of disgust on Bonnie's face, almost as if she was furious with herself for the mistake that got her brought to Arkham in the first place.
Sophie stared at Bonnie curiously, then suddenly, her eyes lit up. "Hey! Did you...did you burn down those old apartment complexes over in the Southside a few months ago? Y'know, the ones near Marmaduke's Joke Shop?"
Bonnie suddenly felt her stomach drop after hearing such a specific question. "Wh-why?" she stammered.
Sophie grinned, and Bonnie immediately felt uneasy. "Well, 'cause a few months ago, me, Harley, and the Joker were trying to pull a heist over there, but the whole building suddenly caught fire with us right in the middle of it!"
Bonnie's face went almost as pale as the white pages of the book she was now clutching with all her might, but Sophie continued without missing a beat.
"Oh, he was so mad, I thought he was gonna shoot somebody!" Sophie erupted into her belly laughs so naturally now, not noticing the pure horrified look on Bonnie's face as she listened to her recount the story. She wiped her eyes free of the tears she had shed and took a deep breath. "I knew it couldn't have been just an accident...'cause found a tiny box of matches when we were trying to get away! I didn't show anybody, though. Not even Harley. I even kept the box! I like the way they smelled, 'cause I use matches, too, sometimes. Only when I need to light my Apple Bombs, I mean." She grinned wider at Bonnie, who felt as if she would faint at any moment. "But, anyway. Once I found the matchbox, that's when I was sure somebody had done it on purpose! So...so it was you, wasn't it?"
Bonnie was still too stunned to speak, but that didn't seem to bother Sophie at all.
"Boy," she scoffed. "You're sure lucky Mister Joker didn't find out it was you who did that! Trust me, I also messed up one of his deals with Scarecrow on the night I met them, and he woulda killed me in seconds if Harley hadn't stopped him!"
Bonnie felt her stomach churn worse as she listened in pure horror at what Sophie was telling her. "How could I have messed up the Joker's heist!" she hissed in her mind, scolding herself for something that could have easily gotten herself killed if the Joker ever found out what she'd done. "How on Earth could I have messed up the Joker's job!"
Suddenly, Sophie gasped again, and Bonnie's blood ran cold as she braced herself for what incriminating evidence could be hiding within Sophie's next rant.
"Hey." Sophie paused, her eyes growing wider as the wheels in her head started turning. "I...I think I read something about you in the paper, too!"
Bonnie gulped.
"Yeah, I do remember those stories!" Sophie continued, brightly. "There were tons of random fires that were going around Gotham! They had no idea who was doing them, of course, but they said they caught a glimpse of a "tiny person" running from the scenes of the crimes! They called it the 'Rings of Fire.' I remember I thought you were so cool, but I had no idea it was a kid doing all that stuff! So, ya see? You're pretty famous, too!" Sophie giggled, loudly. "Geez, had no idea I was in the presence of another rogue just like me! This is so awesome!"
Bonnie snapped out of her mortified trance just then. She gulped and looked around her, hoping none of the other kids had heard the overly-loud girl next to her. "No. No, I'm not a rogue. I'm not a rogue at all!" she said in a panicked, hushed whisper.
Sophie grinned and narrowed her eyes, mischievously. "Well, do you wear a costume when you do bad stuff?"
Bonnie gulped, again. "I...I y-yes. But-"
"And do you have a different name that you call yourself?" Sophie interrupted.
"Uh...th-th Ringmaster." Bonnie felt weak. "But, that doesn't mean-"
"If you cause mass destruction across Gotham City, you have a costume, and you have a cool name, then you're a rogue," Sophie happily pointed out, still grinning in amusement.
Bonnie shook her head vigorously as she stood up, clutching the book as if her life depended on it. "Look, you've got it all wrong about me. I'm...I'm not a rogue. You may be, but I'm not!"
Suddenly, a loud bell chimed, startling both girls. "Blue Wing, time for lunch!"
Bonnie almost uncharacteristically cried out for joy upon hearing she was going to escape the torture that was having to speak to the loud, energetic clown-girl, and she started to rush away as quickly as her legs could carry her.
"Hey, Rings! Wait a sec!" Sophie could tell she had upset her new friend, and she cried after her, using what she thought was a funny, shortened version of Bonnie's alter-ego.
Bonnie stopped in her tracks and turned to her, her eyes wide with panic. "Don't call me that! My name is Bonnie, okay? Just Bonnie." She turned around and continued walking as fast as she could, hoping with all her might that none of the other kids had heard the name Sophie had just used. Her anonymity was the most important thing for her, which was why she was so desperate to keep her "other" life a secret from everyone else. She couldn't believe that the only person in the whole asylum to discover who she was just had to be the one with the biggest mouth and loudest volume of them all. It was just her luck.
"I'm sorry, Bonnie!" Sophie cried after her, desperately. "I didn't mean to upset you! I promise I won't tell anybody!"
When Bonnie didn't turn around again, Sophie watched as the rest of the Blue Wing surrounded her like the waves of the sea, and she was gone.
Sophie sighed, heavily. "I just..."
A second bell chimed loudly, and the voice called out, "Pink Wing, lunchtime!"
Sophie didn't move an inch despite seeing the other kids from the Pink Wing start to clamber towards the door. Instead, she sat back down under the tree as tears fell from her eyes. She looked behind her at the huge, dark forest which was behind the asylum and sighed, heavily. "I just thought I found a friend like me, that's all."
