Chapter 9: New Beginnings
The soft morning sun streamed down on the Joker's face. At first, he wondered why the Arkham guards let him sleep so late. Then he remembered her was not in Arkham at all.
The Joker sat up in a comfortable full-sized bed. Sunlight poured through on opened window with dark green curtains. The rest of the room was quiet uniform, dressers, a full-length mirror, a closet, and a door that lead to the adjacent bathroom. He recognized instantly that he was in one of the many guest rooms of the Star Manor.
Joker found his clothes in a neat pile on a chair, clean and folded. Once dressed, he made his way down to the kitchen where an odd sight met his eyes.
"Hi, Mistah J!" Harley piped as he walked into the spacious kitchen.
Harley was standing along side Vampyra, drying dished as Vampyra washed at the two-basin sink. Through the window in front of the sink, Joker could see Poison Ivy and small Baby Doll starting a garden. At the huge kitchen table sat the Mad Hatter and Scarecrow playing a game of checkers. While the Riddler sat with a puzzle book, biting a pencil, and Bane, Killer Croc, and Clayface were having an adamant arm- wrestling contest at the end of the table. In the adjacent den, Two-Face, Penguin, the Ventriloquist and his puppet, Scarface, were watching the television. In an armchair by the window, the Clock King calmly read the morning's newspaper, and in a shadowed corner, Mr. Freeze was situated with a pen and notebook in one hand and a snow globe of a dancing blonde in the other.
Joker pulled out a bar stool and took a seat at the long, island counter in the center of the kitchen. His mind was still flustered at the gathering of so many Rogues under one roof.
Vampyra let out a content smile. Drying her hand, she reached into the oven and pulled out a plate of eggs and toast. Without a word, she set it in front of the Joker.
"So," Joker looked from the others to his breakfast to Vampyra, "It was all a set up?"
Vampyra's smile broadened as she leaned on the counter. "We all thought you could use a bit of a wake up call, so to speak…"
Joker let an embarrassed smile cross his face, and caught sight of Harley behind Vampyra. "You didn't mean that did you, Harl?"
Harley's mouth turned into an awkward grin. "Well, I was just thinkin' I should be out on my own a bit… Get to see what else is out there, yah know?"
Joker's head hung, and he fiddled with the food on his fork. First Vampyra and now Harley, he was beginning to think he could not win with ladies anymore.
"Hey," Vampyra broke in. "Don't worry about it. We'll keep an eye on her."
Joker smiled. He knew Harley could fend for herself quite well. Thinking, he shoved a bite of egg into his mouth. "Say, what happened to the Bat?" He asked through a mouthful.
Vampyra shrugged. "I think we can come up with some bigger and better things for him…" She reached into her back pocket and pulled out the deck of tarot cards he had given her. "Welcome to the club." She said lightly, offering the top of the deck.
Joker's smile was one of relief as he pulled the top card off and looked at it. With a triumphant smirk he passed Vampyra the card.
"The Fool," Vampyra chuckled. "It means new beginnings."
Author's Note: Hey Folks! Don't leave yet! I've got big plans for Vampyra and The Deck of Rogues. I'm thinking of a Kareoke Night out for some of the Arkham Rogues and Vampyra. Anyone for seeing Joker sing Gwen Stefani's "Rich Girl"?