Taking place after Part Five. Late February/Early March.
"Harley," Dick whispered next to her ear. "Harley..." He kissed her earlobe, grinning.
She suppressed a smile and shoved his face back with one hand, cradling Haly with her other arm. Harley didn't take her eyes off of the sleepy baby as she fed her.
Within moments Dick had come back, nuzzling her neck. "Hey, Harley," he breathed. She could hear the amusement in his voice, and she still didn't answer. "Harley..." He whined, a little louder. Haly blinked her sleepy blue eyes up at them and Dick bit the collar of her t-shirt, kissing her shoulder. He frowned and looked at her, sliding his arms around her waist as a grin spread over his lips. "Oh Harley, light of my life, my beautiful, crazy, bewitching Harley," he purred, unable to stop himself from giggling a bit. He'd been out helping Jason and Ivy move into their new apartment all day, and being around his brother's relationship had made him long for his own. Dick suddenly grinned again, his lips beside her ear.
"Im vais le dire simplement parler alors youll à moi parce que je sais que vous détestez quand je dites des choses que vous ne comprenez pas, Puddin'," he whispered in her ear, his voice like silk. Harley glanced over her shoulder at him, bouncing Haly in her arms.
"Did you just call me Puddin?" she asked. "And a bunch of other foreign words?"
"Maybe. It got you to talk, didn't it? Je gagne," he grinned, kissing her ear. She swatted him away.
"I'm feeding the baby," she shushed, smiling. Dick chuckled again and wrapped his arms around her lovingly. He nuzzled her cheek.
"I love you, Haly," Dick whispered over Harley's shoulder to the baby. She cooed, a tiny fist twisting in Harley's shirt as she fussed a bit. He smiled.
"Shhh," Harley laughed, "do not wake her up more. The goal is to get her to sleep," she reminded him.
"I'm being quiet," Dick defended with a whisper again. Harley set the empty bottle down as she smiled and started rocking Haly in her arms. Dick watched the two of them lovingly. The house was dark, everything but the Christmas tree in the living room was turned off. Dick had insisted on keeping it up, and the two of them hadn't gotten around to taking it down. They'd spent their Valentine's Day beside it. Dick nuzzled her ear. "I love you."
"I love you too," Harley whispered, rolling her eyes at him.
"You do?" Dick grinned at her over her shoulder.
"You know I do," she nudged him with her shoulder, "so knock it off." She moved back to the cradle, carefully laying Haly down. The baby squirmed a little, blinking her eyes up at Harley before letting them droop again. Dick crept to the door and leaned against the frame, watching Harley. There was so much pride in his eyes. Harley watched the baby for a while longer before moving to join Dick. "You're on wake up duty," she warned him with a smile. Dick laughed and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her hips against his as he leaned against the door.
"I'm ok with that as long as we're not doing any sleeping," he smiled, biting his lip. Harley grinned, draping her arms over his shoulders.
"Only if I'm the only one who gets to bite that lip," she challenged.
"Always," Dick grinned, pulling her close. She laced her fingers together at the back of his neck.
"Then give it to me."
He smiled again and kissed her gently, wrapping his arms around her waist. She bit his lip, her hands sliding up into his hair as she pressed herself against him. Dick moaned weakly, smiling into her kiss as a hand slid down her leg. He scooped her up and wrapped her legs around his waist before walking out into the hallway. "I love you," he said again, kissing her nose. Harley rested her forehead against his, her thumbs stroking his cheeks.
"And I love you." She kissed him softly. Dick smiled and opened their bedroom door, leaving it cracked behind him. He sighed as he fell back onto the bed with her in his arms.
"How long has it been since we've actually been left alone?" He grinned, tucking her against his chest. "I mean if it wasn't my family, it was your family, and by that I mean Ivy and Jason screwing around in our living room..." He laughed.
Harley groaned. "I was going to go crazy if they hadn't found their own place. She smiled at him, resting her head on his shoulder. Her hand traced absentmindedly along his arm. Dick caught her hand, looking at her engagement ring. He smiled.
"We ought to start planning, huh?" he breathed, kissing her cheek. She laughed and moved her face to brush her lips across his.
"And did you want to start doing that now?"
"Maybe," he grinned, pulling her close. He kissed her neck. She made a contented noise.
"And what did you have in mind?" Her hands trailed up to his shoulders. Dick kissed her neck slowly, smiling.
"Hmmm. Have we decided on... Anything? Summer wedding?" He chuckled, pulling her beside him, a hand slipping under her shirt.
"Well I decided on the groom." She smirked and pulled her shirt off for him, tossing it on the ground. "And that's good enough for me for now."
"Got it," Dick swallowed hard, smiling. "Less talk, more us," he laughed, sitting up. He kissed her gently, wrapping his arms around her waist. She bit his lip teasingly before pulling her face away.
"It's just not what I had in mind when you said we wouldn't be sleeping." She grinned and kissed along his jaw. "We'll have plenty of late nights up planning before our wedding." she kissed right below his ear. "And plenty of late nights after our wedding," she breathed. Dick groaned and laughed.
"I love it when you talk dirty," he grinned, cupping her face as he kissed her passionately. Dick bit her lip and kissed down her neck. She pulled his shirt up and ran her hands up his chest.
"Then you better get some soap," she warned, "because I'm just getting started."
"Oh I would be too disappointed if you weren't," he laughed, kissing her slowly. Dick ran his hands down her spine as his lips moved down her neck. He inhaled deeply and smiled against her skin. She grinned and pulled his shirt up. Once she threw it aside, she rolled to straddle his waist.
"Have I ever disappointed?" she asked as she smirked down at him.
"Not once," he beamed, his hands on her hips. She started kissing along his chest.
"You know what's even better than talking dirty?" she asked. Her hands trailed down lower than her mouth, creeping toward his belt.
"Dare I ask what?" Dick groaned, his muscles tensed under her lips. He smiled, running his hands through her hair as he took a deep breath. She hooked her thumbs in his belt and grinned.
"Demonstrating."
"Harley..." Dick sighed longingly, grinning. She giggled, planting a kiss over his heart as she slid her hands closer to his belt buckle.
"Dick," she mimicked with a smile. He laughed and pulled her lips up to his, kissing her hard. The baby monitor on the bedside table lit up, and then Haly's fussing came over it. Harley groaned in frustration, letting her forehead drop against Dick's chest. "We just put her to sleep," she whined.
"I'll get her," Dick picked Harley up gently and dropped her back on the comforter. He walked out of the room, and she could hear him over the baby monitor. "What's the matter, sweetheart? Did we leave you all alone by yourself?" Haly cried as Dick picked her up, and he cradled her lovingly. "Oh I know, you're mad aren't you? Shhh... I know," he smiled as she continued to cry. "I know, tell me all about it," Dick cooed. Harley smiled as she listened. There'd been a time, when she was one of the most wanted criminals in Gotham, that she never would have imagined this. Now she wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. It was peaceful and everything she'd never known she'd wanted. Haly's fussing tapered off. "There we go, my beautiful girl, it's ok," Dick smiled, gently laying her down. The baby monitor was silent and Dick opened the door to their bedroom, smiling. His grin faded when Haly started crying again. Dick groaned and walked back to the nursery. "You know, I'm not a drinker but you're going to drive me to it to get some sleep you little angel," he muttered as he picked her up again. He could faintly hear Harley laughing from down the hall. She crawled under the covers; it was cold with him gone.
"You don't really love that guy you're making with now do you, I know you don't love that guy 'cause I can see right through you. I am, I am Superman, and I know what's happening..." Dick continued to sing the song that she'd come to know so well, his voice soft as he lulled Haly back to sleep. He put her down carefully again and walked back to the bedroom, leaving the door cracked. "Where were we?" he asked, crawling onto the bed and pulling the covers away from her face a bit.
"Um, you were about to guess if I'm still wearing any clothes under here." She grinned up at him.
"Are you?" He took a deep breath, running a hand through his hair.
"That's not a guess," she laughed, smirking.
"Well I must do some investigating. We Wayne's don't guess," he smirked, running his hands down her sides, feeling down her body over the covers. "Hmm. I guess yes," he laughed.
"Well... you're right." She reached up and pulled him down closer to her. "But you can easily fix that."
"I can, can't I?" He grinned, crawling under the covers with her. He slipped her pajama pants off of her legs, tossing them out. "Better?" He grinned, kissing her chest.
"We're getting there." Her hands found their way to his hips, pulling him down against her. "But now you're way overdressed for this party."
"I am," Dick laughed, his elbows on either side of her head as he held himself above her. He kissed her nose. "I think you can remedy that," he whispered, his eyes shining. He smiled. She laughed, angling her lips up toward him.
"Let's get you ready for bed then, shall we?" Her tongue darted out to lick her lips as she started undoing his belt. Dick smiled and closed his eyes, leaning down to kiss her neck.
"Whatever you say, dear," he laughed, kissing her ear. His hands tangled in her hair, and he smiled against her skin. She giggled as she undid the button on his pants and pulled them off.
"Well I'd say less talk more us, but you already covered that."
"I did," Dick grinned, pressing his hips against hers. He sat up and kissed down her chest, smiling as he hooked his thumbs in her underwear. Harley laughed before squealing as something wet touched her arm. Wally nosed her again and put his front paws up on the bed. When he saw he had their attention, he ran to the door and spun around.
"Don't tell me you forgot to let them out," she begged, dropping her head back against the pillow.
"I... Didn't?" Dick tried, sighing slowly. "But... But why now..." He kissed her stomach, dropping his head on her belly. Wally whined from by the door.
"I really, really want you to stay." Harley ran her hands through his hair and tilted his face up to look at her. "But if they pee on the carpet, I'm not going to be the one to clean it up."
"What- why do I have to take them out?! They're your dogs too," Dick whined, frowning. "And besides, I've got Haly!"
"You didn't have to take care of Wally the night he threw up all the leftover Valentine's chocolate!" she defended.
"Fine," Dick groaned, getting up again to take the dogs out. "Come on, mutts," he muttered, walking down the stairs. He opened the front door and they scampered out into the yard. "She's just jealous," he assured Wally. Clark sprinted past him as he chased after Wally, nearly knocking Dick over. "Damn it, Clark!" Dick shouted at him, and then covered his mouth.
"Don't take your frustration out on your poor dogs," Will called over the alley at him. He sat on his porch with a beer and a book. Dick smiled.
"Hey, Will, how's your night?"
"Pretty good. Couldn't sleep," he held up his book.
"So you came out in the cold to read?" Dick laughed, suddenly very aware that he was in only his boxer shorts. Wally ran to him and Dick knelt to scratch his ears.
"I like it. I think it's nice, you know? Brisk, not cold," he chuckled.
Dick reached inside for his jacket hanging on the hook and his boots beside it and then closed the door behind him.
Harley waited ten minutes before she finally got bored. Dick hadn't come back yet, and Wally and Clark were running around downstairs; she could hear them. She sighed, rolling out of bed and grabbing her pajamas. She pulled them on as she headed downstairs. The dogs swarmed her at the bottom of the stairs and she wove through them as she looked around. She finally spotted Dick and Will through the kitchen window and rolled her eyes as she smiled.
"Come on," she called the dogs and headed back upstairs. She might as well have some company while she waited. Wally sprinted up the stairs ahead of her and tripped, smacking against the top step. She had a moment of fear that he could've woken Haly, but the nursery was still quiet. The two dogs trotted ahead of her into the bedroom and waited for her to fall into the bed before joining her. A bit later, Dick came up the stairs and pushed the bedroom door open. He looked between Wally and Clark.
"I've been replaced."
"Yeah you have," she mumbled into the pillow. "How was Will?"
"He's fine," Dick giggled, shooing the dogs away. He started kissing up Harley's spine as he slid her shirt up her waist.
"Remember when we could make it through an evening uninterrupted?" she mused. Then she remembered all the times Bruce would show up, or some emergency would happen, or he'd be called away on patrol. "Never mind. It's always been like this." She laughed and turned her head to smile up at him. Dick pulled her shirt over her head and kissed her shoulder, his hands on her hips.
"I remember... the first few times together," he muttered, pulling her close.
"I remember the first few times when I came back," she added. Dick laughed and kissed over her shoulder to her ear, biting it gently. He blushed a bit.
"I'd missed you," he breathed, tucking her hair behind her ear, burying his nose in it. She turned over and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling his face down to hers.
"I came back didn't I?"
"You came back," he smiled, a thumb tracing over the scar on her side, mirroring his own.
"And I'm not going anywhere." She pulled him down and kissed him passionately. She adjusted one of her hands to slide up into his hair as she gasped for air. Dick moaned into her kiss, his fingers digging into her skin at her hips. One arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her desperately against his chest. Her tongue sought his as she yanked her pajama pants back off and kicked them away, pulling his hips into hers by the waistband of his boxers. "If Bruce calls and tells you to go on patrol, I'll kill him," she gasped.
"I'll help," he laughed, wrapping her knee around his waist as he kissed her fervently, biting her lip. She moaned, her back arching and pressing her into him as her hands clawed at his back. "Shhhh, you'll wake Haly up," Dick giggled quietly, covering her mouth. He pulled her bra off with one hand, kissing her neck. With a grin, Harley rolled them over and straddled him. She worked her hips against his as she smirked down at him.
"You can't tell me what to do."
"Oh I know," Dick groaned, his breathing spiking as he bit his lip to keep from moaning too loud. He could tell that she loved her power over him, and he could tell she knew she had him wrapped around her finger. It was true. She made his head spin. She leaned down toward him, letting her hands creep up his chest and lace in his hair.
"Were we planning on any more interruptions?" she breathed.
"Not... Planning on any..." Dick moaned, his eyes closed. His hands were tight on her hips, his chest heaving.
"Good." She kissed along his neck to his ear, her hands tightened in his hair, and her legs clenched around his waist. "Because I'm tired of waiting," she murmured. Dick opened his mouth to respond when his phone rang on the bedside table. He lifted his head and stared at it.
"No."
Harley sighed and rolled off of him. He was going to answer it no matter what. "Go ahead." She spread out under the blankets and stared up at the ceiling.
"Harley it's not- I'm sorry," he sighed, glancing between her and the phone before picking it up. "This had better be good, you're getting me into a lot of trouble," he muttered into the receiver.
"Diiiiickk guess what I'm doing?" Barbara shouted into the phone so loudly that Dick had to pull it away from his ear.
"Um... I'm going to take a wild guess and say... drinking?"
"And we're gonna ride on the motorcycle," she hiccuped.
"No, don't do that," Dick rubbed his temple. Barbara screeched with laughter.
"Dick! Dick! Guess what I'm doing?!" She cried, and he promptly hung up the phone. He hesitated, and then switched off the sound on it, rolling over and wrapping his arm around Harley.
"I'm sorry," he nosed his way to her cheek, kissing her skin gently. His arm pulled tightly around her waist. "Don't be mad."
"I'm not mad. It's... Is there really a point if we're just going to get interrupted again?" she asked.
"Yes. Because I love you, and we have to make time for us, ok?" Dick kissed her cheek, rolling her over to look at him. He smiled. "No matter how many times Haly or the dogs or life interrupts us, we have to make time for us." He kissed her slowly. "It'll be ok," he stroked her cheek.
"I know, but it's really hard to keep the mood going every time. Especially knowing it's just going to happen again." Her fingers played with the sheets. "Then there are the nights you leave altogether. I mean, if Bruce called you up right now and asked for help, can you honestly say you wouldn't go out on patrol?"
"I... I don't think so," he looked down. "But this is just one of those things, right? We have to make it work whenever we have time. ...right?" He bit his lip and sighed. Harley poked his chest.
"I'm always going to make it work with you. All I'm saying is it's hard to pick up where we left off when your ex girlfriend calls."
"She was wasted, how am I supposed to help that?" He sighed. It was turning into a pretty rough night. Dick glanced at her and smiled. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, pulling her close. "Can we try again? No more distractions."
"See but there real hard part is where do we pick it up at?" she asked with a small smile.
"I've never had a problem just jumping in," he kissed her nose and then her lips. "If you can keep up," he teased, kissing her slowly.
"But you have all the fun if we just jump in," she pretended to pout, her hands finding their way into his hair to keep his face near hers. Dick laughed, kissing her again. He stroked her cheek with a smile.
"Then I'll just make sure you have fun," Dick breathed, his lips brushing hers. His blue eyes were sleepy in the dark and he couldn't take them off of her; he could only watch her with blind, unwavering admiration. "You're so beautiful," he whispered, still smiling, his hand on her cheek.
"And I never get tired of hearing it." She giggled and rested her forehead against his, closing her eyes. "And I'm so lucky."
"I'm the lucky one," he smiled, watching her face. She shook her head.
"Nope." She snuggled closer to his chest.
"Let's settle on we're both pretty lucky," he chuckled. "Speaking of, our little bundle of joy will probably want to be fed soon," Dick smiled, stroking Harley's hair. He just wanted to hold her and never let her go.
"Mmm, Alfred can do it," she sighed. She smiled as she kissed his neck.
"What?" Dick giggled, closing his eyes. Her lips on his skin was electric.
"If you leave this bed one more time, by the time you get back, I'll be asleep," she warned against his skin, her lips still turned up in a smile.
"Fine then I won't leave," he smiled, his thumb tracing little circles over her skin.
"And if your daughter wants to be fed?" she asked.
"Then I guess I'm going to have to go do that," Dick said lamely, kissing her head. Harley laughed.
"And then we're back to square one," she challenged. She tilted her head to smile up at him.
"Not if we don't want to be." Dick kissed her gently, pulling her close.
"But you never decided what point you wanted us to be at." She grinned at him.
"Well I don't want to rush," he grinned, kissing her again. "And if you would stop talking..." He lifted her up and settled her on his chest again, biting her ear with a smile.
She laughed. "You know that's never going to happen." She propped her elbows up on his chest to smile down at him. "And I see how you wanted us," she giggled and leaned down to kiss his neck, her hands sliding up into his hair. "Just admit you love it when I'm on top," she murmured.
"I love it," he laughed, catching her chin. He gently pulled her lips to his so he could kiss her again, biting her lip. Dick held her close, one hand on her cheek, the other sliding down her back.
"Then it'd only be a problem if I had a problem with it." She kissed him again. "Lucky for you..." She grinned. Dick laughed and kissed her again, pulling her close.
"My angel," he smiled, his lips brushing hers.
"And angel's the word you use to describe me after what we were just talking about?" she teased. She kissed him, tugging at his bottom lip with her teeth.
"Well you weren't always my angel. But you are now. And you're all I want hereafter," he sighed, closing his eyes. Dick suddenly wound his arm around her waist, his other hand slipping into her hair as he flipped her over, her knees draped over his legs as he held her close and kissed her with dizzying passion. Harley moaned in surprise, her back arching. She laughed.
"This works too," she gasped before kissing him again. Dick chuckled against her lips and tilted his head to kiss her better, his hand tangled in her hair. When he broke the kiss off with a gasp, he bit her lip and then his lips trailed down her neck, over her bare chest, and down her stomach; planting kisses on every scar on her pale skin. Dick sighed slowly, his breath a whisper against her waist as he slid her underwear down her legs with a mischievous smile up at her. "You don't need to try for brownie points," she breathed as she gasped for air.
"You know, I was thinking about sticking my nose somewhere else," he grinned, kissing just below her belly button. "Since you're so concerned that you won't have fun if we just jump in," Dick chuckled, his hands trailing up her legs, his fingers light. Harley lifted her head up to look at him.
"Well it got your attention, didn't it?" She laughed. She was trying not to tense at his every touch and kiss but not succeeding. Dick grinned, watching her as he ran his hands up her waist and over her chest.
"You always have my attention."
"And I must say you are very adept at getting mine." She smiled at him before dropping her head back against the pillow. Dick kissed down her stomach, lower and lower, bracing his hands on her thighs. The baby monitor on the bedside table lit up, and Haly fussed before starting to cry down the hall. Dick chuckled and shook his head, sitting up on his knees.
"Oh my little angels," he smiled down at Harley, leaning forward over her to stroke her cheek. He sighed. "If you're asleep before I get back, sweet dreams," he kissed her forehead and got up, walking to the door. He glanced back at her with a smile. "I love you," he whispered. Harley groaned and fell back against the pillows. She absolutely did not want to keep her promise that'd she'd fall asleep now. Her heart was still pounding, and her breathing still ragged.
"Hey sweetheart," Dick whispered to Haly, picking her up. Harley could hear them over the baby monitor. "Let's go get you a bottle. Shhhhh it's ok..." Dick picked up the baby monitor and took it with them. "Want to tell mommy about it? Yeah, you tell her." Haly continued to cry as Dick walked down the stairs. Harley smiled to herself.
"Don't worry Haly, I could cry too," she mumbled. If she'd ever have had a moment to think about what life would be like with the Joker gone, she wouldn't have guessed busy. But it was. It seemed like she and Dick had even less time together.
"There you go," Dick said to Haly, cradling her close. She sucked the bottle happily, her wide blue eyes focused on him for a bit before wandering around the dark kitchen. Dick glanced at the baby monitor. "Do you think mommy misses us?" He whispered, chuckling. He sighed. "Isn't mommy just the prettiest, funniest, most wonderful lady you've ever met? Well you certainly think so, you've only met a few ladies," Dick smiled, and Haly cooed at the sound of his voice. "And I get to marry her."
Harley snuggled up under the covers as she giggled. It was relaxing listening to him talk. She tucked the blankets around her shoulders as she looked at the baby monitor.
"And I'm kinda pretty and funny and wonderful too, if I do say so myself. So you inherited all that. You're gonna be a heartbreaker," he bounced Haly a bit, and she gurgled happily. Dick laughed, leaning closer to the monitor. "I love you. And I love our kid, too," he whispered, and she could tell he was smiling.
"Yeah you think your funny," she mumbled, rolling onto her side.
"Ok sweetie, time to get you changed and sleeping again," he said quietly, carrying Haly up the stairs. Once in the nursery he quickly changed her diaper and cradled her close, rocking her back to sleep. Harley could feel the relaxation of the room settling over her as she waited for him to come back. She blinked her eyes open, fighting the exhaustion as she listened to Dick lulling Haly to sleep. He began to sing again, and Harley could hear Haly still fussing a bit as she drifted off. "There you go, little angel," Dick purred, watching her sleep. He couldn't believe that he and Harley Quinn, someone he used to want to put behind bars, had made something so beautiful. Haly was quiet as he lowered her into her crib and stroked her cheek, watching her for a moment longer before he went back to he and Harley's room. "Still awake, Harles?" he said quietly, closing the door behind himself. Dick walked to the bed and smiled down at her.
"No," she groaned and hugged the pillow, her eyes closed.
"Good. Go back to sleep," he laid down beside her, working himself under the covers and wrapping an arm around her waist. Pulling her back against his chest, Dick tucked his knees behind hers. He smiled a little and kissed the back of her neck. "I love you." She rolled her head toward him a little.
"I love you too," she whispered, snuggling closer to his body heat.
"I'm sorry we didn't get to fool around," he held her close, his lips against her forehead.
"That's okay," she sighed. "I'll still be your fool if you still be my hero." Her hand was curled against his chest, her eyes still closed. Dick smiled, relaxing into the warm sheets with his arms around her and his face buried in the top of her head. Her blonde hair smelled sweet and rosy, and he couldn't remember a time when he'd felt more relaxed and contented. He kissed her head. He didn't care if they were fooling around or just laying together. He couldn't imagine a better way to spend a night.
"Always," he whispered lovingly.