The lie slipped passed her painted lips easily. Some fib about road rage and ending back up in Belle Reve. Boomer just nodded his head in acceptance, but she could feel the look Flag gave her from across the plane. She glanced up in time to catch the smirk he tried to hide before settling back into the uncomfortable jump seat and taking in the new members of Task Force X.

The truth was, she missed this. She missed them. Her little makeshift family. Too bad only one of them seemed to be pulled out of his cell to follow along with their fearless leader. She was bored in Gotham. Sure, the birds were fun to pal around with. And Cass could be considered a handful by some, but it was the off season for her roller derby team, and she was just itching to get back into the middle of things again.

Harley turned to greet her new team members, taking in the new faces and the new accent. She would definitely be picking Javelin's brain as soon as she could, and maybe a few other things if they had time. Boomer was picking at the newbies, and as much as she agreed with him she didn't want them to be too worried. The idea of meeting a werewolf was a fun, brief distraction, and the fear and disgust on the others faces delighted her. But Flag's commanding drawl brought everyone back to reality, or as close to reality as Harley brought herself, by reminding them of the incoming task.

It would be a water drop. Water still made her nervous, brought back those icky memories of Bats and Mistah J. No. Joker. He didn't get pet names and fond memories anymore. Not right now. She took in a few deep breaths and remembered to be calm. Lessons their fearless leader had made sure she learned. It was odd, the way he seemed to tolerate her at best most days, but before her fantabulous escape from Belle Reve with the Joker, he had made sure she got enough swimming lessons and time out of her cell that she wouldn't be terrified of drowning again. He also made sure the supply of Harlequin romance novels she entertained herself with were rotated out at least every few weeks. She'd heard through the grape vine that he seemed to have a soft spot for the rest of his little team as well. Making sure Floyd had extra time with his daughter and Boomer was allowed to think he was sneaky enough to drink his contraband beer. He had a heart buried somewhere under all those muscles it seemed. Though after June left, she wasn't sure if it was still there or not.

Before she could begin to let the old psychiatrist part of her brain begin to pick apart those possible abandonment issues, it was time to go. And with one last grin and a laugh at Flag and Boomer, she was squeezing her nose closed with one hand and gripping on to her duffle bag for dear life.

The beach was a nightmare. They had been double crossed, and for some reason Waller didn't seem to be pulling the plug before they were all going to be killed. She was surprised, what with Waller's golden boy leading the charge on this one. But hell, she didn't have a tiny explosive in her neck so why not dive headfirst into danger. The mean lady had said the mission was too important after all and her new grenade launcher just seemed too fun to turn down.

She thought she faintly heard a rumbling voice call out to her to wait, but with all of the explosions and fireworks going off she couldn't be sure. All she knew was if she was going to go out now, it needed to be with a bang.

She would be lying to herself if she said she wasn't at least a little surprised when she felt the heavy weight of someone land next to her behind the rocky hiding place. His face was lit up with the fire burning around them and having him close was oddly comforting. It was a strange feeling, but it was grounding. Familiar almost. Before she could being to think what that said about her and Flag, she overheard the coms mention The Detachable Kid and suddenly she watched TDK's arms pop off like her old Ken dolls and start to float across the beach.

"What the fuck?" she turned and asked, partly to see if Flag saw it too or if she really had just forgotten to take her meds.

"I didn't pick the damn team," was his irritated response, and Harley could see the way his jaw was clenched. She could feel the anger coming off his tense shoulders. If she looked just right, she also thought she could see a hint of concern reflected in the fiery orange glow. Without giving her time to come up with a snarky response, she watched as Mongal jumped after the enemy helicopter, and what happened next was almost too quick to comprehend.

"Boomer!" she heard herself scream. She reached for Flag's hand out of instinct, holding onto him tightly as they watched their fellow team member meet his end. But before either of them could say or do anything else, she felt herself being blasted away from him by a grenade strike and rolling further along the beach.

Harley didn't spare Boomer another glance, though she could feel the sadness rushing through her and her heart aching. Digger had been sweet in his own messed up way. And he didn't deserve this. None of them did. Just because they were bad guys, didn't mean they were bad enough for this. 'Well, that's not true,' she reminded herself, glancing backwards to see where Flag had landed. She was too far down the sand dune to see exactly where he was. Out of them all, he definitely didn't deserve this.

After running for her life and a leap of faith, she came to a stop next to another one of her ill-fated squad members, taking the offered golden spear in confusion. Leave it to her dumb luck that she'd never know for what glorious purpose it had been bestowed upon her.

She would also chock it up to even more of her dumb luck that had her ending up in this stupid pit arguing with herself about the correct titles of the people of Corto Maltese. She was trying not to think of the fate of the rest of the team. Though with the state of things before she was carried away, it did not look promising. Which meant getting out of this was completely up to her. Now if only they hadn't taken her javelin.

Harley was brought out of her rantings right as she was about to win the argument against herself by two scary looking men carrying a glittery dress that looked about three sizes too small for them. Before she could let her mouth get her in trouble like usual by letting them know they may want to take it back to the tailors, she found herself being plucked and prodded more than a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner and off to live her Disney princess dreams.

This prince charming even had the signing birds to boot. And after an amazing day of living the high life, it ended how all of Harley's relationships seemed to end. In bloodshed. But this time, she wasn't going to be upset about it. She had promised herself that she wasn't going to put up with anymore red flags. And when she looked at this whole situation, it was hard to see the palace through the forest of them. Plus, she loved her McDonald's cheeseburgers just a little bit too much to be considered the anti-American queen it seemed this new regime wanted.

So now she found herself chained up – for not so fun purposes, she might add - and her ribs aching from the cattle prod being constantly shoved into them. Too bad for these idiots that she was more than used to a few jolts of electricity. Maybe the Joker had been good for something after all. Though the thigh muscles she had been building up at the roller rink definitely came in handy too. And with a quick crack, a loud thump, and a little bit of flexibility, she was free. Well, all those things and a little bit of a murder spree. But who was really going to grill her on the details.

If the cab driver thought it was strange for a bloody woman carrying a golden javelin to come crashing into his cab, he didn't say a word, and Harley was glad for the moment to breathe and collect her thoughts. Because at this point, she was thinking maybe the electricity had gotten to her or she took one too many blows to the head. Because right now, she's watching Flag and someone else with a black helmet try to sneak their way around the corner.

She thanked the cab driver and bolted from the back seat as quickly as she scurried in earlier and takes off after them. By the time she catches up, she can see the tension in Flag's shoulders and the man with the helmet has begun to climb the building she just escaped.

"What're you guys doing?"

"Wha… you… what are you… you… we're here to save you," Flag stutters out. She can see the confusion in his eyes, though the way his shoulders seem to sink in relief is not missed either. It's almost as if he means something else when he says we. Now that has to be the electricity talking, she reminds herself.

Harley can feel her heart swell. Surprised at how coming after her seems to make her swoon. No one had ever taken the time to come save her before except for the Joker. But he always had an ulterior motive to that, not forgetting the violence that tended to follow as well. And with her thoughts trickling back to the Joker, the insecure girl Mistah J made her into comes rushing back to the surface and she can't help herself but doubt.

"Me? You were gonna save me?" she hears herself ask, ashamed at how small it makes her sound. How unlike her new self she has tried to be. Her voice is quivering, and she's trying so hard not to just let all of the emotions from the past forty-eight hours just take over.

"Yeah, and it was a really good plan too…" Flag trails off, trying to sound gruff, but Harley can still see the relief in his features he's trying to mask with indifference. She's relieved too and feels herself start to grin, the insecurity seeming to fall away just as quickly as it came crashing down on her.

"Well I can go back inside and you can still do it," she laughs, happiness bubbling to the surface. Harley ignores the comments from the other man, she's just so glad to see him alive after they were blown apart on the beach. And, glad to know that he cared enough to come after her.

She rushes forward and envelopes him in a hug, careful not to drop the javelin or poke someone's eye out. She can feel the beat of Flag's heart through his t shirt, and it brings back that calming presence she felt before on the beach. This time, she drinks it in, feeling like maybe the world isn't as topsy turvy as it has felt lately.

Harley feels him tense at first, then slowly relax into her. The metal of his gun is cold against her back as he gently rubs the barrel up and down, unsure of what to do at first. It's the slight pressure she feels on her waist that makes her close her eyes and just breath him in. Content to just live in the moment and be glad that they survived.

She knew that Flag cared about the team more than he liked people to know, but it's something about the way he leans down and breaths her in too, that makes her wonder if she's missed something. They're all that's left. The part of her brain that is still Harleen seems to be questioning this and this feeling she keeps getting when she's close to him. Bringing up thoughts and feelings that are probably left for a different day. A day where they aren't being hunted down by Corto Maltese troops and they aren't on a mission for Amanda Waller. A day she hopes is sooner rather than later.

The presence of the masked man watching them draws her back to the present, and with a tight squeeze to her waist from Flag, he drops his arms and Harley takes a step back after the other man asks if they're okay, reaching out to introduce herself to Bloodsport and then the rest of her new team.

It's raining when they reach their final destination. She's always loved the rain and she takes this as a good sign. It reminds her of happier times, though most people would call the rain gloomy. She's happily munching on an apple before they go, the first bit of food she's had since she killed the president. Flag is next to her, and she can't help but look up at him and smile. He was already watching her, and smirks back down at her, an unsaid question seemingly dancing in his eyes. Harley isn't exactly sure what it means, but she is excited to find out.

She feels powerful, unstoppable. Locking eyes with him and walking into battle she feels like they can take on the world. And who's to say they couldn't. Hadn't they already saved it once?

Her part with this new team doesn't go as smoothly as she hoped, and it makes her heart hurt for her old squad. After barely managing to make it out of the crumbling building, she and the polka dot dude are trying to catch their breath as they make their way down to others a bit slower than DuBois had.

Her eyes dart quickly to the group that is still standing in the rubble, searching for one particular person. Harley doesn't want to consider what the sinking feeling in her stomach means when she doesn't see their fearless leader, and why the metal head that disappeared earlier when they were dealing with the explosives is laying in a pool of blood on the floor. She looks at Bloodsport with pleading eyes and feels the stinging of tears start to make her broken nose hurt even more when he shakes his head the tiniest amount. Ratcatcher looks shaken up, and she knows that something terrible must have happened, but there isn't time to ask for details now. For some reason the memory of falling out of a helicopter flashes in her mind, she is brought back to the shattering feelings of losing her Puddin' and the sadness that came along with realizing the one person she loves more than anything is gone. But she doesn't love Flag, does she? He barely tolerated her on the best days, didn't he? Or was she just too blind to see it? She can almost feel the way his hand had squeezed her waist only a few hours ago. She can see that question dancing in his eyes.

Harley wipes away a few stray tears and tries not to break. She isn't the same person she was five years ago. She isn't going to let them see her crack. Flag not being with them only means one thing. He's gone and they have a Godzilla sized starfish trying to take over the world that now needs to be priority number one. So, she charges into battle and fights on auto pilot. And when God or Jesus or whoever finally shows her why she was bestowed this stupid javelin, she doesn't really care much about the "after." Because saving the world, that's something Flagwould do. And if this is the last thing she can do for him, she will.

With a leap, she feels herself flying, not knowing what's going to happen next. Her team is gone. He's gone. One of the only people who looked at her without wanting something from her. Who actually cared about her for her.

Gone.

That's the only thing she can think of as she slips into the liquid center of Starro's eye followed by waves of rats. Maybe it would be best if she was gone too. But curse her bad luck, she manages to crawl her way out of the alien's remains, reaching the surface and gasping for air.

Ratcatcher tells her what happened in the Jotunheim while Bloodsport bargains with Waller and sets up their extraction. Everything she tells Harley is everything she already knew. Flag was good. He was a hero. He didn't deserve any of this. She's angry. Angry at Waller, angry at the mission. Angry at herself for not realizing the whole time while she was worried about red flags, she had him in front of her. Her own good flag. She thought this would turn out like last time. They'd save the day and be home for dinner. She had planned on getting takeout for everyone and trying to bargain in a slumber party or something with Waller for all of them back at Belle Reve. Maybe she could have found out what that question was. But no. She's a fool, she reminds herself. She's a bad guy. She doesn't get to have the happy ending. Normal was just a setting on the dyer after all.

She goes to stand next to Bloodsport as he finishes his call, overhearing the last bits of the conversation and becoming upset that Flag's last stand has now been for nothing. She's no hero, she wouldn't be the one to release the information, but he had died trying to tell the world. It felt wrong, to have it wrapped up in some blackmail scheme now. It mad his already ridiculous and unnecessary death seem even more meaningless.

Tears fall down her cheeks as DuBois looks at her, trying not to show her his guilt.

"We can't have it all."

His statement is a slap to the face after everything she's gone through for this mission. After everything she's lost.

"Flag was my friend." The words sound foreign to her own ears, choking back the sobs she is swallowing down. Flag, 'No. Rick' she thinks to herself, was so much more than a friend. He was a possibility. One she should be thankful she would never be able to mess up now, but she isn't. Even if it crashed and burned, it would have been a hell of a ride along the way. And now she would never know.

"He was my friend too," DuBois tells her angrily, "and I don't have many of those."

Harley blinks a few more times, willing the psychotic clown side of her mind to take over. Let the pain and feelings disappear behind a mask and a painted smile. "I can be your friend, Milton," she fires back, allowing the dark sense of humor. She knows his name isn't Milton, they've already been through this gag before. But comedy has been the only way to get through trauma in her past, and she isn't ready to give up on it yet. She's just going to ignore what Dr. Quinzell has to say about that.

Harley jogs to catch up to him and Ratcatcher as the helicopter arrives, then takes the same seat she did only days ago. She glances around at the empty seats, squeezing the javelin tightly as she thinks of sadly of Boomer and willing herself to look anywhere but at the empty seat across from her.

Finally, she allows herself to look, and the tears begin to fall again. "Rick was my friend," she whispers to herself, feeling the sadness wash over her in waves. She glances at the battered group around her, noticing the cute little rat making his way over to Bloodshot. Watching as he reaches out and brushes his fingertips over the soft fur, she's startled to hear a new voice in her head remind her that these new people could be hers too. This voice is gravelly, with the slightest familiar drawl. And it brings a sad smile to her lips as she looks at her possible new family.


So apparently, I can only write a one shot every five years, and it's something about these stupid suicide squad movies that makes it happen. Forgive me for this one, I know it's not the best. I literally wrote it two nights ago and said I was going to delete it. Now it's 3 am the next day and I can't sleep so here we go.

Something about Harley saying Flag was her friend and them not showing her reaction to his death really gets me. I watched the movie on Sunday, and I am still not over Rick's death. It was so unfair and the friendship these two had was everything. Just the potential that was there for them…. And the chemistry between the actors is so great… I know one thing, no matter how much I like John Cena I will not be watching his stupid tv show. Unless they Phill Coulson Rick, which I don't see happening. Overall, I don't think I can say I enjoyed this movie either. I'd love to hear other people's opinions in the comments.

Anyways, tell me what you think! Also, let me know any Rick Flag or Rick and Harley fic recs you have! I've been stalking the tags and need more stories.