Chapter 6

Jonny Frost tried not to stare at the kid sitting on the floor. Her small fingers were intensely pulling on one of the Joker's thick golden chains that had been left on a chair. Frost doubted his Boss would throw a fit about it, considering the amount of golden jewelry that usually lay around in the penthouse, and Quinn's habit to lose them.

He had eventually been introduced to their kid – after a year where any accidental contact with her had been directly life-threatening. Quinn seemed to have calmed down by now, but he was not sure if that was a good or bad thing.

Things had gone back to their usual routine after Quinn was returned from Belle Reve. The Joker was once again fed, fucked and had some kind of interest in the outside world again. The pregnancy was another matter, but Frost tried to forget all about that.

Boss and Quinn were both out and Frost had been left in the penthouse to babysit. He focused on some business reports while glancing at the kid – Jaylie – he reminded himself, sensing that any accidental slip of that nickname, kid, would cost him more than his suit.

Jaylie had been sitting for the last five minutes trying to dissemble the chain without success, as if she was trying to figure out what it was made of. The hyena plush toy, mountain of shiny car toys, clown dolls and various other things she had were left forgotten, strewn out on the floor beside her.

So far she had been completely silent, but when the object didn't submit to her prying hands, she huffed in frustration. She pulled the metal chain to her mouth and bit down with her four visible teeth.

Frost knelt down, warily, holding out his hand to her. "Hey, give me that."

She ignored him, as if she hadn't even heard his voice.

Frost tried again, offering her well-chewed plastic Batman figurine to her as a bribe. "It's better if you play with this." He knew how to negotiate with mob bosses, not a stingy toddler.

Still no reaction. Is she deaf?

Carefully he tried to take the chain from her before she broke her baby teeth that Harley had gushed endlessly about – now wouldn't Boss love if that happened, he thought sarcastically. Then she snapped.

Her small teeth latched onto his skin with surprising force and held for a few seconds. He jerked back and shouted in surprise, seeing angry red marks on the back of his hand.

She stared at him with indifferent, calm blue eyes.

"Mine."

The word was barely a hiss, and spoken by such a small child, it stunned him. Her chubby hand held tight onto the gold chain, and Frost backed off. Jaylie proceeded to pull at the chain as if nothing happened.

After a while she grew bored with the chains, and instead assembled small things, like bullets and lipsticks she had found lying around the penthouse. The idea of choking hazard did not ever occur to her parents, but Frost kept watch on her while also keeping his distance.

Jaylie had been crawling around the penthouse a lot during the last months; examining everything she got her hands on. She had a habit of following her parents around when they were home, sometimes trying to hide from them or sometimes being very obvious with her presence, to their amusement.

At least Quinn kept the loaded and sharp weapons out of reach, trying to keep the kid occupied with her toys instead, but Jaylie got bored of it quickly. Certain things caught her absolute attention, like set of plastic knives the Joker had given her for her first birthday. She could sit intently with them, oblivious to the world around her.

.

About an hour later the sound of manic giggles sounded through the penthouse. Harley entered the main room with an abundance of shopping bags, filled with stolen content; Frost knew she just liked having the fancy bags.

The Joker followed her, seemingly in a good mood. He grabbed onto Harley's waist, spun her around and purred into her ear, while Frost tried to direct his attention elsewhere.

"We're back!" Harley shouted, giggling as she pressed herself to Boss. She dropped all the bags on the floor with a metallic thud and rushed over like a gymnastic sprinter to sweep Jaylie into her arms. "Hey, Jay! Have you been having fun?"

"Mmm." The girl tugged on her hair.

"Good girl!" Harley put her down with a kiss to her nose. She waltzed into the kitchen and started preparing the baby food, whistling a tune out-of-pitch.

Joker caught sight of Frost rubbing his bitten hand. His lips split into a wry grin. "Been in a fight, Jonny-boy?"

Frost's gaze was unintentionally drawn to the girl sitting on the floor.

Joker burst out cackling. "A piraya, she is! That's my little monster!"

He was too busy laughing at his own joke to notice Jaylie grabbing onto the nearby couch, using it as leverage to slowly stand up, and waddling over the living room area. He didn't take notice of her until she bumped into his leg.

"Daddy!"

Joker looked down to see her standing on her own, a bit wobbly, with a big smile on her face.

He grinned back at her and ruffled her blonde pigtails.

Harley poked her head out from the kitchen, eyes wide and mouth open, exclaiming: "Did she just walk?!"

Without waiting for confirmation she merrily clapped her hands. "Mommy's so proud of you, Pumpkin Pie! Did you see that, Puddin? Our baby can walk all on her own now!"

Joker grunted, craning his neck. "Tone it down, Harls. Of course she can."

x

x

By the time Jaylie was two years old, her presence had become a routine. She was still kept exclusively on the top floor of the penthouse, kept away from most of the henchmen aside from a few men running errands for the Joker. Frost had warned them not to stare at the kid, but they couldn't keep their eyes away.

Frost was mostly ordered to babysit since Poison Ivy disappeared one day. That was also the first time he saw the honey-moon phase that lasted since Quinn's return, crack in the edges.

"Red's back in Arkham!" Harley whispered one evening, appearing in the living room area. "That's why she ain't been pickin' up my calls for months."

Joker didn't answer, but let the corners of his mouth shape into a scornful grimace. He sat on the couch, flicking through GCN while chewing a small cigar – a token from a murder at the club.

"Did ya hear me? We gotta get her out!" Harley stood in front of him, hands on her hips.

He gave her an annoyed look. "Do I look like some break-out squad on duty?"

"Yes!"

Jaylie, who sat in the couch with her plastic knives, giggled. Joker gave her a wry look before turning to Harley.

"No. That plant can tend to herself."

"Fine, I'll do it myself. Red's my friend! I'll go bust her out -"

Joker slowly stood up, growling, and balled his fist around the front of Harley's crop top. He spat the cigar out.

"If you go get yourself locked up again, Harls, so help me I will…"

He stared into her tear-filled eyes, but the rage of the memory overwhelmed him. He abruptly let go of her, turning away.

"Fine! I'll show ya, Mistah J!"

Harley stormed out of the room and disappeared into their room-sized closet. Five minutes later she had filled a bag with weapons and tools and put on a jacket. She left the house, slamming the door shut behind her.

Joker growled, going back to the couch where Jaylie was staring at him with wide eyes. He ignored her and distracted himself by watching GCN again.

"Jonny!" he called. His right-hand man appeared soon after. Joker picked up his pocket-knife from his pants and flipped it open, spinning it around his pale fingers. "Get someone to track her," he ordered lazily.

"Will do, Boss."

Frost quickly headed towards the door leading down to the stairs, sensing the mood in the room. As he reached out for the door handle, the blade of the knife embedded itself in the door frame next to his head.

.

Left alone, Joker tried to find an outlet for his frustration, considering calling in some henchmen.

He glanced at the kid. Still not afraid of him, her eyes were intently fixated on the knife in the door frame. Her resemblance to Harley always affected him in the worst ways. She should have looked like him: toothless, scarred, discolored hair, not like a little breakable porcelain doll with Harley's locks. It only fueled his anger.

"Daddy?"

He turned his neck to look at her impassively. "Daddy's busy."

He saw her scrunch up her face in a grimace and something flared in him. Joker stalked over to the couch, leaning over her. A deep snarl sounded from his chest. "What's that face, Pumpkin?"

She stared back at him; oh if not Harley's defiance had rubbed off on her – jutting out her chin.

"I wanna go with Momma."

He clenched his teeth. "Noo. What's this about giving Daddy attitude, hmm?"

Her gaze deepened into a glare. He knew Harley always gave her everything she wanted, whenever she started rioting, but he wasn't having that.

He grabbed a hold of her chin, glaring back at her. Jaylie made a sharp, shrill sound and her arm lifted her plastic knife and threw it at the television in anger. It only reached halfway, ending up on the floor.

Joker turned to see the failure, an evil grin on his lips. "Is that all you've got?"

"I want knife," she told him with a defiant pout. "A real one."

"You better shape up then," he hissed at her, his tattooed hand covering her mouth to stop any further protests. She had never tried to bite him, and she didn't test her luck.

He ended their out-drawn glare contest when she started squirming uncomfortably. He pulled back and grimaced in turn at her, a clear warning. She lowered her gaze.

.

Later that evening when he came out of his office for some more whiskey, he found that she had managed to pull his pocket-knife out of the door frame by climbing on a chair.

Harley would never stop fussing if the brat cut herself up while on his watch, and moreover, Jonny had just managed to clean the blood out of the carpet from the last time a henchman tested his patience. Joker stalked over and took the knife away from her, pinching her cheek hard enough to leave a red mark.

"Turn that frown upside down, or I will do it for you," he said darkly. Then he walked into his office and shut the door.

When he left the room in the morning, sleep deprived to no one's surprise, he found Jaylie curled up sleeping with her hyena plushie on the couch. He called for Frost and drank some black coffee while he waited.

"You called, Boss?" Frost looked between his messy boss and the kid sleeping in her day clothes.

"Where's Harley?" Joker ground his teeth together. "All because of that leeching plant…"

"We don't know yet. We have no info of her being in Arkham or Louisiana."

He put both his hands on the counter in the kitchen and muttered: "It doesn't matter. Get us something to eat."

Jaylie woke up in a sour mood that didn't lessen after Frost handed her a sippy cup with her favorite grape juice, and mushy baby food on a plate. "I want Mommy."

Frost sighed as he noticed the burn mark in the carpet, made from the cigar thrown there the night before.

"I want Mom now!"

He was happy that his Boss was out of earshot, knowing that the reminder would not land well in the current situation. "Look, kid, she's coming back soon."

For the first time Jaylie looked at him when he spoke, instead of simply ignoring his existence. Her face was blank, not in any way showing a response to his words. Frost had by now figured out that her development was different to a regular kid's, but her defiance was still the same. The hyena plush toy was tucked into her arm as always.

After she had eaten, she spent a couple of hours trying to stab her dull plastic knives into the wall, with no success. Harley was gone for another day, and Frost was at least happy that the kid was potty trained.

When Harley returned, empty-handed from a failed mission, Boss seemed to get back to his normal self, and the plant lady was not spoken of again.

x

x

"Mommy, what's outside?"

Jaylie had climbed onto the piano in the far end of the living room, gazing out at the rooftops of Gotham. The sun was rising over a foreign place to her, a forest of square rectangles.

Harley stopped in her tracks. "A lot of funny things," she said dreamily. "You'll get out to play when you're older!"

"In the movies, the kids are outside," the three-year-old objected, pressing her palms against the window. To Harley's pride, a faint hint of Brooklyn accent had showed itself in her speech.

She pressed her nose against the glass, trying to see every part of the city far below. Harley lifted her up in her arms. "This is your kingdom, Princess, that your Daddy owns. Now let's go get you dressed."

The toddler was in deep contemplation while Harley put her down in her room and rummaged through her stacks of clothes. She slipped her out of her blue pajamas with the dog print.

"Which dress do you want to wear today, Jay?"

Jaylie seemed uninterested in the task of choosing, instead spacing out, looking at the big print of a wild hyena that covered the short end of the wall.

After helping her put on a blue dress, Harley started brushing her daughter's hair and putting it up in two miniature pigtails on either side of her head. When the task was finished, Jaylie picked up one of the Joker's golden chains he had let her have, and put it around her neck. Harley rewarded her with a big smacking kiss.

Jaylie jumped over to the window. "I wanna go outside."

Harley bit her lip. "You can't do that yet, baby. When you're older, Gotham's gonna be your playground. "

"Why?" She picked up her book of wild animals – the hyenas were her favorites. The pages contained detailed pictures of the animals tearing apart big pieces of flesh, and she had spent many hours looking at it. Harley had noticed that Jaylie seemed able to read certain sentences by herself.

"Are there hyenas outside? Lions and elephants? In the grass?"

Something in Harley's chest clenched. She crouched down to her level. "It's dangerous for you when you're so small, Puddin' Pie. There are bad people outside who would try to take you away… like Batsy."

"Batsy Batsy." Jaylie grimaced and they both started giggling. "Daddy's friend."

Harley choked on her laughter. "You're so smart, Jay! Daddy's arch nemesis. Let's watch a movie, while we wait for Daddy to get back! I'll get Jonny to make us waffles. Go ahead and pick a movie!"

.

As they sat in the living room couch watching the Lion King, Jaylie's attention drifted, waiting for the hyenas to appear. Harley was slipping slightly out and in of concentration, until she felt a touch at her bare thigh.

Jaylie's small hand traced the prison tattoos Harley had done to herself, following the contours of black shapes and shaky letters, small lines etched into the skin. She looked up with curiosity hinting in her eyes. "Paint?"

"Mommy made those when she was away from Daddy," Harley mumbled, putting down her fork on the table in front of the couch.

"Why?"

"Because she missed him, silly!"

"Why were you away? Daddy comes back," Jaylie helpfully pointed out.

Harley tried to not let her mind drift to a darker place. "Because of Batsy-Batsy and the Waller…"

Jaylie's eyes teared up. Harley embraced her tightly, rocking her a little back and forth. "Don't worry Puddin' Pie. Mommy won't let them touch you."

"I want paint too, like you!"

After a moment's thought, Harley jumped out of the couch and ran into the Joker's office. She came back with a black marker pen. "This won't hurt, and it will look the same as Mommy's tattoos!"

A few minutes later Jaylie had a black heart underneath her eye. "Just wait until Daddy sees this!"

.

Jaylie spent the rest of the day keeping track of the door. As far as she knew, it was the portal to the world outside, where Joker and Harley came and went.

Frost paid it no mind, until the Joker came back in the evening and disappeared into his office. One of the most trusted henchmen, who usually went by the name Panda Man, opened the door to the top floor of the penthouse.

"We have a problem with a guy down here. Says he's looking for you."

Frost stared back, rising from where had sat down waiting for the Joker to call him into his office.

"It's urgent. I think he's just looking for Boss' hideout."

"Who?" a dangerously smooth voice interfered. Joker came down the hallway. "Any of our clients?" He smoothed his hair back and cackled. "Dump them in the river, then. And send a greeting to the rest."

"Yes, Boss." Panda Man turned and walked down the stairs. Joker moved over to the door like a snake, picking up the three-year-old to keep her from slipping out before the door closed.

"Ah, ah, ah, what do you think you're doing?" he chided, a snarl hinting in his voice.

Jaylie was completely still in his hold. She pointed firmly at the heavy, bullet-proof door, indicating her wish.

To Frost's surprise, his Boss didn't latch out, but instead put on a show to look exasperated. He craned his neck with a loud pop and lowered his voice to a threat.

"You're not walking out that door again, Pumpkin."

She stared back with a frown between her eyes. "You and Mommy goes. When can I?"

"When you can use a weapon," he snapped. She responded by reaching out for his gun holster that was strapped to his waist.

"No." He put her down on the floor. Instead of the usual tantrum Jonny Frost expected to see when Jaylie was denied something she wanted, he was mildly shocked to see her smiling up at her father.

Truth to be told, her behavior was just as unpredictable as the Joker's, or maybe she had some kind of survival instinct that kept her from pushing his buttons too hard. When Frost had ever tried to stop Jaylie from doing something dangerous, she would almost bite his hands off.

"Yes, Daddy."

Joker saw the ink heart on her cheek and let his fingers brush over it for a moment before he turned away.

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