Author's note: if you enjoyed the first chapter please be sure to leave a review, I won't know if I should continue this unless you guys say so. Trigger warnings for this chapter: N/A

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Harely was a ball of nervous energy, the adrenaline from the night's events still coursing through her system. Add that to the fact that she was about to ride shotgun in the Batmobile? And not as a prisoner? It took everything she had not to start pressing buttons the instant she was seated. The engine roared to life and the monstrous vehicle, like a mix between a tank and a short limousine, took off down the highway leading away from the gates of Arkham Asylum. "So B-Man, where are we headed?" Harley asked, turning to the caped crusader. He kept his eyes on the road, focused and calm even as the Batmobile tore past the Gotham city limit at well over one hundred miles per hour. He ignored Tim and Dick bickering in the backseat as he addressed her, "it was meant to be a surprise, I was going to tell you when you were officially released next week but... Oracle has set up an apartment for you, the rent has been paid for the next year to give you time to get back on your feet. If you prefer you can still move back in with your mother as planned but-"

"No!" Harley practically shouted, eyes wide in surprise, both at her friend's generous offer and her own lack of self control. "I mean, no, that's okay. Ya really didn't have to go to so much trouble but if yer offerin' then who am I to refuse?" She said, shrugging. Harley loved her mother, she truly did, but she knew if they lived together again for too long that one of them would wind up killing the other. Not to mention the fact that every time her mother had visited her in the past three years, she hadn't made it five minutes into small-talk without bursting into tears; overjoyed that Harley was finally turning over a new leaf and simultaneously blaming herself and Harley's late father for her daughter's life going off the rails to begin with.

"Wait." Harley said. "Who's Oracle?"

She could practically feel the air shift, as the two boys behind her went still, both of them looking anxiously at Batman, waiting for his response. The man himself said nothing at first, debating on how much to tell her. He seemed to make up his mind as he glanced at her nervous, expectant expression. "Batgirl. The first Batgirl. She was... Wounded, several years ago. Badly enough that she could no longer operate in the field. Now she's our eye in the sky, handling all of our security, finances, communications, etcetera..." Batman said, trailing off for a moment. "She's also a world class hacker, she can get into a building's mainframe before any of us can even get into the building." He explained, careful not to mention how she was hurt, or by whom. Harley had wondered where Batgirl had gone over the years, she had just assumed the red head had retired, maybe gone off to college or something. Now she knew she'd been hurt so badly she simply couldn't fight anymore. Even though Harley had rarely spoken to her, and it was always as enemies, she felt a sharp pang of sorrow for the young woman, who was always so incredibly fierce and driven; but had been, in essence, cut down in her prime.

"I'd like to meet her again someday. I know you guys don't trust me with secret identities and all that jazz yet, some less than others" Harley said, glancing over her shoulder at Nightwing. "But maybe one day, if we ever get there. Just to tell her I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused." Harley went quiet after that, staring out her heavily tinted, bullet-proof window. It wasn't long before the Batmobile pulled up in front of a non descript high-rise, clearly nothing super fancy but not a run-down slum like a lot of Gotham's apartment buildings. Harley already loved it.

"The building is owned by Wayne enterprises, off the records." Nightwing said from the back, "it may look pretty plain but it has state of the art security. The doorman, Gary, is an old friend. He's always armed, and he has a direct line to Batman in case of emergency. No one gets into this building who isn't supposed to without us knowing about it." At Harley's confused stare he elaborated, "Bruce Wayne set this place up as a sort of home away from home. Somewhere he could go that the paparazzi didn't know about if he needed to lay low for a while, his penthouse is on the top floor. And we-" he said, gesturing to himself and the other two vigilantes, "use it to hide out from time to time too. Perks of having a billionaire for a friend" he added, grinning. Batman had explained once that Bruce Wayne was quietly bankrolling their operation when she asked where he got the money for all his toys. Harley returned Nightwing's smile before looking at Batman. "So? What's next?"

"Next," he said, holding up a key with, presumably, her apartment number printed on it. "You go get some sleep. Your apartment is on the fifth floor, at the end of the hallway to the right when you step off the elevator. Nightwing was just visiting, luckily he was here to help but he needs to get home. That and Robin and I- Red Robin," he added, the barest hint of frustration in his voice. It seemed he maybe wasn't too keen on his youngest protégé's sudden name change. If the boy sitting behind her noticed, he chose not to comment. "- And I need to finish our patrol. I'll come check on you in the morning, alright?" He asked, his face a stoic mask but his voice kind. She took the key without question, smiling brighter than she had in years.

She leaned over the console, careful not to hit any buttons for fear of something blowing up, and wrapped her arms awkwardly around Batman's neck. He didn't return the embrace, he rarely did, but it had been over two years since he last flinched away from her touch like he thought she might stab him. Which, to be fair, she did do once or twice. "Thanks, B-Man... For everything." She whispered, just loud enough for him to hear before pressing a quick kiss to the corner of his mouth. He smiled, so slightly most people wouldn't have noticed, but Harley did.

"You boys behave yourselves now" Harley said as she climbed out of the vehicle, wagging her finger at the three like a scolding mother. The second she vacated the passenger seat Nightwing took her place, pulling himself from the backseat to the front in one smooth motion, pushing Red Robin out of the way as he did so. Harley just chuckled at their antics, and laughed even harder at the look on Batman's face as he glared at his oldest son.

"See ya tomorrow Bats, and I'll see ya when I see ya boys." She said, giving a mock salute as she turned and headed into the building, listening to the Batmobile's tires screech as it tore off down the street the moment the door closed behind her. She waved to the doorman, a gruff, serious looking mountain of a man. Gary? Is that right? She thought, glancing at his nametag to confirm. He was much older than her, nearing sixty it seemed, but was nearly as big as Batman himself and she knew in an instant that he wasn't to be messed with. He smiled politley at her from behind his standing desk before returning his gaze back to his hands, hidden from her view, but she knew from the sound of metal on metal and the telltale smell of gun oil that he was cleaning a weapon. She quickened her pace to the elevators, not ready to risk annoying the man before she actually got to know him. She hit the button for the fifth floor and the doors slid shut without a sound. Humming along with the Mozart that played quietly from the speakers, she pondered what to do next with her life. She could try to practice again, maybe go back to Arkham, a doctor once more, and this time actually help people. But it was too risky, she decided. She didn't want to chance being in the same building as the Joker if he ever woke up again. She already hated the fact that she was still in the same damn city as him, but Gotham was her home, and she wasn't going to let him take anything else from her. The doors opened with a mild ping and she stepped out into the hall, turning to her right. The floor was a simple, off white carpet with painted dark blue walls. Potted ferns guarded both sides of the elevator doors and tacky paintings that probably cost less than fifty dollars each adorned the walls in intervals. There was absolutely nothing remarkable about this place at all, she decided, which made it a perfect place to hide out while she started piecing together her new 'normal' life. Before she knew it she was at the door to her new home. With a deep breath she slid the key into the lock and slowly pushed the door open. A second later a small purple batarang planted itself in the doorframe next to her head. Harley shrieked and fell back into the hallway, landing painfully on her backside. Her eyes grew wide with shock as she took in the young woman sitting about ten feet away from her in, what she assumed, was her new living room. Sitting, in the most expensive looking wheelchair Harley had ever seen, with her arm raised and ready to throw another batarang, was Barbara Gordon, the police commissioner's daughter. Barbara's face matched Harley's as both simply gaped at each other, neither sure what to do or say.

"You... Uhm. You weren't supposed to be here for another three days." Barbara said, as if that in any way explained what she was doing there.

Harley's gaze went from her eyes, to her mouth, to her long red hair, to the purple batarang in her still raised hand, to the fancy looking tablet computer in her lap, and finally to the motorized chair she sat in. Barbara cringed at the sudden look of realization on Harley's face.

"Holy shit, you're Batgirl!" She exclaimed, pointing excitedly. Then her arm fell limp at her side, her face going blank as her gaze became unfocused. She's Batgirl, she thought, and Batgirl was hurt too bad to keep being Batgirl. But Barbara Gordon was... The Joker attacked her and...

Harley looked up again, tears stinging the corners of her eyes as she whispered, almost to herself.

"You're Oracle."

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