Nightwing's Nightingale

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters just the plot

Pairing: Richard Dick Grayson/Nightwing Harleen Quinzel/Harley Quinn

Chapter 14

Harley was restless. It was 12:23am and Richard still hadn't returned. She hadn't received word from Ivy either. Her eyes rested on the door, her hands gripping the novel that she had forgotten to read. She was so anxious that every sound made her jump. The bad feeling she had earlier had only gotten worse, and being left in the dark about everything was not helping.

She was forced to sit and dwell in her thoughts. Joker was searching for her...desperately? What sort of desperate? Desperate to fulfill the promise of killing her? Desperate to have her back at his side? Harley groaned and threw the book on the floor. She pulled her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs. She could feel the bad bone deep within her...screaming. Aching...she wanted to go back. Maybe to see what he would do?

No...That was the excuse she told herself. She wanted to go back, but not out of curiousity. Out of genuine want. She wanted to see him. She wanted to cry in front of him and beg him to forgive her for making him hurt her. Yes, she would blame herself for his mistakes. She always had. Why should this time be any different?

"I can't go back," Harley whispered to herself as if to attempt to silence her old habits. She didn't want to break so easily. She didn't want to bend to him yet again. The pain he caused her...it was worse than anything she had ever felt before. She did not want that again. She may not believe that she is the victim that Richard says she is, but that didn't mean that she had to take the endless punishment.

"He'll only hurt me again," she coached herself, rocking back and forth, staring into nothing. This was proving harder and harder as the minutes went by. The more the hours past, the more she wanted to leave. The more she wanted to fight. The more she wanted someone to tell her that Richard and Ivy were ok. She rested her face in her palms, letting out a distressed sigh.

"Everything alright?"

Harley sat up quickly, raising her gaze to find Richard walking into the room. He was wearing a white t-shirt and some dark blue jogging pants. He must have showered before coming in, because his hair looked damp. However, that wasn't what had Harley's attention at the moment. Her eyes had automatically landed on the bandaging wrapped around his bicep. When she didn't speak, or look away from the treated wound, Richard walked over and sat beside her.

"What happened?" she asked. Her eyes were still studying the damage done, even though she couldn't see it.

"A goon with a crowbar happened," Richard chuckled. "I'm fine."

"But..what happened Richie? Why were Joker's men attacking you? Where were you? Didn't I tell you to stay out of dark alleys? Are you hurt anywhere else?" Harley watched his expression as she searched for anymore wounds. Richard laughed again and placed a hand on her thigh.

"I'm fine. Ten stitches in the arm are nothing. I have suffered worse."

"He was there, wasn't he?" Harley asked. "Was he ok? I mean-you know like...did he seem bothered or did he mention me?" Richard had picked up on her confusion, but decided not to acknowledge it at the moment.

"He was mad, like always. Just wanted to know where you were."

"Oh...H-He didn't say anything else?" Harley asked almost hopefully. Richard frowned and shook his head.

"Harley, he is a danger to you."

"I know! I just-I wanted to know if maybe-"

"He hurt you-"

"It was my fault," Harley muttered more to herself than him. "I screwed up like always, and maybe if I hadn't he wouldn't have hurt me?" Richard scoffed at her comment and grabbed her hands in his. She was having a minor relapse, but he wouldn't let her give in.

"Stop making up excuses for him. He hurt you and he shouldn't have. You know that. It doesn't matter who you are or what you've done. If he is so loyal to you, why did he try to kill you?"

Harley closed her mouth and looked away from him. She was getting angry, but she knew he was right. She knew she couldn't go back, but she wanted to in some way. She was anxious to see him, but terrified to die. He would surely kill her, if not as soon as he saw her...later down the line. She may not get as lucky as she did this time. Nightwing, Batman, nor Ivy would be present the next time...she would die on the Joker's whim. Her best bet to live was to stay away...

"Why is it so hard to forget him?" Harley asked him, staring at him with confusion. Richard could see the pain in her eyes. "I want to leave him."

"You have left him, Harley," Richard whispered.

"No...he's still here," Harley said as she pulled her hands out of his grasp and she pointed to her head. She let her hand drop to her chest, covering her heart. "Here." Richard was speechless. Harley frowned and looked down at herself. "I'm not even sure if what I feel for him is love or infatuation."

"Love shouldn't hurt. Not like that," Richard sighed.

"Have you been in love?" Harley questioned as she observed his reaction. He looked her in the eye, and she grew warm. Barely able to hold the connection, but she did. She wanted to see his answer, as much as she could hear it. Richard swallowed, nervous under her intense gaze.

"I don't know. Like you said, love and infatuation..."

"Who are you infatuated with, Richie?" Harley asked. She was almost sad that he might have a woman he was falling for. Maybe it was the red head? Of course. It all made sense now. The reason she didn't like Harley...she thought that Richard cared for her. She thought that Harley was replacing her. She was jealous.

"I uh-"

"Is it that woman?"

"What? No no its not her- I just...What made you think its her?"

"Well, she seems to like you very much. I figured thats why she doesn't want me around," Harley mumbled. She began to think about his stammering. She was no fool. She could read people well enough. In fact, she could read people very well. At least...its what she used to do. Richard was nervous she could see that, but why?

"There is nothing between the two of us. Maybe there used to be a tension, but not anymore," Richard sighed as he avoided the eyes of the woman before him.

"Is that my fault?" Harley asked sadly. Dick looked at her and almost laughed at the irony of her question. For what seemed like forever, they just stared at each other.

"Yeah, I think it is your fault," he whispered as he grinned at her. She blushed and looked away. Was he suggesting...? No, he couldn't be. Then she thought about it... The kiss on the forehead. The statement he made about him not knowing what she was doing to him. Did he like her? Was this what this was?

"Uh...you don't- you can't..." Harley couldn't gather her words to save her life. She wasn't sure what she should say. Richard smiled at her and pulled her into a hug. She clung to him, holding on like he was all she had. It was weird. Sure she battled with herself about being happy without the Joker, and she always doubted herself. But right now, in Richard's arms, there was no doubt. There was only hope. "I don't understand you," she huffed. She looked up at him only to see him staring back at her. She watched with horrifying excitement as he leaned downward. She knew what was happening, but she didn't know if she should let it happen or...

His lips grazed hers...a feather like gesture. He didn't move any further than that. Harley scrunched her eyebrows in confusion...annoyance. Why had he stopped? She looked into his eyes. They were half-lidded, but they held sincerity. Without words, he was telling her to make the move. He was letting her control the situation. He was going at her pace. She wasn't sure why or when she did it, but she kissed him. Soft and sweet. Electrifying. When he broke the kiss, she gasped slightly.

"I don't think I understand myself," he chuckled. Harley smiled at him, eye level dropping to his lips. She wanted that feeling again. She wanted to compare it to kisses she had with the Joker...or maybe more simply she just wanted to be kissed by him again. Either way, she was overjoyed to find that he wanted to do the same as he closed the space between them once again.

xxx

Ivy sat on the ledge of a building looking down on the activity before her. She fumbled with the rose, between her fingers as she gritted at the clowns. They were rummaging throughout her hideout, trying to find anything that would lead them to Harley. Joker was definitely becoming impatient. He was always relentless, but now? He was worse. Something that couldn't be defined. Of course she could take on the idiots below her, but she didn't particularly feel like it. She was more interested in the gossip that was being passed between them.

One thing was certain. The Joker's men were not smart, and they believed themselves to be untouchable because their boss was. How wrong they were...

"We've been searching for an hour. There is nothing here," one big for nothing man said. "We'll just have to figure out who else knows where the boss man's mistress is."

"Yeah and go back to him with this bad news, and get killed like Frank?" another hissed. "No thanks, I'd rather tear this place apart and find something."

"What, you want to take a venus fly trap to him? Wouldn't that just piss him off? Better to show up with sound news than this crap."

"Says the one thats going to stand back in the corner while somebody tells him," the goon groaned as they watched the others inside.

"I'm starting to agree with you," said one walking out the apartment. "There isn't a single clue here. It would be better to catch the woman and have her tell the boss man what she knows."

"Maybe that's what we'll offer him since we couldn't find anything!"

"Of course you idiot. That's why I said it."

"Well, if you think its going to work. You're going to be the one to tell him. I'm not going to be the pig he takes his anger out on. Especially after hearing that he's interested in breaking the Scarecrow out."

Ivy sat up straight. Her bored expression changed to one of complete shock and concern. Scarecrow? Mixed with the already bad nerve gas problem? This would be worse than worse. Joker was planning on releasing chaos himself. Chaos and crazy was a recipe for disaster.

xxx

Harley listened to Richard's heartbeat as they lay together in silence. His eyes were closed, but she knew that he was indeed awake. They had worn each other down, stealing each other's air as their lips danced. Now they simply enjoyed the warmth of the other. She stole a glance at his face. He looked relaxed. A good look on him she decided. A look that she would love to see on his face often. He looked more his age this way, not that he looked bad any other time. Today she got to see the playful side of him, not just the protective vigilant marching off to war.

Dick smiled before opening his eyes and looking down at her. She blushed, resting her head on his chest again.

"What?" he laughed.

"Nothing," she whispered as she cuddled into him. He ran his fingers through her hair, sighing and closing his eyes again. "What's it like? Being a hero and all?"

"Truthfully? Tiring."

"That's it?"

"No," he sighed again, finding the right words to say. "It's like a burden you don't mind carrying. A sacrifice you would make over and over. A reward and a punishment."

"So good, but bad," Harley stated even though she was very confused.

"Yeah sort of," Richard nodded. "It's something not many people really want to be, but when you know you can...you can't really stop."

"So, would you go back to normal life if you could?"

"Nah," he said as he shook his head. "I really don't think I could even if I wanted to. As much as I hate it sometimes, I love what I do."

"I see," Harley mumbled in thought. Before she could ask another question, she felt a vibration coming from beneath her on the bed. They both manuevered to find the cell. Once she had it in her hand, Harley answered it. "Red?"

"Harley, I think I know the clown's next move."

"Tell me," Harley demanded, sitting up and giving her friend her undivided attention. She turned the phone on speaker, watching the door and making sure no one would open it. Richard huddled in to listen. "I have Nightwing here with me."

"Alright, well I went back to my place to find his men tearing it apart to find clues about your whereabouts. One of them mentioned that the Joker was planning on breaking out Scarecrow!"

"Scarecrow?!" Harley shrieked.

"Are you sure about this?" Richard asked, already getting to his feet.

"I know what I heard. I can't assure you that the bastard knew what he was talking about, but its worth watching for. You know what hell will be unleashed if that nerve gas does more than its intended purpose?" Ivy sounded just as worried as Harley felt. She was speechless to say in the least, but the chills running down her spine wouldn't let up. Fear and pain was a bad combination.

"I'll be back," Richard growled with a stern look as he walked out of the room, making sure not to slam the door behind him.

"Harley?"

"What are we going to do? What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to make an alliance of my own, pull up some contacts. Don't worry too much, pigtails. The garden puppet isn't out and about yet."

"Yeah, well let's hope he never will be."

AN: Yet another chapter, and I think I have made the plot more interesting I hope. I working up to the harder stages of this story, so bare with me lol. Tell me what you think about it so far. Thank you for the comments, favorites, and follows so far. You guys rock! Now for the rocky road ahead. What do you think will happen? Until next time! Love Always!