Harley tucked her knees up against her chest as she sat near the front door. She thought about waiting outside for Mr. J to return but it was pouring rain. The rain splattered against the building in big raindrops that almost splash when they hit the sidewalk, but never last very long.
The clown girl looked around the apartment building at every corner and door just waiting for the Batman to spring out of one of them. Harley wondered if he was still lurking upstairs. She worried that the masked vigilante would suddenly change his mind about "saving" her.
The former psychiatrist was surprised by the Bat's decision not to take her away. She hardly thought her gun would keep him from trying to rescue her and yet she did not even fire a shot. She found that odd.
Harley understood a few things about the Batman, his need to save people was one of them. Whoever was underneath the black cowl had most likely suffered a great tragedy in life, not unlike Mr. J. And though he did not have the same reaction as the clown, the pain in his life changed his way of thinking. The Bat wanted to prevent anything bad form happening to anybody in Gotham.
If Harley didn't hate him so much she may have pitied him, knowing that goal of his would never be accomplished. In fact it would probably be the death of him. The Batman's life would most likely end at the hands of the people he fought so hard to protect. Everything he did would be for nothing.
Harley felt nothing for the vigilante and what she assumed would be his fate. After all he was the cause of most of Joker's problems as well as Jonathan Crane's. The other damage he caused did not bother Harley, unless it affected her. The only redeeming quality the Bat held was that if it weren't for his self-righteousness, Harley Quinn would have never met the Joker. She did give him some credit for that.
Harley jumped, thinking she heard a creak upstairs. Her mind began to race desperately trying to think of a plan in case the giant bat swooped down the stairs to take her away. Just then a taxi cab with a blood stained window pulled up. Harley hurried out of the apartment and into the rain. She dove into the passenger's seat and threw her bag into the back.
As they drove hastily into the street Harley glanced over at the Joker. His eyes scanning the road a head of him, his tongue absent mindedly tracing is lips.
Three days ago she was questioning her own sanity as he pinned her to the floor covering her with cuts and rough kisses. She wondered at that moment why she was allowing these things. Why she let him hurt her, without fighting back at all. But she soon realized that it did not matter what he did to her. No matter how he broke her, Mr. J would always be there to put her back together. To kiss it and make it better. She could not imagine losing him at this point.
They were meant to be. The name Harleen Quinzel, being so close to Harley Quinn was a sign. Not to mention that he had chose her to make his own. There was so many times, even in the asylum when he could of killed her. But the Joker never did.
Harley Quinn's love for the Clown Prince of Crime had only grown stronger since the day they met. Beyond the lust and excitement that surrounded the Joker. It transformed and evolved in to something the former doctor could not shake. She could not stop. Until the day she died she knew it, she would love Mr. J, faults and all as much as she could. And no one would take him away from her, Batman would not separate them. No matter what it took she would do everything she could to remain this way, by his side. It was where she belonged.
"Wasn't so bad was it?" Joker asked emphasizing the "t" on the end of it, referring to her time alone.
Harley shook her head, "Nope," she decided not to tell Mr. J about her little encounter with Batman, "You're always right Mistah J,"
It was not long before the two arrived at their new home, since Joker often drove dangerously fast. Harley grabbed her bag and stepped out of the taxi. She looked up at the hideout, a large, grey warehouse.
The inside was equally gray with cement floors and bright fluorescent lighting. Miss-matched furniture the henchmen stole of managed to find sat everywhere. In the vast open space, there was no pattern to where the couches, chairs and make shift beds sat.
Harley looked around at her new surroundings. Since it was a warehouse, there weren't many rooms, but at the end of the building a staircase led to three offices. Joker, of course, claimed one of them as his own office and the other one for he and Harley's room. The third room belonged to Jonny who insisted he need his own room if Joker wanted anymore laughing gas made.
Joker had thought the former doctor was acting strange. A little bit mouthy and somewhat louder than his usually reserved self.
"C'mon," Joker said walking ahead of Harley.
She followed him up the stairs and watched as he opened the door to the first room.
The clown looked at Harley Quinn, standing beside him, her overly stuffed back on her shoulder. It had been a while since he just looked at her, Especially with all her make up gone off her face, though she still did not resemble the doctor he had met in Arkham. Not with her black and red hair, now with blond roots beginning to appear in her part.
She had the most child like expression too. Joker didn't know quite what it was, maybe it was her eyes that did it. Round and blue looking around the room in wonder, simply because it was a place he had set aside for the two of them. It definitely didn't look good, it was dark and grey like the rest of the building, very different from the house in the Palisades.
Harley went inside and tossed her heavy bag of clothing into the corner. She sat down on the single mattress at the end of the room, across from a stolen television.
"I like it," she smiled and patted the mattress, "Come sit with me,"
Joker trudged in and dropped down beside her.
Harley's smile faded into concern, "Did I do something wrong?" she asked due to his indifferent mood as of late.
"Nooo," he shook his head.
"Are you feelin' okay then?"
He nodded, "I'm fine,"
"If you say so Mistah J," she snuggled up next to him, putting his arm around her, "I've been meanin' ta ask you somethin'," she began, "Would you ever leave Gotham?"
"Why?" he removed her from clinging to his side and laid back on the mattress.
"Dunno, just wonderin'," she laid down cuddling beside him, "I mean there's lots of other places we could go... you could still cause chaos, if ya wanted to. But don't chya ever wanna leave, won't that overgrown bat ever get boring?"
"Haven't we talked about this enough," he groaned.
"I just wanna make sure ya don't love him more than me," Harley giggled, though it was fake.
She was truly concerned with getting Mr. J out of Gotham, especially after talking to Batman. She wanted to be as far from Gotham City as possible, knowing that Batman wanted to save her. It was bad enough when he was hurting Mr. J, now he was threatening to tear them apart.
Harley had made it her mission to cure the Joker and escape from this awful city as soon as possible. But she decided that maybe the Joker's transformation into an upstanding citizen was going to take much more time than she anticipated, if it happened at all. And the clown girl accepted that. No longer did it matter who he hurt, even if it were her. Harley would ignore when he killed or stole or even blew up a building. She would be happy as long as they were together.
"C'mon," she positioned herself on top of him, "Let's just go,"
"Where?" he asked mildly curious as to what she'd come up with.
"Everywhere! We'll go everywhere, we'll be like Bonnie and Clyde. We can pillage and plunder and then come back to our hideout and have even more fun," she said suggestively kissing down his painted jawline.
"Pirates pillage and plunder Harley,"
She giggled, "Okay then we'll be like Calico Jack and Anne Bonny,"
"I'm not buying a ship," Joker added lazily.
Harley giggled more, "You know what I mean silly. It'd be great, just you," she quickly kissed him, "Me," another kiss, "No Arkham Asylum," kiss, "No Commisionah Gordon," Joker held her against him for the next kiss, preventing her temporarily to escape and name someone else. His tongue pressed against the insides of her cheeks and his hand up her shirt. When the kiss ended Harley rested her head in his chest, playing with the collar on his vest she said softly, "And no bats,"
Joker, who had been content stroking Harley's exposed back, stopped, "What did you say,"
"Nothin' hunny," she nuzzled his neck.
"No you said no bats didn't you," he sat up pushing her aside.
Harley twirled her hair around her finger, "No puddin' ya must be hearin' things,"
"Don't lie to me Harley Quinn," he slammed her against the wall.
"Well, yeah I said bats. Geez sorry," she pouted, pressed against the wall, "But what's wrong with that. All he does is hurt ya. We're better off without him," Harley Quinn blurted out avoiding his eyes.
Joker grabbed her chin, forcing her to look up with his free hand. The other pinned her against the wall, "No Harley we're not. Because without a Bat-man there's noo Joker and if there's no Joker, there's no Harley Quinn,"
"We could try it," she offered hopefully.
Joker rolled his eyes, "What kind of shrink are you? You should under-stand Batman and I by now,"
"I know, I know," Harley held up her hands in surrender, "You're symbols, he's a symbol of hope and you're gonna break him, I know. But puddin' did ya evah stop and think that maybe there's nothin' really special about the Bat? Like he's just some guy in a bat suit?"
Mr. J let go of Harley, who sighed with relief, letting her guard down way to soon.
For a moment, the Joker did not do anything. He simply sat there, eyes cast downward as he chewed on his scarred bottom lip. Harley thought that maybe he was considering what she told him. As it turns out he was not considering her statement, instead he was considering what he would do to her next.
And after a few silent moments he looked back at Harley through cold, dark eyes. She offered a small smile, he punched her in the face.
Harley Quinn gasped clutching the side of her face Joker just hit. It wasn't long before he grabbed the collar of her shirt and slammed her once again into a hard, unforgiving wall.
"Don't ever say that again, do you understand?" he shook her slightly.
"Yes," she sobbed a reply.
"Batman is not just some guy," he growled, "Do you understand that-uh?"
Harley nodded a response and Joker paused.
"Ya know jealllouseee uh, isn't flattering on you puddin'," the clown's voice became surprisingly calm again as he retrieved on of the many knives from his pocket.
A small pocket knife, as shiny and silver as the others. Her breath quickened and her heart pounded harder when he slid the blade through her parted lips.
"Not at allll," he pushed the knife against the right corner off her mouth.
Harley Quinn began whimpering when she started to taste blood. Joker cut the corner of her mouth slightly, letting the bitter, red substance leak into her mouth.
"No, please stop," her cries distorted slightly by the cold blade threatening to rip her face.
Joker cocked his head to the side, "Why, ya don't like thiiissss?"
The knife pushed against her with more force. It cut deeper making Harley scream, "No, no, please,"
"Oh. Well, what about thiiss?" he slid the weapon to the left side of her mouth, just knicking the flesh.
"NO!" Harley screamed.
"Ah, ah, ah. Inside voices little girl," Joker positioned the knife in the center of Harley's full lips and made a small cut.
Her entire body tensed, she gasped at the sensation of the knife in her lip.
"Ya don't like that either?" the clown giggled, he flipped the blade and sliced into her top lip, "So hard ta please,"
Harley Quinn shrieked and pressed against the wall in a failing attempt to escape.
Joker licked his lips as he focused on her own lips, "I don't wanna fight Harls, but you gotta learn your lesson. You uh, can't mouth off to me, like you've been doing," he held the knife inside her split lip, "Shh sh sh. You're okay," he cooed, "Do you think you've learned a lesson?" he eyes met her's.
"Uh huh," she said trying her best not to move and push the knife further through her flesh.
"Yeeaaah maybe," Mr. J paused, "Maybe not-uh," he moved the knife again to the corner of her bleeding lips.
Harley was glad when he decided she had enough and removed his knife. As he placed it back into it's rightful pocket, he returned to his not so Mr. J like state. She had expected him to be excited by the blood and her fear. But he didn't touch her after returning his knife, all he did was stare at the door.
"I'm uh, going out," Joker finally spoke.
"Okay," Harley said softly, wiping her tears and beginning to get up.
"No, you're staying here,"
She had assumed she was to come along, lately she had been going with him.
"Why?" she said quietly.
"Beeecause," Joker began as he stood up, "Bad little girls don't get to go to work with Daddy,"
"I'm sorry. Can I please come?" she pleaded.
"Nope, in fact I don't want you to leave this room," he explained, "I want you to be here when I get back,"
"Cause I was bad?" Harley asked.
"Yep," Joker turned to go.
"I love you," called Harley Quinn as he left.
*beats a dead horse* Argh its getting so difficult to right this. The story is beginning to wind down, I know the end but I have no clue about the spaces in between. That explains my lateness on posting a new chapter. Sorry.
So at this point Harley's attitude has changed even more that she doesn't care if Joker remains a criminal or not, she just wants him away from Batman. Of course she'll always be in a fantasy world thinking that he (the Joker) is in love with her, just as much as she is with him. But now she's realizing okay maybe I can't change him that easily and maybe not at all.
Meh I didn't love this chapter myself so I apologize if it sucks. As my fics begin to end I get depressed at start to suck. But I do assure you that its ends with a bang. Because as Mort Rainey has taught us; the ending is the most important part.