I wandered around. I thought it was Sunday, so I went over to the high school, thinking nobody would be there. I was wrong.

Lunch hour was in full swing. Some students were throwing a football back and forth, while others were playing basketball. Some were getting a jumpstart on homework and some were scrambling to finish the stuff that was due in their next class. I stood outside the fence, just watching them.

They didn't know how lucky they were.

I looked for them, too. It was senior year for them. They were sitting in the usual spot, laughing. Probably one of Zack's jokes. Or maybe Kody had done something ridiculous. Maybe Daniel was complaining about homework. Meghan might have been trying to help him, her homework for the whole week already finished. Jack was doodling in his sketchbook, no doubt.

I watched them. I didn't go near them. I didn't want them to see me.

A football landed near me, bouncing over the fence. I picked it up.

A big guy ran over. "Hey, can you toss me that?"

"Sure." I shot it up over the fence.

He caught it. "Thanks. Say, you new here?"

"Um, no. Kind of on the wrong side of the fence to be a new kid."

"You sound familiar." He stared at me, still smiling politely. "Hey, you're that girl who's been in the hospital, right?"

"One in the same." I nodded. Might as well cop to it.

"Why don't you come back to classes? You've been homeschooled, right? That's what the teachers said. I'm sure you could catch up."

I had no idea who this guy was, but I was liking him. He was nice.

"Um, I don't think that's a very good idea." I smiled behind my scarf. I must have been covered up well enough that he couldn't see how messed up I was.

"Hey, your friends are right over there, aren't they?" He pointed to my people. "Hey!" He shouted at them. "Hey, guys!"

"Th-that's okay!" I said. "They don't have to know I'm here!"

"Nah, they miss you I'm sure. Hey, guys! Over here! C'mere!" He waved to them.

All of the perked their heads up. Who was shouting at them?

Zack eventually came over. Oh hell.

"What's up?" He said to the football player.

"Your girl's here. From the hospital."

"Girl from the… Harm?" Zack's eyes widened. "Harm, when did you get released?"

"I, uh, didn't." I admitted. "Hi, Zack."

"Guys, it's Harm!"

They all came running over.

Crap. That was not what I had expected. Not how that was supposed to go.

"How are you?" Meghan ran straight into the fence and clung to it.

"Been better." I half smiled.

"What's with the scarf?" Kody grinned.

"Touch it and I'll break your fingers off." I warned him.

"What, the chemicals mess you up like that Rex guy?"

I said nothing. He didn't notice.

"That guy is a piece of work, Harm. Have you seen what this guy does?"

"Yeah."

"He's fucked up, man." Kody laughed.

Each word was a new wound.

"Fucked in the head. Did you see what he did to that one guy? The one who said something about Harley Quinn?"

Zack joined in. "Ripped his arms off and cut out his tongue and shoved it up the guy's ass. Then he used some of the Joker's laughing gas, or whatever the hell that stuff is."

"The guy is nuts! Crazy sauce on top of an insane sandwich with extra cuckoo!" Jack agreed.

"Why?" I began to show my irritation.

"Have you seen the guy? He has white hair and grey skin!" Cody fake-shivered.

"Yeah, I've seen him." I muttered. "Up close and personal."

They paid me no mind, except for Meghan who began to look concerned for me.

"But the best part has to be his stupid teeth! Looks like a shark got dipped in purple paint or something!"

"Harm," Meghan reached for me through the fence. "Are you okay?"

"Stop talking about him like that." I said to them. "Just stop, okay?"

"Why?" Zack questioned. "What, you into bad boys or something?"

I shook my head. "Just stop, okay? I'd make sure whoever insulted my mom had hell to pay too."

"Harley Quinn is just as nuts as the rest of them. She thinks the Joker loves her. Ain't that adorable? Just another dumb blonde."

I forced my arm through the fence and grabbed his shirt. I yanked him against the chain links.

"What the hell, Harm?!"

"I just said I'd make whoever insulted my mom pay." I said in his ear. "Because I'm just as fucked in the head as Rex is. Don't say another word about mom and I might let you leave alive."

"Harmony."

I turned and saw Batman.

"Oh, so now I have a name." I muttered. "Now I'm not just 'another one'."

"Let him go, Harmony."

"He insulted my mom."

"Your mom is dead."

"No, my birth mother is dead!" I snapped. "You should have seen Harley when she shot into the house looking for me. She actually cared. She wasn't trying to offer me up to someone to be experimented on. No more tests. No more!"

"Shit, Harm, I'm sorry!" Zack whimpered. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry!"

"Never say another word about her again!" I hissed.

"Okay! Okay! Okay!" He held up his hands. "Scouts honor, I'll never say another bad thing about Harley Quinn again!"

"Or Joker!"

"Or Joker!" He shrieked when I tightened my grip on his shirt.

I paused. "Or Rex."

"Or Rex, okay! I promise!"

I let him go and he quickly fell away.

"See, Bats?" I spread my arms. "I have restraint. I'm not like Joker. Or Rex."

"Except you are going around and hurting people."

"I haven't hurt anyone yet." I scowled.

I took off the scarf and showed my old friends my teeth. They all jumped and took another big step back. Even the football player.

"I'm just as fucked as they are." I muttered.

"We need to talk." Batman said.

"So talk." I started walking away, fixing my scarf. I felt a little more broken inside. But I was satisfied with scaring Zack. He wouldn't say anything about Harley anymore. I knew he wouldn't. Not even in private. That's just the way he was.

Why would he say those things? Harley and Rex and Joker had been nothing but kind to me. Sure, I had been scared of them at first, but who wouldn't be?

"A little birdie tried to tell me that you're harmless." He said, following me. He wasn't happy about the arrangement, but apparently whatever he needed to say was important enough that he would walk along side me.

"Your little birdie needs to hide better. I don't appreciate being watched." I scowled.

"I'll keep that in mind."

"Which part?"

"You can get help for your condition." He offered.

"I don't believe you." I eyed him over. What could he offer me that hadn't already been tried on me?

"Arkham has many patients just like you."

My blood turned to ice in my veins.

"All of whom are receiving help as we speak."

"That place is death." I couldn't stop my shaking. "Don't take me there."

"I'm suggesting that you check yourself in."

"I'm not gonna 'check myself in', Bats!" I shouted. "If I do, I'll never see the light of day again! There is no cure for this! They've tried!"

"You're going to give up?"

"What else can I do?! Have you tried this talk with Killer Croc? Because it's not working!" I kinda wanted to punch him, but I was afraid I would kill him.

"Killer Croc has a medical condition." He tried again.

"You're really bad at this. Why do people look up to you again?" I was growing irritated.

"Because I'm helping to keep the city safe."

"Safe from what?! Safe from hurt girls with family problems? There are people worse than me. Go waste your time with someone else." I waved him off and began walking away.

"Harmony, it's a suggestion. Please consider it." He said again, with his stupid Batman attitude. Guy needed to take a hint.

"Yeah, yeah." I muttered. "Considered and dumped in the trash."

I looked back at my old friends. They were watching me walk away from Batman. Zack was eyeing me hatefully. The others looked scared or concerned. I didn't want to ever see them again.

I straightened my scarf and left all of them behind me.