The Harlequin and the Bat
This is the story sequel to: The Harley and The Ivy.
Important notes: I do not own Batman or any portion of the franchise. I give all credit to DC Comics and respective owners.
Chapter 4
Bruce and Harleen broke their kiss till after midnight. The two looked into each other's eyes and Bruce stroked her hair.
Bruce spoke first "So where does this lead us?"
"I guess with another date, maybe one without the crazy's." Harley said lovingly.
"Yeah, especially one without other people eavesdropping on us." Bruce indicated Tim, Dick and Barbra as they got noticed
"Huh, others?" Harley saw behind her and saw Tim fall through the door exposing Dick and Barbra behind him.
"Oops." Tim said grinning after being caught.
"You've got company I see." Harley said jokingly.
"Yes. This is Dick, Barbara…and this young lad is Tim." Bruce introduced each member.
"Hi. I'm Harleen." she said holding her hand out for a welcome
"Yeah, hi." Dick said being cautious before shaking her hand
"Nice to meet you." Barbara said next
"Hi." Tim said shaking her hand with both of his.
"Enthusiastic isn't he?" Harleen said shaking her hand free from Tim's grip.
"He's just excitable." Bruce explained
"Well I better get going, maybe meet again tomorrow?" Harleen asked
"It's technically tomorrow." Bruce joked
"You know what I mean." Harleen said
"Deal. Tomorrow it is then." Bruce smiled as Harleen walked out smiling.
"Err…I came with Bruce. Can you call me a cab or something Alfred?" Harleen asked
"It's already been called for Ms Quinzel." Alfred explained
"Oh thanks. Bye Alfred." Harleen said to the elderly Butler
"Goodnight Ms Quinzel." Alfred said nodding to her.
As soon as Harleen exited the building Bruce stared at Dick, Barbara and Tim with a scowl.
(Bruce POV)
"What were the three of you doing there?" Bruce yelled
"God, Bruce! We're here to stop you from getting yourself hurt!" Barbara explained
"Look I told Barbara about what you said this morning and…" Dick explained why Barbara was here.
"You told her that? Why?" Bruce raised his voice
"We're concerned about you! We don't want you throwing your life away for Harley Quinn!" Barbara explained back "For God's sake Bruce you're the World's Greatest Detective! Why can't you see that she's using you?"
"Well, what if she isn't using me? What if she actually cares? What if she has changed? What if…" Bruce made his explanation
"What if? What if? You're basing your trust in her on a 'What if'?" Dick asked "God, Bruce; ever since Talia and Selina you've gone round the twist with these Villainesses! Who next: Killer Frost, Black Fire…Poison Ivy?" Dick listed off.
"He married a Poison Ivy plant person that one time." Tim interrupted.
"That's unrelated Tim" Bruce rolled his eyes not yelling at him.
"No, It's completely related Bruce! You are getting Hybristophilia! Just like Quinn!" Barbara brought her side to the table
"Hybristo-what?" Tim asked
"He's only twelve Barb. Err…Bonnie and Clyde Syndrome." Dick explained
"What do Bonnie and Clyde have to do with it?" Tim asked
"Bruce gets his kicks being around dangerous women!" Dick explained
"Oh…Oh!" Tim just clocked on
Bruce held his face in his hands "Are we done?" the Bat signal called outside the windows
"Not by a long shot!" Barbara said pointing her finger at Bruce.
(Harleen POV)
She finally made it up to him. Harleen smiled as she remembered the kiss she shared with Bruce.
"Where to Miss?" the driver asked
"Seventh avenue." Harleen answered looking outside seeing the Batsignal 'I need to get Bat's attention. Soon…' Harleen thought sighing.
Arriving at her home, Harleen went straight to bed and held her plush 'H 3 B' bat close only now to her it didn't read 'Harley loves Batman' it says 'Harleen loves Bruce'.
"I have to make that video soon…I have to ask him to help me…but will he listen to me wearing that costume?" Harleen said falling to sleep.
*Morning crept on*
Harleen began talking to Ivy who was watering her plants in her greenhouse (not her house) and squealed with excitement.
"Wow a real date Harley! You're working all the moves!" Ivy was excited for her friend.
"I'm not working any moves. Besides if his friends didn't interrupt us I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have left his house." Harleen explained
"Whoa. His friends; who are his friends?" Ivy asked
"Well there were three: Tim, Dick and Barbara. Barbara and Dick seemed cautious of me, but Tim seemed to like me." Harleen smiled
"I always knew you were good with Kids Harls." Ivy joked
"Shut up!" Harleen smiled spraying her with water.
"Oh-ho. That's how you're going to play it; is it Harley? The joke's on you, this body just got twenty percent sexier!" Ivy said making a striptease pose.
"God you're such a vixen!" Harleen smiled
"The best one in all of Gotham!" Ivy proudly stated
The two friends laughed as Harleen went to work on her video. Before she had a purpose to capture Batman, now she had a different one: how to get her on Batman's team.
"Right this shouldn't be too difficult…just have to plan it out. Now step one…" Harleen muttered to herself and tried to get her thoughts on paper.
*hours pass*
"*sigh* Bruce…" Harleen said dreamily then snapping back to work. "Right let's see what I've done." As Harleen looked at the drawing of her and Bruce at the Altar with a bunch of bats and flowers as decorations she realised it was now three PM. "Crap! I spent the whole time doodling instead of working on my video. Oh…this is harder than I thought. I wonder if Bill will help me. He's good with this sort of thing."
Down at Bill's store two customers exited with a new stock of infrared cameras.
"Goodbye, come again!" Bill said kindly "Hey Doc. You're early." Bill joked
"Hey Bill, just asking: do you know on how to make audition videos or scripts? I'm struggling." Harleen asked
Bill sucked air through his teeth "Sorry Harleen, I'm not very good at that sort of stuff. Knew a guy back in college who was a whiz at that sort of thing…but I'd doubt he'd want to get involved helping an ex-Arkham inmate. But you came just in time for your custom throwing stars are ready."
"You can make fifty diamond/bat throwing stars in one day but you can't work with a script or a video camera?" Harleen asked him
"Hey, I'm passionate about tinkering with gadgets and gizmos. Writing scripts and using cameras is something entirely different." Bill said shrugging his arms and lifting his hands.
"*sigh* Fair enough." Harleen examined her new throwing stars and was amazed at the detail and style "Wow…how do they work?"
"Okay first thing: no throwing them in the store! Those things are dangerous!" Bill pointed at the diamonds Harleen became more cautious in holding them "Second: these things are just like smart boomerangs, throw them and they'll aim for the target you aim at. It can be toggled on and off; best try them off to get used to them, before using the auto function." Bill explained the functions of the throwing star.
"Thanks Bill, you're the best." Harleen thanked him gleefully.
"Hey anything for a friend." Bill said
"Just asking…how much did you make off that couple who were just in here?"
"About fifteen hundred dollars." Bill said in a normal tone
"That's a steal." Harleen joked
"You're telling me!" Bill laughed getting back to work "Your grapple gun should be ready in a couple days." Bill called out from his back room
"Thanks Bill." Harleen said going out with her new weapons and heading back home
(Bruce's POV)
After getting an earful of Batgirl and Nightwing going on about his love life and kicking Anarchy's next group back to Blackgate prison Bruce goes back home, Tim went straight to his videos games but Bruce had to resume the annoyances that were Barbara and Dick.
"You see what we're trying to save you from?" Dick said being concerned for his adoptive father.
"I understand Dick…but I am a grown up, as are you and Barbara. I think we can all make our own decisions." Bruce said tired and weary of this conversation
"Fine; just don't call us when this whole "dating Harley Quinn" thing blows up in your face!" Barbara said turning away from her friend.
"Thanks for caring about me Barbara." Bruce smiled as she slammed the door closed.
"Good night, Ms Barbara." Alfred said politely
"*sigh* Maybe you can talk some sense into him Alfred? The last thing we need is Joker's girlfriend trying to kill us when we're asleep." Barbara expressed her concern for her friend.
"I will do what I can Ms Barbara. But I'm afraid when Master Bruce's mind is made up, it's made up." Alfred said disappointedly, knowing when he was training around the world, his determined to become his own style of justice. "But I'll do what I can."
"Thanks Alfred." Barbara said giving him a hug, then leaving.
*Almost two weeks have passed; Harleen and Bruce have had several dates and getting close, much to the chagrin of Barbara. But Dick and Alfred have seen Bruce's mood lighten. Tim has been closing ranks on Dick in his training. And speaking of training:*
(Harleen's POV)
We see Harleen practice with her Shard-Stars (what she called her throwing stars) in an abandoned factory where she has been using the rubble as target practice. The grapple gun Bill made for her has come in handy more than once. Saving her from a collapsing wall she was practicing on and got her away from a few run away barrels. Bill also gave her a pair of tonfa, as a precaution in case she needed a close range fight (for those of you wondering: tonfa are an Asian weapon that was the basis for nightsticks used by police and security guards…yeah those)
Harleen practiced with her tonfa on a rotating training dummy on loan from Ivy…seeing as she had no use for it except holding her vines.
"*panting* Okay…that's enough training for today." Harleen said wiping the sweat from her brow with a towel. She bought a pair of grey jogging trousers and a grey hooded jumper over a white training shirt.
(Honestly, what is it with people in sports films or TV shows that they have to wear this attire? Is there a store that exclusively sells this sort of thing? "Hi, welcome to Bobs Sportswear Emporium! We sell everything you could want for a Sports Film, training video or TV show. From snow white training shirts to coal black jogging clothes! Come on down and you can look like everybody that wants to get fit!")
(No one's POV)
"Hey, quit being a smart-arse and get on with the story!" Joker called out to the writer from an unknown location
"Okay sorry…just saying. Wait, how can you hear me Joker?" the writer asked
"Oh please. I'm The Clown Prince of Crime! It'd be a crime if I didn't break the fourth wall! Joker proudly stated
"Wait, that doesn't make…" the writer said before Joker threatened him
"Listen Pal: I make the jokes and punchlines around here! Anyone who enters my fairground ends with a lungful of my Joker Toxin!"
"Okay, okay. Sheesh, back to the story." the writer said
(Harleen's POV)
As Harleen, wiped away the sweat she saw the date in her diary: it was the date she and Bruce would have their first Gala date ever since the Penguin incident a few weeks ago and Bill completing her Meta-Human suit. She smiled and left for Bill's Store then back home, as she approached she saw the police dragging of people who were battered and beaten.
"Thank you officers, take care of them." Bill said waving goodbye to the crooks "err…my insurance will cover this right?" Bill asked the officer making a circular motion with his finger.
"Not my department I'm afraid. Ask Commissioner Gordon." The officer said
"Taxpayers money well spent I think." Bill whispered making Harleen smile
"What was that?" the officer questioned
"Nothing, officer." Bill smiled as he saw the GCPD take the crooks away "Hi Harleen. You must be here for the suit I'm guessing." As the two entered the shop.
"Yeah that's right. Is it ready?" Harleen asked awaiting the end result
"It's in the back. " Bill said leaning on his broken counter smiled and saw Harleen have a praying position with her hands to hide her smile "But I need a few more hours before it's fully usable."
"But you said it's in the back." Harleen said looking disappointed
"Yes it is but…It's like cooking. Would you eat an apple crumble the minute it comes out of the oven? No; it'd burn your tongue and you'd eat the ice cream to soothe it for a few hours. You'd let it cool beforehand so it's fully edible and you enjoy the flavour." Bill explained
"Oh right…so how long?" Harleen asked
"About seven to nine hours." Bill looked a bit disappointed for Harleen.
"Oh okay…I guess that's not too bad." Harleen said thinking about it.
"You're not mad? What have you got going on that involves nine hours?" Bill asked looking at the clock which read five past three.
Harleen blushed "I've got a date with a really great guy."
"Hey congrats." Bill smiled pleased for her "Anyone we know?"
"Bruce Wayne. He's asked me to be his second at his Gala tonight." Harleen stated. Bill looked at Harleen with an 'I don't believe you' grin.
"Pull the other one. Come on who is it?" Bill looked at her while she maintained her resolve, then it dawned on Bill "Really Wayne: The Billionaire Playboy Philanthropist? Careful Harleen, that guy goes through women like Calendar Man goes through dates."
"He says he's out of that lifestyle. We've been going out ever since, the day after the Gala." Harleen said.
"What; with the picture out on the same day? That's something I'd expect Ivy to do not you!" Bill was worried "Imagine the gossip everyone will be saying!"
"I'll take it as an adult. I've learnt my mistake. I bet there've been hundreds of fan-girls who wanted to get with Bats." Harleen said making her point
"That may be true but they write it on a website, under an alias or something; not give the guy a full kiss at an open house Gala!" Bill exhaled
"Maybe they've forgotten about it?" Harleen asked beginning to question Bill's loyalties
"Trust me: when rich people find dirt on other rich people, they exploit it! I mean half the people on this city's rich list have skeletons in their closet and the other half has access to the house! The only exception is Wayne, besides all the women he's dated!" Bill had very low expectations to Rich people, but for some reason he liked.
"Why do you like Bruce so much? You've not got a…thing for him, have you?" Harleen asked hoping to keep Bruce to Herself
"What? God, no! I used to work at Wayne Enterprises. He gave me my armour job, which I was able to make your suit. And to be honest he was the first member of the board to be on my side when I was shipped off to Arkham!" Bill defended
"Good, because that'd be awkward if you two met…" Harleen nudged Bill.
"No, I won't steal your boyfriend Doc." Bill sighed "So, you're going through with this?" Harleen nodded at Bill. "Okay. What are you going to do?"
To be continued
I hope you've enjoyed reading this chapter as I have writing it.
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The next chapter coming up soon.
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