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 15
(Harleen's POV)
Bat-Shard entered the mind of Tim first; she had to guess what was inside that young mind of his that made him susceptible to the machine. Upon entering it looked like Gotham, but it was more futuristic like something out of a comic book.
"Huh…this is what Tim thinks? Can't wait to tell him about this when he wakes up." Harley smiled
"Harley focus…you need to get Sleepy Charming and the Munchkin out of dreamland." Bill voice resonated
"Bill? You're still focused in on this? I thought you'd be burning Riddler again or smashing Strange's brains open." Bat-Shard said with concern.
"You're still hung up at that? Look, I'll tell you all when we're out of here…right now you have to get Robin and Bats." Bill's voice explained
"Okay…hey, there's a large crowd gathering by the town centre." Bat-Shard oversaw.
"Good place to start." Bill explained
As she used her grapple gun she saw that Tim was grown up and Dick was in place of Bruce where they would usually stand. Bruce and Harley were much older; they were smiling and clapping with the rest of the crowd.
"This is what Tim dreams of? Not zombies, werewolves or beating up Joker?" Harley asked
"Young adolescent boys Harley…not all of them are the same." Bill resonated
"…And so we dedicate this new statue to our heroes: Batman and Red Robin! These symbols of peace and protection will stand and inspire the new generation in their history here in Gotham." The mayor said revealing a Batman and Robin statue where their costumes were updated and much more impressionable. "And thanks to Mr and Mrs Wayne who graciously donated the funds to make this happen. A round of applause for Bruce and Harleen Wayne!" the dream versions bowed and thanked them.
"It's Harley, actually." Harley's doppelgänger said smiling
"Oh my apologies, Mrs Wayne." The mayor laughed without malice.
Bat-Shard saw that ha head on approach would be dangerous; a thousand of those fakes versus Tim and her on their own…it'd be suicide. But then Solomon Grundy crashed through the doors of Gotham City Bank with an army of hired goons.
"Time to suit up!" the Fake Dick said
"Right!" Tim said as they snuck off during the confusion
"*roar* Grundy take gold statue! Grab statue!" Grundy growled like a brain-dead zombie (come to think of it aren't all zombies brain-dead?)
"Good distraction…now where's Tim?" Bat-Shard said observing the centre
Through the curtains Red Robin and Batman appeared and struck terror into the goons, Grundy wasn't impressed "Grundy smash Bat and Bird!" and as he roared he raced towards the Dynamic Duo but they retaliated using their gadgets against Grundy and their goons.
"You get Grundy; I've got these clowns." Red Robin said
"Got it! What the…?" Batman said seeing Bat-Shard tonfa hitting two goons
"Bat-Shard? But…how, I…?" Red Robin asked
"Robin, this is a dream! It's all fake; Strange was after your identity! If you don't wake up you're trapped here!" Bat-Shard said taking down the dream-goons one at a time.
"Robin, she's the fake! Take her down!" Batman, Bruce and Harley said together.
"No. Think about it! Ask them for your name!" Bat-Shard told him.
"My…my name…?" Red Robin asked
"Of course we know your name! It's Tom" Batman said
Red robin realised that it was all fake now; he ripped off his persona as an adult and reverted back to his real twelve year old self. "Argh! Damn it! Bat-Shard Let's go!"
"No!" the fakes said aiming after them.
"Let's fly!" Bat-Shard said using their grapple guns to escape.
"*groan* I can't believe I fell for that…it seemed so real." Robin groaned
"Don't beat yourself up Robin. I fell for it too…Where did you wake up? Because that's the way out!" Bat-Shard said reassuring him
"My bedroom…that's where I woke up." Robin said
"Starting to see a pattern her Harley…" Bill's voice responded
"Bill! Where've you been?" Harley asked
"Making sure that Edward and Hugo don't interfere…" Bill said darkly
Bat-Shard and Robin landed inside the Manor; the doors shattered open "You didn't …did you?" Bat-Shard asked
"Don't worry I didn't kill them. I just tied them up and left them hanging on the outside of the police station." Bill reassured them
"How long did that take?" Robin asked
"Two hours." Bill replied
"Two hours? You were gone for like five minutes!" Bat-Shard blurted out
"Time works differently in dreams…five minutes in a dream could mean hours in real life…it's like with Robin saying: "I'll be five minutes!" And he's a half hour still playing on his games or training." Bill explained
"Makes sense…see you on the other side." Robin said with both him and Bat-Shard waking up. "ARGH!" Robin screamed rubbing his temples
"Hurts doesn't it? Strange always made sure you were awake when his sessions were over." Bill explained
"Crazy guy…what's his game?" Robin asked
"He knew of Harley being Bat-Shard…he wanted to exploit it. He wanted to know who Batman was…and he found out." Bill explained darkly "Riddler wanted to play his game and then expose Batman to the Underworld. That way he could crush Bruce and Batman in one blow."
"That's what they were after…How did you figure it out?" Bat-Shard woke up rubbing her mind
"Bruce figured it out; the answer was hidden in plain sight: I dream of a Strange machine. Edward never could control his exposure impulse…that would explain why he got two years in Blackgate for indecent exposure." Bill joked.
"What about Bruce? Is he up?" Harley asked
"Not yet. Orcale is setting up a broadcast signal with Strange's machine…hopefully the plan will work." Bill spoke
"Wait Oracle…what broadcast?" Bat-Shard asked
"One to make sure Bat-Shard and Harley Quinn are never the same…glad to hear your voice again Harley." Oracle said with relief
"Wait, huh? What do you mean by that?" Robin asked
"Strange knew Harley was Bat-Shard and he knew about her rampage episode, he told members of the underworld who want Batman dead and found the way to get to him through Harley…" Bill started to explain while finding Bruce's dream frequency
"So now every bad guy knows who I am now…Bat-Shard is Harley Quinn…I was careless." Harley said with disappointment looking at an opened Shard-Star, the symbol saying: I throw away the Clown and reveal the Bat.
"Don't beat yourself up Harl…crazies like Strange live for the discovery. It's the thrill for them, when they know their enemy then they can think like them." Ivy's voice came over the intercom
"Hey Red…good to hear from you again…but it's still my fault." Harley said
"The best you can do is: learn from this mistake and evolve from it. Become a better person and a better hero." Ivy explained
"Behind that Venus body is a magnificent brain…God, I love that woman…did I just say that out loud?" Bill asked
"Yes!" the other agreed.
"Err…anyway I've located Bruce's frequency…Ready for round three Harley?" Bill asked
"I guess but I'm going to need backup. Robin you stay here and keep an eye on things, Bill I want you to help." Bat-Shard asked
"What but…okay…Robin…make sure this thing stays running, if it craps out on us we're trapped in Bat's subconscious." Bill said warning Tim of the consequences.
"Don't worry Oracle and I have got this!" Tim said with total understanding.
"Good…come on Alice, we've got to go down the rabbit hole." Bill joked.
"That's not funny Bill." Bat-Shard looked at him with a disapproving look then getting back into the dream machine, followed by Bill.
(Inside Bruce's Mind)
As they entered Batman's mind they were surrounded by a dark alley, in front of a cinema which read for the headlining movie: The Mask of Zorro
"Is this Bruce's dream…because if it is…I don't like where it's going."
"I know this place…I read the headline when I was doing research in Gotham Library. This is the day that…quick hide!" Bill realised where they were and hid themselves amongst the shadowed areas.
"Wow that was great! Take that evil doer! The blade of Zorro!" a young lad of eight said waving an imaginary blade around.
"Careful Thomas, we don't want trouble from the Mask of the Bat." A young woman with black hair and a beautiful blue diamond and gold necklace said smiling, holding a young girl in her arms.
"Is that…me?" Bat-Shard whispered
"Or what Bruce's interpretation of you is…we spent too long working on you and Robin…the dream of you and him being married and the memory of his parents has merged together…and I don't want to see what happens to you and him." Bill hushed with a worrying tone.
"Harley, Thomas *hush* Barbara's asleep. We don't want to wake her do we?" a more mature Bruce smiled whispering while stroking his daughter's hair.
'He named them…like I named them' Bat-Shard thought. "Is it fate?" she whispered
"Is what fate" Bill whispered as the Wayne family moved through Crime Alley
"In my dream…my son and daughter, they were named the same as what Bruce is dreaming of…are we really meant to be?" Bat-Shard whispered
As they moved inside Crime Alley the family were approached by an unknown mugger. "I'll take that necklace from the Lady!" he said aiming a gun at the Wayne parents.
(Tim's POV)
"Oh man…oh man…oh man! Batman's readings are spiking! Oracle something's wrong!" Robin said panicking.
"Oh God…it must be a traumatic memory…his parents…" Oracle came to a realisation.
"If that means, what I think it means…Bat-Shard and Impact don't have long!"
(Inside Bruce's Mind)
The mugger shot and killed the fake son, daughter and wife. Bruce attacked the mugger beating him to death.
"I hope that never happens in real life…wait what's going on?" Harley cried
"Bruce's psyche…it must be breaking because his family is dead. Go to him know!" Bill explained
Bruce let me mugger bleed out on the streets, still alive…Bruce held his wife in his arms and cried hoping to hear her voice one last time. "Harley…Harley I'm so sorry…I'm sorry I lost you…I lost all of you!"
"You didn't lose me…" Harley said removing her hood and mask, she made Bruce look at her eyes as she gently held his face.
"Harley…how…?" Bruce asked
"It's just a bad dream Bruce…this is not going to happen to us…" as Harley spoke Bruce stood up dropping the fake as it shattered into a million fragments of glass. The surroundings turned into Wayne Manor in the living room. A fake Bruce was sitting with the newspaper in an armchair, the fake Harley was weaving a plush toy of a harlequin with a bat smile and the two children were peacefully asleep on the settee with a blanket over them. "This is our future…you saved me…let me save you." and she kissed Bruce tenderly making him wake up.
(Real life)
"Argh!" Bruce Bill and Harley screamed waking up. Tim covered his ears to protect himself from the screams.
"Guess Bill was right…Strange does have strange tastes in therapy." Tim said jokingly
"*Groan* That was not my idea of a good sleep." Bruce groaned
"Tell me about it." Harley agreed
"Right that's stage one…Ready for stage two Oracle?" Bill groaned
"Already uploaded…signal is already sent. All of the Underworld will be getting a revised history lesson." Oracle sounded happy
"What are you talking about?" Bruce asked rubbing his head "Oof!" he got a tackle hug from Harley followed by a kiss on his lips.
"You are a wonderful man Bruce Wayne." Harley said lovingly
"Ha…thanks." Bruce accepted the kiss and followed it by a hug.
"Oh get a room you two. I'm twelve; I don't need to see this!" Tim said covering his eyes.
"Tim when you have a girl in your life, you'll understand." Bill said putting his hand on Tim's shoulder "Come on, let's leave this nightmare!" Indicating the door
"Wait let's destroy this thing, we can't let Riddler or Strange get their hands on it again." Bruce said
"Wait…I could use this for parts…you never know; I might make some new tech!" Bill said trying to salvage the machine.
"Maybe you should be named: Scavenger, instead of Impact." Tim joked
"Don't you start." Bill stared at the ward with a wry smile
As they spoke and collected Strange's Dream Machine; the broadcast travelled to all the members of the Underworld: Penguin, Zsasz, Riddler, Strange, Scarecrow, Freeze…every lowlife, mafia gang leader, underling, goon and madman in: Arkham, Blackgate all around Gotham they forgot about Harleen Quinzel being Harley Quinn and Bat-Shard. This seemed like a happy ending…but there was the issue of the internet and all the digital data involving Harley being her old alter ego. After getting the Dream Machine back to the Bat-Cave; Bill and Barbara redesigned it at a new super computer, used mainly for Barbara and detective work with Gotham PD.
"Okay now…three more seconds and done." Barbara said with the information on the internet being re-written all on Harley Quinn and Harleen Quinzel.
"Now…this is a fresh start!" Harley said hugging Bruce, which he reciprocated.
"Why do we remember; when the rest of the world doesn't?" Dick asked
"'Cause, Barbara excluded our wavelengths: The Bat-Family, Commissioner Gordon, Ivy…others." Bill said
"So we're the only ones who know my old life?" Harley asked
"Of course, we don't want Crane or Strange being all 'buddy-buddy' with us." Bill explained
"Speaking of Crane…how about you tell us your time in Arkham!" Dick said "You never gave us a straight answer."
"Do we have to get into that now?" Bill asked
The others looked at Bill with a "We're not letting you get out of this one" look.
"*Sigh* fine…but don't give me any gripe when you hear about it." Bill reluctantly agreed
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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