Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, DC does.
A/N:
Lady Cocoa: Thank you for reviewing!
The corners of the Joker's lips faintly faltered when Harley held the kid close.
"You're like a gift-wrapped teddy bear!" screamed Harley, rocking Bonnie in her arms. The girl lost color in her face in the squeezing grip, but Harley didn't seem to notice. "Oh, Mistah J, this is the bestest present I've ever gotten! Thank you so much!"
"Yes, yes, Harley; now just let—"
"Aw!" interrupted Harley, picking the mortified Bonnie up. "Her eyes are so big and sweet! Like those two big saucers I glued onto my stuffed animal when I was five—"
"Yes, she most likely looks like that because you're choking her to death!" the Joker spat. Harley made a bewildered face at him, before she quirked her head to the side.
"What do you mean, Mistah J?" said Harley.
The Joker groaned, "Take another look at her, Harley."
Harley did, and she saw the delirious purple face of the girl she was hugging.
"Oh..." said Harley, elongating the word. She sounded more like she was in wonder of the girl's pain than she was sorry for causing it, but her jester hat and smile drooped with slight apology.
Eyebrows creasing, Harley softened her clasp on Bonnie, and the girl dropped to the floor. Bonnie immediately stepped back in shock, snatching a mouthful of air. She really wanted to take more than just a mouthful, but she didn't want to look melodramatic in front of the villainous couple. She already looked weak enough for nearly fainting in Harley's hug, so she didn't want to risk looking worse.
Despite her worries, Bonnie barely noticed that the two seemed to ignore her reaction. They didn't look like they were in disgust of her; in fact, they looked happy that she was there.
This was enough to make Bonnie more uncomfortable, and she took a more noticeable step back. Harley's feet followed her step.
Bonnie's heart constricted, her train of thought close to derailing again.
Oh, no, I've done it, Bonnie thought. Is she suspicious of me now? Why is she coming closer? Is she going to attack me? I mean, she doesn't look like she has a weapon on her right now, but she definitely has a lot of strength, and—oh!
As if in response to her thoughts, Harley's arm lunged at hers, and Bonnie's chest exploded.
I can't believe I jinxed it! she thought. I can't believe that they're going to do this now. I know they're going to kill me—I knew that they were going to kill me sooner or later—BUT THIS CAN'T HAPPEN NOW!
Bonnie was about to scream until the harlequin rose her arm in the air, like she was displaying her.
"Doesn't she look so CUTE?" exclaimed Harley, her polished eyes shining. She took Bonnie's other hand and—like her dance partner—twirled her around fast enough that Harley couldn't see the girl's face flush.
What is going on? Bonnie thought. As she spiraled, she looked at the Joker for some elaboration. The Joker, however, just continued to confuse her more, but his hand thankfully motioned Harley to stop twirling the girl.
"Why, yes, Harley, you think so, too?" the Joker said, his words sugar and ice on Bonnie's back. "And get a load of her, she's shy, too."
Bonnie would have quietly disagreed, but she was too distracted by Harley, who was now squealing with glee and gripping the girl's hands hard enough to turn them numb. The softening blush on Bonnie's face was enough to make Harley dive at her for a second suffocating hug.
"SHY? Aw, don't worry, Miss Harley here is a sweetheart!" Harley exclaimed, goggling lovingly at the the girl. Bonnie blinked in disbelief.
Then, rather abruptly, the woman freed her yet again, but in a stumble instead of out of her free will. Confused, Bonnie tilted her head before freezing at the sight of the Joker holding Harley by her jester hat. The man's eyes scorched through both of the girls, even if Bonnie wasn't in his line of vision.
"You think she's cute, don't you?" the Joker said quietly. Harley gulped.
"Yeah, sir..."
"Yes, sir," the Joker corrected. "Now stop with the affection."
Harley sagged.
"Sorry, Puddin'," she murmured. Eyes flashing, the Joker pulled her hat closer to him with brute force.
"…And don't call me Puddin'." Bonnie shivered at how dark his voice went, as did Harley.
"Right, sir," Harley said, feebly chuckling. The woman swallowed the betraying bob in her neck, and her eyes shot to both the Joker and Bonnie.
Bonnie looked at the woman in silence. She was bewildered as to why the Joker was being so intimidating towards Harley when she had just hugged her, but Bonnie knew she couldn't say anything. She would have been seen as going out of line, and the girl couldn't imagine what worse things the Joker would have inflicted onto her for doing that.
"So, Harley, Bonnie," the Joker introduced. "Bonnie, Harley."
All of Bonnie's thoughts were suddenly snapped away, and Harley was giggling like everything was honky-dory. Still gawking at her, Harley Quinn carelessly twirled Bonnie's hair, which went overlooked by the girl.
"Bonnie? It's not Arleen, but I LIKE it!" She stuck some of her tongue out, wagging her red and black hat like no tomorrow. "And ya have the same hair color as RED! Do you happen to like—?"
"Harley," the Joker growled again.
Harley squeaked, "Sorry, Mistah J!"
The man scowled, giving Harley a final glare. His attention finally landed on Bonnie. After quickly examining her expression, a smug smirk tugged at his face.
"Let's go to the family living room…" he said, looming over Bonnie and patting her head. Bonnie stiffened.
Family living room? Bonnie thought. That either meant that a) I am actually and honestly mistaking a house for a warehouse, or b) this is a warehouse or some other place, and they made the inside look like a house. Or...not. Or it's a code-name for something, like one of those torture chambers I've seen on TV.
It didn't matter, though. Since she was going to die either way, anything coming her way wouldn't end well.
So why wasn't she trembling? Quaking? Why wasn't she expressing any of that?
Why did…why did she feel like everything was going to be alright?
And that was when her hand was shocked by frigid wires and trapped by…oh, it was him.
Bonnie's eyes darted around when she saw the man's bared teeth as he clenched her hand. She tried to avert her gaze, but his smile was strangely...welcoming?
No, it wasn't. It couldn't have been.
But the more she thought about it, the more violently her brain was panicking. Oddly enough, though, her heart fluttered.
The three silently walked. It wasn't really walking, though, and the silence wasn't necessarily pin-drop deafening.
In fact, there was no silence at all. Harley bounced around on the creaking floor numerous times, and the Joker was murmuring evil plans and things. The only silent one in the hall was Bonnie, and even she wanted to say something.
Harley began to whistle a tune that sounded like "Hush, Little Baby". At first, her whistling resembled a delicate bluebird, until the blowing slowly escalated into a sharp kettle trill. It was clearly affecting the Joker, and Bonnie's eyes wandered to the vein popping in his head.
"Harley, do me a favor, and shut up!" he hissed. Harley happily nodded.
"'Kay, Mistah J."
"I TOLD YOU TO SHUT UP!" the Joker roared at Harley, tightening his hold on Bonnie. Bonnie unconsciously thought that that might have been a good thing, since she was very close to running away. It would have been impossible, though, especially since they finally made it to the staircase.
Her arm jerked, and she immediately wished it hadn't.
What if I let it all out? Bonnie thought, walking down the stairs. What if he felt that?
She was right about the latter. Another spidery hand crawled down the arm that twitched, and the iron grip on her hand was still present.
"There, there…" the Joker whispered, making something prickle out of Bonnie. She didn't know what it was, but she felt relieved having that quiet emotion come out.
Bonnie didn't know if she was relieved to make it down the stairs, though. Looking around, the girl took note of the high windows, scattered packages, and the grand feel of the place.
So it is a warehouse? Bonnie thought, astonished. Then why did the upper floor have bedrooms? Isn't this supposed to be…a warehouse? And why do I smell Chinese food?
Bonnie's attention turned to an awkwardly placed table centered in the middle of the wide space, with the plates and utensils all set up. There was even food prepared.
The Joker released Bonnie from his sharp grip.
"We're having Chinese food for breakfast, kid, so you get what you get, and don't get upset! And did I say hello to you at all today? Konnichiwa!"
"That's Japanese, Puddin'!"
"That's the POINT, Harley!" He took off one of his gloves, ready to use it at a particular target. Alarmed, Bonnie's foot unconsciously stepped on her other foot, creating a creak the floor.
Then, the Joker halted. He gave no one in particular a bizarre look.
"Oh, silly me, the kid's here!" he laughed, palming his face in his head. "And there are kids reading this! We wouldn't want them traumatized, would we, Harls? The author wouldn't allow it!"
Harley nodded and wore a cheesy grin, but it didn't convince Bonnie that she knew what he was talking about.
The Joker slanted his arrogant posture towards the henchwoman, but his demeanor morphed into a time-bomb again.
"RIGHT, HARLEY?" the Joker yelled. Unfortunately for Harley, he screamed right in her ear.
Harley flinched in the same way Bonnie did, and she squeaked a, "Yes, sir."
The Joker's posture softened to calm again, until he finally leaned close enough that his lips were touching Harley's ear.
"Now don't you try any funny business with me with this kid, kay?"
Harley moved away to get a full look of him. Like Bonnie, she could only see a void curtain in the Joker's eyes. They both could have said something, but they didn't.
The Joker smirked. He sharply twisted his neck towards Bonnie, whose eyes wandered to the floor. The insanity in the Clown Prince's eyes became even more evident.
"Oh, gracious, how could I forget about you, little one?" The Joker's voice whipped back to his more merry, patronizing tone. Bonnie was about to stop short in making eye contact with him, but she decided not to, in fear that she would lose her head if she did.
This time, perhaps for the better, the man wasn't looking directly at her. He was looking at the Chinese food right behind her.
"Oh, yes, we have to eat. Well, let's dig in!" the Joker exclaimed.
Before Bonnie knew it, she was sitting down, with a plate of chicken and dumplings right in front of her. The other two were gobbling it down.
They didn't poison it, did they? the girl thought, as she cut a dumpling with her fork. Her eyes darted to the Joker, who was across from her. His red, curved lips were in its usual position. Bonnie nodded to herself, already about to answer her own question.
He did.
She picked put the fork with the dumpling on it. Despite the fact that she knew it was coming, she was—to say the least—infuriated of how much of an idiot she had been in the past week. Why was she such an idiot, anyway? Why did she reveal herself to him? Why did she go out in the first place? Heck, why did she even think that she could take on a large group of people on a sidewalk?
Raising the fork to her mouth, her ragged breathing gave her emotions away. It did not help that her, um, captor was right in front of her.
She took a bite. She didn't know what her last thoughts were, as her hearing and vision were gone almost instantly.