"J?" Harley asked as she stared up at the ceiling with Joker lying beside her.
"Hmm?"
"What... what, umm..."
"Come on, Harley. I don't have all day." He said as he moved on his side to face her.
"What... what happened to your parents. Your... your real parents? You've never... actually... told me about them or what happens to-"
"They were killed." He said simply.
"Oh, J, I'm so sorry."
"Don't be."
"What... who killed them?" She asked delicately.
"If I tell you, you can't freak out." He said, she nodded. "I killed them."
She chuckled. "J, you're not funny. You wouldn't kill your own parents."
She noticed that he wasn't laughing and her smile dropped. "You... you killed your parents?"
He nodded. "I told you not to freak out, Harley."
"I'm... I'm not freaking out!"
Harley knew Joker did bad things, she'd even assumed a few times that the girl getting food poisoning wasn't an accident. She guessed that his 'business' was some shady thing. But she never expected Joker to have killed his own parents. His own blood.
"Why, J?" She asked quietly.
"You don't wanna know, Harley. My family... was messed up."
"No, J." She said sitting up. "I wanna know."
He sat up too. "My father was a drunk who used to beat me and my mother. My mother was... well, a drunk too. Who didn't care what happened to be either."
"J..." Harley couldn't find the right words. She never knew anything about this. She wrapped her arms around his next and practically tackled him. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have asked."
"Yeah, you should've. Cause, now you know."
"So, your 'business', you, like, kill people?"
"Well, yeah. Sometimes. If needed. But sometimes I just do it for the laughs. But business is well business. I sell things, buy things, make profit. I don't make loss. Trust me, you don't wanna be here if I do. I lend money to someone and if they don't pay me back, they're dead. It's simple."
"So... you kill people?"
"Jeez, Harley. Slow much? It doesn't bother you, does it?"
"I dunno, J. What if you get caught?"
"I won't, Pooh. Trust me, I'm here now, ain't I?" Joker said. "No one would try and catch me. I'm a 'dangerous psychopath'... apparently." He chuckled. "You still love me, don't ya, Harley?"
"Of course, I do, Puddin'. Umm... it's just... being with you... would that mean I'd have to kill."
"Not until you're ready, Pooh. You've still got tones of time."
She nodded but stayed silent.
"Come on, let's go get you some breakfast."
[...]
Harley walked up to Joker's office door and knocked lightly. She poked her head in and said,
"I'm going out now with Selina and Ed now."
"Uh-huh." He said without looking up. He seemed stressed.
She stared at him for a little while before backing out of the room and closing the door lightly. She left to meet Edward and Selina. She smiled at Frost on her way out.
Selina, Ed and Harley were all sitting in a small coffee shop: this was the place were most of their school hung out, usually. Today it was practically empty.
"Guys, I've got something to tell, sort of ask you... and you have to swear to me that you'll never tell anybody ever. You can't tell Ivy or Harvey or anyone okay? And Selina you can't tell Bruce."
"Jesus, Harley. What is it?" Selina asked as she set down her coffee mug.
"Well, ya see, you know Joker?"
"Yes." Selina and Edward said at the same time.
"Well, he told me something and... I don't know how to feel about it. But Selina you can't tell Bruce or any of our friends and Ed... you can't tell your other self."
"I have other friends." He said.
"No you don't." Selina replied.
"Shush. So, he told me that... umm... he killed his parents." She said so fast that it was barley audible.
Edward choked on his drink. "What?"
"He killed his parents."
"Wait, slow down. He - your boyfriend - killed his own parents." Selina said slowly.
"And he kills other people for fun too." Harley said.
Edward chuckled. "And does he want to kill you?"
"No... I don't think so. He told me he wouldn't hurt me."
"Well, then I say go for it." Ed said and Selina gave him a weird look. "What? So, what? He killed a few people I'm sure he had good reasons, right Harley?"
"Yeah, he did."
"Harley he sounds dangerous. You have to tell the police." Selina said.
"No! Selina I told you because I trust you." Harley said. "I love him, Selina. Do you know what that's like?"
"Yeah, I do."
"And if you found out that Bruce had some type of double life, wouldn't you ask your friends for advice?"
"Yeah. I guess, but Harley after you told me-"
"Us." Ed interrupted.
"Us. Now you know what he's capable of. Ivy said she didn't trust him. Now I don't know if I do either."
"Come on, Don't me like that, Cat."
"I just want to make sure you're making the right decision. If you end it with him, what'll happen?" She asked.
"I'll be heartbroken. One night he never came back and I just burst into tears because I thought something happened to him. Leaving him is not an option. I love him too much." Harley stated.
"Can I just point that I was promised a-"
"Shut up, Ed." Selina snapped. "So, if you can't leave him... then you stay with him. But if he ever hurts you I want you to call me and I'll be right there to rip his head off. Are you really still staying with him?"
"Yeah." Harley nodded. "He won't hurt me though, I'm sure of it."
"I'm sure his parents were sure too."
She shook her head. "His parents were awful people."
"Stay at mine tonight, Harley, please."
"Sure. Tonight." Harley smiled. "But don't tell Ivy about what I told both of you."
"What did you tell me, Harley? Is it because I'm, well, the most intelligent person... in Gotham?"
Harley chuckled. "Yeah and the fact that we're the only friends you have including Harvey and Ivy."
"That's not true. Everyone likes me."
"You keep telling yourself that, Ed." Selina smiled.
