Epilogue

6 years later…

"You seem nervous."

"I'm not nervous."

"Then why aren't we moving?"

"I'm just… not used to this car."

"It's not a car."

"Well, whatever."

Lucy, now sixteen and a newly licensed driver, was sitting behind the wheel of the vehicle she had affectionately called the Batmobile since she was a child. Bruce sat in the passenger next to her with a patient face.

"I've seen you scale eight story buildings, Luce. You have a black belt. I think you can handle this.", Bruce said with a tilt of his head. "Press the ignition."

Lucy frowned and sighed. She reached forward and pressed the simple button and the monster of a machine roared to life. He showed her how to shift and a moment later she mustered up the courage to tap the gas. Before she realized it, they were speeding down the dirt roads that wound around the back of the Wayne estate. She screamed initially, but then she couldn't stop giggling. Bruce gently guided her until she got the hang of the basic controls. He turned to her and smiled. The sound of her laughter was music to his ears.

OOOOOOOOO

That night, after a quick shower, Lucy got ready for bed. Summer was coming to an end and she was getting ready to go back to school the following day. She would finally be an upper classmen at the private institution that Bruce paid an arm and a leg for. The summer had been grueling for her. Not only was it one of the hottest in recent history, but Bruce had worked her hard during her training.

When he introduced the idea of "Bat Girl" to her a couple of years ago, it seemed like a fun idea. He was cautious about it. He wanted her to have plenty of time to think about it before she decided. He said he needed an assistant now that he was getting older. She scoffed at the reason because, sure, he was getting older, but he wasn't old. He was the strongest, most powerful man she knew. She admired her father more than anyone else in the world.

Of course, he wasn't her biological father, but she didn't really think of that very often. As far as she was concerned, he was her dad and she loved him that way. He worked her hard physically as she prepared for her new life as a female vigilante who would someday, hopefully, pick up where he left off when he was ready to retire. He still punished her when she did stupid stuff like skip school, smoke a cigarette, or talk back, but he was fair and empathetic. They had a fairly normal relationship other than the sparring and weapon training.

She knew who her real father was and she hated him. She had not seem him in person since he day he stole her mother from her. The Joker could rot as far as she was concerned and she could never understand why Bruce let him live. After all he had taken from them… he didn't deserve to breath the same air as the rest of humanity. Although she did not admit it aloud, she hoped that after her full transformation into Batgirl and after she was strong enough, she could kill The Joker. Bruce would be mad. "We don't kill anyone if we don't have to otherwise we're no different than them.", he had said. She thought that was stupid, but she kept the sentient to herself for the time being.

She crawled into bed and turned on the bedside lamp. She didn't feel ready to sleep. The impending school year was exciting, but still made her jittery. It was times like this that she wished her mother were around. Bruce was a great parent, but between him and Alfred, they significantly lacked the type of motherly guidance a teenaged girl needed. She hadn't seen Harley other than on the news from time to time. She didn't seem to be overly involved in The Joker's antics other than assisting in breaking him out of Arkham Asylum every couple of years. She wondered if she would ever come face to face with Harley Quinn once she was actively helping Batman.

She opened a small drawer in her nightstand and pulled out a journal. She didn't write much, but she sometimes documented strange dreams or doodled when she couldn't sleep. There were movie stubs, notes from friends, and polaroids stuck between the pages. In the very back was a worn piece of paper that she had read more times than she could count. She received the letter from her mother about a week after she ran off with The Joker.

My sweet Lucy,

I know you are confused. I am too.

I just want you to know that no matter what others will try to tell you or what you will try to tell yourself, I love you. I have always loved you. I will always love you. Love makes you do crazy things.

You are right where you need to be. You are safe and cared for. Bruce is a good man.

I'm on a different path than you… and that's okay. You'll see when you're older.

I'm sorry things had to be this way. I'm so sorry. Just know that I think I'm doing the right thing for both of us even though it's hard.

I hope you can forgive me, but I understand if you can't.

I'm watching out for you. Be safe.

Love, Mommy

The paper was tearstained and crumpled. More than once she threw it in the trash only to desperately fish it out again a few minutes later. She longed to receive a second letter, but it never came. She didn't hate her mother. She missed her. She was angry at her, but she just wanted her back. If The Joker was gone, maybe she could get her back one day. She tenderly folded the letter and slipped it back inside the journal. She turned off the light and fell asleep.

OOOOOOO

Two years later….

"Just hold still, Puddin'. He gotcha good." Harley was carefully stitching up the gaping wound on The Joker's shoulder after a bat-shaped blade found itself embedded there. Her black rimmed glasses were perched on her nose as she straddled his lap. "There. All done" She topped the cut with a kiss and leaned back to look him in the eye. His makeup was runny and his hair was sweaty. Something about him coming back from a hard nights work always got her worked up.

He took a swig of whisky and frowned when the bottle was empty. He threw the bottle on the table in front of him. "He's got, uh, a helper now.", The Joker said as he gauged her reaction.

"What do you mean?"

He licked his mangled lips. "A girl. A babybat."

Harley thought for a moment. "Oh."

"Yeah. Oh." He paused. "I didn't touch her." He hated that he had to answer to Harley about what he did and did not do, but he wasn't about to not keep his word. Not about this.

"She a good fighter?", Harley asked timidly.

"She single-handedly caught two of my guys. Wrapped 'em up nice and tight. Not bad for a lit-tle girl."

"I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said about her.", Harley said with a small smile.

The Joker let out a breathy chuckle. "She's gonna be trouble though."

Harley grinned. "Yeah?"

"You, uh, Quinzel women are all trouble."

OOOOOOO

Harley found herself watching the news every night just waiting for a glimpse of the new "girl-wonder" Gotham was talking about. Finally, it happened. There was news footage of Batman and the newly introduced Batgirl after a museum robbery was foiled. She found herself glued to the television screen. She was beautiful. Her blonde hair was wild and flowed from behind her black mask. She wore a suit similar to Batman's and it showed off her athletic, yet slender body. Harley touched the screen and then the footage ended and the anchors moved on to the next story.

With a tear in her eye she thought, My girl's a hero.

A/N: Aaaaand that's a wrap! Thank you again to all my readers!! I love you all so much! You've been so great and supportive. This story was a very big exercise in writing for me. I'm happy to have it completed, but a little sad too. So yeah, Harley and The Joker are still together. She does not take an active role in his scheming because that is not really the life she chose nor is it part of her character. He seems to understand that and does not push her. They are just satisfied to be together. I like to imagine that Bruce has taken an interest in Selina Kyle at this point, but there was not really an appropriate way to include that. So maybe he has found love again. Like I said in the last chapter, I may make a series of one shots for this story: it would include some details from when it was just Jack and Harley, some things from his descent into madness and possibly some future Harley/Lucy interactions – if there is interest in that kind of thing. I'm going to be taking a break for a while, but I will be getting back to the Reflection Series by the end of the year. If you haven't checked that out – it's very, very different than this story and quite dark. That series is about of the way completed. If you've read all this, drop a comment and let me know how you liked it!