"Since you're here, you might as well join us," Bruce suggested to Harley, waving her over to join the group.

Harley left her spot on the steps and skipped over to where the three men were waiting.

"Hey, Robin," Harley said in greeting to the dark haired youth standing near Bruce and Alfred.

"You tell her my identity too?" Dick demanded of Bruce.

"Batman had a partner back in the day, and since you're here talking to him, I guessed," Harley admitted. "You're the one who confirmed it, just now."

"This is what I'm talking about," Dick insisted. "The longer she's here, the more she learns, and the more dangerous she becomes."

"It's my call," Bruce said resolutely as he stood from his chair. He was a good foot taller than his former sidekick, and the added height made him imposing. "This is my cave, my city, and my life. You walked away from all of it when you went solo."

Bruce sighed, clearly not wanting an argument.

"Dick," Bruce began again in a gentler tone. He placed a hand on Dick's shoulder. "How much darkness do we encounter on this crusade of ours, and how few opportunities do we have to be genuinely happy, not just faking it for the cameras? Are you really going to oppose my chance at an actual life?"

Bruce stepped away and moved over to Harley, putting his arm around her shoulders. She leaned up against him, melting into his embrace.

"I've been thinking about this a great deal over the past few weeks," Bruce explained. "Professional athletes can only do what they do for so long before it starts to take its toll. I don't know how many years I can be Batman. When I finally hang up my cape, I don't want broken bones and a host of bad memories to be the only thing I have left. How about you? What do you want for yourself?"

Dick remained silent and stared at the floor while in deep thought. After a long pause, he focused on Bruce.

"You're right. There aren't many options for us," Dick grimly acknowledged. "If this is a chance you think is worth taking, go ahead. I won't stand in your way."

Dick walked past them, heading for the exit.

"Don't go away mad," Harley spoke up.

"I'm not," he denied. "What Bruce said made a lot of sense, so I'm going to go talk to an old friend and see if I can find a life too."

"Give my best to Barbara," Bruce requested.

"Sure thing," Dick agreed. "See you later."

He hurried up the steps and vanished from the cave, leaving only Bruce, Harley, and Alfred behind.

"Barbara?" Harley questioned. "Would that be Batgirl?"

"Barbara Gordon is police commissioner Gordon's daughter," Bruce explained. "She and Dick were close during his years at college, but his time as Robin constantly got in the way. When he went solo, he'd already taken up my habit of being a loner."

"Do you think he can change now?" Harley asked.

"Why not?" Bruce questioned in return. He kissed Harley on the temple before whispering in her ear. "Work in progress, remember?"

Harley smiled as she turned in Bruce's embrace to face him. Her arms snaked around his ribs and pulled her snuggly against his muscular chest.

"I think I left the tea kettle on," Alfred said to no one in particular before making a discreet exit.

"Remind me again how you feel about me," Harley prompted, smiling widely.

"You're an absolute delight," Bruce told her. "And, I love having you around."

"I think I'm having some trouble with my ears," Harley teased. "Could you explain it to me again?"

"I love you," Bruce stated simply.

"Nope, still not getting the message," Harley said, her smile radiant.

Bruce smiled too before abandoning his verbal attempts at communication. He leaned in and kissed her; it was tentative at first, but Harley had enough enthusiasm for both of them.

"We should talk like this more often," Harley joked when the kiss ended.

The tender moment came to an abrupt halt when alarms began sounding. The overhead lights switched to foreboding red. Harley reluctantly turned her man loose in order for him to attend to the computer.

Bruce pushed a few buttons and turned a round knob. Displayed on the wall mounted screen was an overhead image of Gotham. As Bruce worked the controls, the image moved, scrolling over to the location of an island attached to Gotham by a single bridge.

"Arkham," Bruce growled. He switched to an internal view by tapping into the asylum's security network.

"How are you doing this?" Harley asked as the monitor display shifted to show a dozen different views from security cameras.

"After a few major breakouts, Arkham overhauled its security system," Bruce explained, searching for something in the cameras' line of sight. "I snuck in after the technicians had gone home and installed a few items of my own. I can keep watch over the entire facility from here."

"What seems to be the trouble today?" Harley asked.

Bruce found what he was looking for, but the grimace on his face showed it wasn't good. He turned a serious gaze toward Harley.

"Don't tell me," she assumed. "The Joker?"

"He's loose," Bruce confirmed.

"I'll get my cork gun," Harley replied, taking a step toward the exit before Bruce caught her by the wrist and stopped her.

"You got the drop in him last time because he wasn't expecting you to turn against him," Bruce pointed out. "He'll be watching for it this time."

"Don't matter," Harley said sweetly. "Maybe I'll break more than his nose this time."

"You can't come with me," Bruce denied.

"I know," Harley confirmed. "I'm dating Bruce Wayne. If I suddenly started palling around with Batman, your identity could come out. I'll get my weapons and wait at home for the good word you've taken him down."

She kissed him quickly on the lips. "Do be careful, dear."

Harley skipped out of the Batcave while humming a merry tune.

***

Harley had no trouble evading reporters after she left Wayne Manor as they couldn't drive their cars everywhere she could go on her motorcycle.

Reaching her apartment, she locked the door behind her and started digging through her closet for some of the arsenal she'd packed away. Her efforts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

Looking through the peephole, she saw the lens of a camera. Thinking a reporter or two somehow managed to find her anyway, she picked up her baseball bat and opened the door to run them off.

A blinding flash stole her vision the instant the door opened, and when her sight started to come back, Harley felt a chill run through her veins. The man with a camera was dressed in a dark purple suit and a wide brimmed hat of mustard yellow, but it was the pale skin and green hair Harley noticed the most.

The Joker grinned evilly from behind his camera. "Hello, sweetums. How about a nice, big smile?"