The shadow of a lion

Chapter 1: The Joker's Gotham.

What does "home" mean to you? A house, a flat, city or country? Most could answer that it's the place you grow up and love . Some people can say that it's the place where they had the best memories of their life . Others could say it was somebody's heart. Yeah, sounds too cliche. Or some can say the place where they feel safe. But as you know, there is no safety in Gotham. The name originated in England and meant, "homestead where goats are kept".I don't know if it's a good idea to call the citizens of Gotham goats, but surely it has some relation. The home place of homicidal maniacs , criminals and superheroes. But still, everyone is under the stead . Like animals. Or let's say , their lives are no different than animals. Or more clearly, their lives hold no meaning to The Joker. Yeah, it was The Joker's stead. The Joker's city. His property. Home with both good and bad memories . So in this city people differ from one another by their obedience. Some willingly agreed to be loyal. Some do not, which leads their life into a nightmare.

Surely you've heard the term,"stubborn as a goat". But there is a real goat in stead . Or should I say , was ? Harley Quinn.
Even The Joker admitted that about her. " She's the most stubborn person I've ever met in my life! Goddamn!"

But everything has a limit. And such stubbornness is not good for anyone. You know, if the vinegar is strong enough, it will break its own glass.
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The Joker was sitting at his desk looking through some pictures. It didn't matter to him whose the pictures they were . But I think you know who the most are of ? Of course Batman! His arch nemesis or his best friend according to The Joker's psychology. Anyway, he couldn't concentrate either. He was in a state of drunkenness. And yes, he was an alcoholic. If he doesn't drink after long he gets alcohol withdrawals. Or should I say , delirium ? Withdrawals of this type are called delirium tremors , or DT's. You know, when people get seizures and confusion because of it. Which affects the nervous system in a bad way of course.

This was different though . He has a gut feeling for no reason . I mean, this is not a very logical reason to drink for a person like The Joker , but he should admit that he was drinking too much since Harley left. No! Not left! He left her! He threw his bubbly girl out with no explanation. Well, at least he was generous enough to throw her items from the window for her. Fucking great J, thanks!

His aim was to get rid of the girl who was bugging him with her high pitched voice , pretty slim body, and a maniacal psyche like him. After their breakup he got confused. He didn't understand if he pleased or sad.

You know, when you grow tired of a relationship, but it is still comforting to have someone around you. Or in other words , it makes you feel relaxed not to be alone, even if you don't exchange a single word with them . When you want to tear up the world saying you don't need anyone , but later you get regretful because of it. Pretty similar to crying at home alone. No one is around to soothe you. Yeah, I don't recommend it. So please don't try this at home.

He was human after all. And like all humans , he tends to be needy for caring. For being loved and admired . The truth is, Harley was the only woman who was ever interested in him as a person . Some just liked his looks, the way he looks sexy in those expensive tuxedos or suits. Some were around for the money. And some were there just for power .Power is a drug .So it is pretty normal for those who wanted to share a power with him . Harley was the only one who obsessed over the clown . In her eyes he was a life victim as was the rest of Gotham . But she forgot that they were all victims of The Joker. I mean he had people loyal to him . First came Johnny Frost, his loyal gun for 17 years. He was there even before he was The Joker. The second was the twin which he found after 35 years. Jester. (Character belongs to Gangsta78, so if you don't know about Jester go immediately to check that story lol)
And why Jester? Because the twin willingly agreed to throw himself in the vat of toxic chemicals for his brother. Looks similar to Harley huh ?

For the business purposes. You know , when you have a lookalike and you are too lazy to go somewhere. So an identical twin was the perfect match for a lookalike.

And the others were criminals like Penguin, Two Face , Scarecrow , Bane and even Ivy! Because The Joker and Poison Ivy never got along with each other. Especially , in the whole Harley issue. Ivy knows how much of an asshole he could be, but it does make sense to be loyal. He has the power to protect Ivy's surroundings. And sure , she got the best plant house in the world.

The rest were The Joker's clowns who was afraid of him.
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The knock on the door woke him up from his deep thoughts.
" What?!" he snapped .But when he heard Frost's voice he said ,"Come in!"

"Boss, there is a serious problem! They say Miss Quinn got shot in her club. We have no information on if she is alive or not, but I think it's something related to Roman Sionis ".

And why Roman Sionis?

You know how the world works . The strongest ones survive and the weak get lost. The human body is designed to survive. When we think clearly , we see that even babies cry when they want to eat. Or when they don't feel safe they make those annoying noises. Later we grow up and mind develops. In conclusion, we find the simplest way to live . Some get that when they are young. Some don't, which means they face the real world a bit later. The other party just don't understand what kind of life they lead. But nobody is perfect . Or without mistakes . Mistakes are made so that we can learn something from them. It could be a pretty good life lesson, or just fucking up your life . Again depends on the person . So like I said , we are designed to survive . That's the reason life was given to us. Whether we like it or not.

Things weren't different for Gotham either. If you are strong enough , you get the power . Or some land . Who knows ? That's what Harley did. After killing Sionis she got the territory she deserved. His club. Some loyal people to be with her. And money of course . But if you want to be the most powerful one , you should eliminate the strongest. And that's not happening because no one is stronger than The Joker!

Flashback
" And who do you think you are ?! You worthless waste of space ! There's not a single bird that flies in the Gotham sky without my permission! " The Joker stormed into the late Sionis' club.

"Thought ya'd never show up, Mistah Jay!" Harley replied in an uncaring way.

If there was someone else to walk into her place , they would probably die from fear. But she was not like everyone else. She was still a doctor after all . She knew quite well how to hide her emotions . And damn fears too, especially when you get used to them. Not so complicated for a psychiatrist with a PHD , right ?

" You get your ass over here, you hear me ?! " he grabbed her neck with a hard grip.

" And what if I say I won't?! Ya mothafucker! " she looked to his eyes with hate. Those eyes that she used to get lost in.

" You're gonna be DEAD! " he started to choke her with his best efforts.

" That ain't so easy , ya bastard! If ya think ya can get outta here alive , yer wrong! " she mentioned the two henchmen behind her who pointed their guns on The Joker.

" HaHaHaHa! You know , I always thought you were one of the few unique brilliant blondes . I was mistaken ! You are the same stupid blonde who threw herself into chemicals for me . Face it , Harleen! You are WEAK! Always were ! You're only alive because I let you be ", he  narrowed his eyes still choking her .
" Boys , show your little Miss Quinn who you belong to!" and when he said that, Harley's men pointed their guns to her without question.

" You underestimate me , Pumpkin. HaHaHaHa!"

" And ya underestimate ME too , PUDDIN! " Just as she said that there were two gunshots . The men behind Harley were dead.  And The Joker's own clowns pointed their guns to his head .