A running laugh

chapter 8- perspective

      The busy night life of gotham never fails to fascinate me. Although gangs and criminals are only a glance away, people still walk around and go on like it's heaven. I've only been here a few months but something about this place seems so captivating.

I walk up to the restaurant, and the doors are opened for me. I walk in and scan the beautiful restaurant for the one and the only Bruce Wayne.

I called him after arriving at the club this afternoon, and told him I had information about the infamous clown daughter. I told him my name was Alice and I would meet him here at 7.

I spotted him in a back corner his hands neatly folded on the table. We make eye contact and I walk over to him.

"Mr Wayne?" I ask.

"Please, call me Bruce. You must be Alice?"

"Yes, thank you for meeting with me Bruce, I have somethings I'd like to discuss with you."

"Ok Lucy. Go ahead."he says with a smirk across that disgusting face of his.

I sit back in my chair and cross my arms. "What gave it away" I ask.

"You look exactly like your parents."

"Ok bats, ya got me. Watch ya gonna do ta me? Throw me in the slammer? Tell my mommy and daddy?" I giggled and looked him in the eyes and searched for the answer to my question. His response supprised me.

"We are going to talk" he said. "I want you to tell me everything about yourself.  Where you come from, what crimes you've done. How this all happened." He said leaning foward with a glare that could almost scare me.

I knew as soon as he had the information he needed to put me in Arkham he would. But my goal was to talk him into helping us out of the city, and it's to late to run now so might as well give him a show.

"Ok...My full name is Lucy J Quinn. Harley quinn and the joker are my parents . I lived with my aunt until I found out who they were. I came to gotham and started a life with them. I love them. And that's why you are going to let us out of this city. I've killed 33 people and I'd love to triple that if you don't take the barricade down."

He sat there and looked at me. Going over what I had just said to him and smiled.

"No. What's going to happen is your going to go with some very kind police officers that I have surrounding the building. They are going to take you someplace same and help you.

I looked around and the waiters were directing people out the doors and then leaving themselves. Once the place was empty a group of police stood gard by the door. I looked back at him and THE smile apeared on my face " that's not going to happen batsy,  my parents don't want to kill their favorite toy, but I'm not afraid to."

I stood quickly and did a flip over the table landing behind him and just as he started to turn around I pulled out a card and held it up to his throat.

"Ok everyone I'm going to leave now and I won't kill you if you just let me be" I say getting agavated because I had just walked into a trap. I looked down and bats had a knife in his hand. I knew this was the time to run, when they least suspected it. If it wasn't to late.

I drop the card and turned to run to the bathrooms behind me, as I got to the door bats grasped my arm and pulled me back. I pulled out another card with my free hand and cut his cheek. He let go and cut my shoulder when reaching to try and get me back.

I managed to escape to the bathroom and lock the door. I looked around for a window and found one by the sinks.  I climbed through it and into the ally outside. I ran down the alley and climbed a latter to the roof. My arm hurt like hell but I know I got him too. I run along a few roof tops until I reached a safe distance to climb down. And walk the rest of the way back to the club.

It's only about a block away and I know I will be screwed once I get there.

When I reach the club people are lined up around the block. I walk right in and all eyes are already on me. I ignore them and walk towards the stairs. The stage empty and joker is nowhere to be found. I walk up the stairs and jokers office door is open and about 5 security gard's are around his desk and he's shouting at them.

"I WANT HER FOUND AND BACK HERE ASAP GOT IT" he yells at them. They all say "ok boss" and turn around only to stop when they see me standing at the top of the stairs.

"Um boss, she's right here" one of the men say. Joker storms out from behind his desk and looks furious. "Get your ass in here. Boys out." he demanded. Harley gets up and goes to his side with a look of pure terror on her face.

When all the men leave she shuts the door and rushes over to check me. " where the hell were you Lucy there are cops all over this god dam town and we thought you -" he was yelling until Harley interpreted. " puddin her arm is all bruised. AND CUT! Baby who cut you? Who touched you. Puddin she's gonna need stitches" She frantically started telling him.

He just looked at her with a look of pain. Like looking at frantic puppy. She has him tied around her finger and he doesn't even know it.

Then he looks to me and his anger comes back.

"Who did this...what happened" he said.

I know they will kill me when they hear this, but shit it needs to be said." You guys have gone soft. You aren't the awful crazy criminals you once were. I thought I could beat batman's ass and get us out of this city. Then you would see you wouldn't have to be different because of me. But bats cut me when things went bad. Don't worry I got him back for it" I say in a shaky voice.

"You think we've gone soft?" Harley said looking suprised. I nodded."Lucy we are not criminals to eachother, we are a family. we don't treat you like a criminal because your our daughter. We are still the same people we have always been. You just have a look on the inside,  we aren't evil people in our own home. We have never changed, you just got a different perspective ." She said.

"Where in your stupid child mind did you think that we were any different Lucy?" Joker said with anger and disappointment in his eyes.

"Why aren't you guys bombing your way out of the city... holding people for ransom... Robbing a bank?" I say. "Shouldn't you be doing that right now?"

"We have no money Lucy. We can't do any of that without money or help from goons, which we don't have." Joker said while rubbing his temple. "Let me stich that up. Then fix yourself up and go dance." He added. 

I smiled and said ok. I let him fix my cut, then I went down stairs and put on a different outfit and cleaned myself up like I was told to do. I put on a different dress. Fixed my hair and was putting on some eye liner when harley walked in.

She walked over to the closet and put on a red and black dress and some heels. She walked over to where I was standing and put some makeup on herself. She seemed to busy with her thoughts but I had something I needed to ask. Something I couldn't get off my mind.

I sat down on a stool by the closet and watched as she put on her makeup.

" Why did you give me away?" I asked.

She stopped and looked down. She put down the brush that was in her hands and looked at me with her captivating blue eyes. " I didn't know what joker would do if he found out. I didn't want you to be a criminal, I wanted you to have a normal life" She said.

I looked at her for as long as I could befor my eyes went blurred with tears. I blinked them out of my eyes and looked down at my hands. "All I wanted was to be with my family, I didn't care if you were farmers, business men, or criminals, I just wanted to be with you" I said holding a steady voice even though the tears were uncontrollably rolling down my cheeks. She walked over to me and Neeled down, " Lucy I never wanted to give you up. I was always keeping in touch with your aunt to see how you were. I am disappointed that you can't have a normal life... but I am so happy that you are here with me. With us. As a family" She said with a heart warming smile on her face.

I laughed and whipped away my tears. What we have isn't much of a family but it's perfect. There's always bumps and kinks in the road but I geuss we will just have to grab a gun and fix it has it comes along.

I looked up at  her and smiled an evil  smile. "I want to dance on the stage" I say looking up with a smirk. She smiles and shakes her head laughing " Js  gonna kill us, but hey, we gotta die sometime right?"