Car Radio || Jeremiah Valeska

13

>>>You guys are so gonna hate me at the end of this chapter because of two simple words, but I swear it's not that bad... Hopefully? Don't kill me???<<<

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"Why are you here, Harleen?" Bruce's voice pierced her thoughts. "With him?"

She looked towards J who gave no notion for her not to speak, so she shrugged. "It's not that complicated, Bruce. I believe in their cause."

"That's not what you said at the hospital. How about your loyalty to Selina?"

Again that stab of guilt in her chest, and she wavered. "She has you. She'll be fine."

"Harleen." He urged. "You have a choice. A chance to still make things right. Take it!"

"She already chose it, Bruce." J tightened his grip on the prisoner's shoulder till Bruce winced in pain. A warning. "Maybe you should consider it."

"Civilization is so fragile, Bruce." Ra's Al Ghul pitched in. "Can't you see Gotham is soon to be each man for himself..? A more savage place."

"Sounds like fun." A new voice spoke, and she watched a woman walk up; unafraid. She held a small box in hands and Harleen wondered what it contained. "Sure you want to leave? Oh, hey, Bruce. Freak." The latter was addressed to J, then her gaze fell on her. "And Freak 2..."

"Hello, Barbara." Ra's stepped forward. "I'm really glad you came."

The woman sighed. "Bad news, baby." She faked sadness. "I'm not leaving. Gotham's in my blood. And I don't think I can let you leave, either." Barbara opened the box to reveal a golden knife resting among velvet.

"You reforged it." Ra's spoke.

"Well, now." The woman smiled. "You see, you say you're leaving, but I've got a feeling you're gonna be back." She withdrew the knife and tossed the box behind her. "And I don't like looking over my shoulder." She unsheathed it and immediately Ra's's men unsheathed their own swords as J and her withdrew their guns.

"Need I remind you, Barbara, you've already tried using that knife." Ra's warned her. "And also, you're outnumbered."

"Hmm." The woman pretended to think about it for a moment. "That Demon's Head's really not working out for you, huh?"

Gunfire rang out as a large group of people appeared, and everyone scattered for cover. Harleen shot off a few bullets of her own, clipping a man's shoulder. But she went behind a nearby pillar to dodge another spray of bullets as the group rushed forward and integrated with their own.

Man and women battling hand to hand, gun to sword. She lost track of J and found herself against a female who lunged at her with a sword. Harleen ducked and shot the stranger in the leg, next shooting the sword out of her hand. But she hesitated to end the woman's life before her, knowing this action would define her as a killer. The last thing keeping her from fully being free...

The woman pulled out a knife from her boot, and suddenly lunged forward despite her injuries, and Harleen pulled the trigger. Refusing to stare longer than necessary as she made sure she was dead before finding her next target.

A loud shot echoed next to her ear, and she turned to see Wayne's butler pointing a gun at her. "Right, miss. Drop it and go. You don't want to do this."

"No, I think I do." She shot off a couple of rounds while he returned fire. And she felt one impact flesh; left side, right below her ribs.

Firing wildly now to confuse him and hopefully clip him, the butler had to dive behind a pillar as she fell back to merge into the crowd of fighters. Her eyes looking for J. Starting as a loud spurt of gunfire sounded nearby, and she turned just in time to see him go sprawling and hold his arm, blood instantly seeping through the fabric and through his gloved fingers.

Reacting on instinct, Harleen had to dodge through a few fighting pairs before reaching him, grabbing his uninjured arm to help him sit up. But they both stilled when a loud boom sounded. Immediately followed by another and another as the bridges outside the windows collapsed. She turned to see J smiling in victory at the sight before them.

Everyone else had frozen as they witnessed the explosions, their forms eerily still. Giving her ample time to help him up as they both lended each other strength to exit the building.

A couple of women guarded the cars, but J shot both of them down as they neared. And she hopped into the passenger side on one car as he took the driver's side. The explosions still sounding as the smile never left his face, making her own curl up.

"That was something, J." Her voice softened as the adrenaline wore off and her body began to rack with pain and tiredness. The blood from the hole in her stomach was still bleeding.

J looked over and realized this, and he reached over with his good arm to swipe his bloodied thumb across her lips and cheek. A small gesture of comfort. "Hang in there, Harls. The night's only just begun."

She laughed at that with the taste of his blood in her mouth and he laughed with her as he put the car into drive. "We're like that story..." She was starting to drift. "The one with the couple who are criminals together. Bonnie and Clyde."

She smiled in amusement at her sudden realization. "What do you think?"

"I think you're delirious." He replied. "Get some sleep, Harls. Next time you awake, we'll be in a brand new Gotham City."

She liked that. She liked that very much.

~The End~