It was a relatively normal day for Bethany. She had just got out of school and was on her way to her part time job at the local store. Every weekday afternoon, she'd walk half a mile on the always busy streets for a meager minimum wage pay. But the brown haired girl with bluish-green eyes didn't care. This was her free time. No need to pay attention to teachers or do chores. At her job, the 5'5" girl was able to chat with people, customers and employees alike.

Casually looking over towards a blur of a black car speeding past her, Bethany failed to see an open manhole. When her right foot stepped over it, instead of feeling solid ground, she felt her body jerk forward slightly and she fell down into the abyss.

Closing her eyes tightly, Bethany waited for the moment of impact. The feel of bones crunching, the weight of her body crashing down. But those feelings never occurred. In fact, there was the sensation of being slightly lightheaded and a somewhat cushioned landing. Opening her eyes, the brunette glanced around to see she wasn't at the bottom of the sewer but rather, in a dark gritty looking city. A sign above her read "Welcome to Gotham! Home of the caped crusader". Bethany shook her head feverish in hopes of waking up. Gotham wasn't a real place and Bethany was certain a place like this couldn't fit in the sewerage system of her hometown.

Getting up on her feet, she brushed off the loosely clinging dirt off her khaki pants and navy blue shirt. "What the heck is going on here?" She asked herself, as she walked forward with caution.

Nesta lay in a comfortable heap on her bed, her hands weaving in her finely-combed chestnut curls. Her half-lidded eyes, that were a warm chocolate brown, darted lazily across the room. She was supposed to be studing, and not wasting her valuable time lounging on top of her sheets.. But, instead, she was worried about the number of imperfections on her bedroom wall.

It wasn't until she had received a phone call from her boss, that Nesta finally pulled herself from the comfort of her bed. The call itself wasn't any too special, just a stern talking to about how she was twenty minutes late. And while she wasn't too pleased about being talked to like a 5 year old, Nesta wasn't in the mood to argue.

After pulling on a pair of black knee-high cargos, and a pink t-shirt, Nesta pulled her purse over her shoulder. She had planned to head towards the door, and leave for work. But, she never made it, as the moment she stepped into her livingroom, did the floor cave in. "GAH!" She screamed, as she kicked and flailed her arms. The fall lasted for what felt like forever, but when it was finally over, she landed on what seemed like the cold hard ground of a wet street.

"Ow.." Nesta groaned rolling over to her side. "What was that..?" Glancing around, she noticed something odd about the area she was in. As she stared down the landscape, she was hit by immediate realization. "Isn't this.. Gotham City!?"

The citizens of Gotham rushed past the confused brunette as she made her way into town. She had no idea on her destination. Or how it came to be she was in Gotham. But she felt giddy at the fact she was in a world that she always wished she was part of. To be able to glimpse the Dark Knight on his way to stop the Joker... Oh, and to find some way to meet Harley Quinn!

"Look, miss." A rough voice said, breaking her from her trance. In front of her stood a somewhat burly man who didn't look pleased. "You need to hurry up and get home. Haven't you read the papers?"

"No, I haven't." Bethany answered, her nerves slowly twisting up inside. The man gave off a really bad vibe. He thrust what appeared to be his copy of the paper into her hands and walked off grumbling about dumb dames being out at night. Her bluish green eyes skimmed the main headline. It read that the Joker had recently been kidnapping young ladies and that there was a citywide curfew to prevent further kidnappings. She mused to herself about what the Joker would want with young ladies as she continued down the street.

Nesta scooped herself off the ground, her eyes filled with both excitement, and clouded fear. "I-I've gotta see this place.." As she dusted herself off, the amazed brunette began bounding down the sidewalk. "I wonder if-" Before she could finish, she bumped into a man; he had been stumbling down the street, and he didn't look too healthy.

"Hey, watch it, dollface." He growled, using Nesta's shoulders to balance himself. ".. Hm, you look pretty good for a hooker."

Blinking wildly, Nesta almost couldn't register what had just been said. "H-hooker? What!?" She screamed, her hands flying out violently. Within seconds, the man was on the ground, writhing in pain as the feeling of being knee'd in the crotch, (and smacked in the face), was overwhelming. "That'll teach you, ya' creeper." Kicking him one final time, Nesta ran off.

After running half a block, Nesta noticed something odd. A girl walking down the street, not only was she colorful; which made her stick out like a sore thumb, compared to the greyscale background she walked in. But, she was also dressed odd, since it was bone chillingly cold outside, yet the girl wore khakis.

"Should I say something..?" Nesta chewed on her lip. "Maybe she knows what the hell is going on?" Before she could even think, she was approaching the girl.

Bethany heard a commotion coming from a couple blocks and she wondered just what was going on. A slight chill ran down her spine causing the brunette to jerk her head towards a shadowy figure moving ever so close. Her eyes squinted as she scanned the person coming nearer. Her blue green eyes could barely make out the person's pants but the pink shirt stood out.

"Excuse me..." Bethany heard herself speak to the figure, who appeared to be roughly the same height as her and Bethany was positive was this person was female. "Were you invited to this party too?" Laughing softly at calling what had happened being inviting, the teenage girl hoped that this person had a sense of humor.

At hearing the brunette's joke, Nesta let out a pained chuckle; as her jogging had knocked the wind out of her lungs. "Ha, ha.. There's nothing fun about this party.." Holding a hand to her heaving chest, she continued to speak. "Any idea of how we got here in the first place?" Surveying the area, Nesta put a hand on her hip. "And any idea why everyone has been raving about.. You know, him.." Speaking in a sneaky tone, she dared another glance behind her back.

"Because, all this talk is getting me the creeps." Shuddering for effect, Nesta wrinkled her nose.

"My guess is that we got very unlucky and found a way to enter another universe." Bethany spoke, glancing at the breathless girl. She brushed a stray brunette strand of hair out of her face as she looked around. "Him who? The Clown Prince who is kidnapping young women for who-knows-what?" Walking forward toward a semi-lit alleyway, Bethany motioned for the girl to follow her.

"I agree about the place being creepy." Her pace quickened as the sound of a scuffle from behind them broke out. "We need to find somewhere to crash."

Nesta followed fast behind her. "Maybe we could find a vacant house.. Or something." Quickening her pace, the redhead couldn't stop her knees from wobbling out of utter fear. "C-can we go, now? I don't care where, let's just get out of here.." Gripping the brunette's arm with strength unheard of, Nesta began to drag her down the street. "Why are we in the narrows, of all places?!" She thought aloud.

Bethany felt the strong grip that this girl had on her followed by the feeling of her feet sliding roughly across the street as the girl drug her along. Trying to get her feet back to walking, the brunette noticed a shadow, one darker than the rest in the area they were in, slip past them.

"Oy, girl!" She remarked as they stopped in front of what appeared to be an abandoned shop. "Are you really scared of the Joker? Or could it be the dark?" Finally having been released from the super grip, Bethany made her way to the front door and gave it a quick shove. It budged slightly. "Hey... girl. Give me a hand here!"

"Yes! Who wouldn't be? I mean, he's a nutcase.." Nesta exclaimed loudly, as she snatched at the dirty brass knob. ".. Besides, his suit and hair clash horribly!" Pulling a face, the redhead opened the door with ease. "And.. This was dificult, why?" Furrowing her brows, Nesta let herself in the shabby home.

As she stepped into the walkway, she was greeted by the smell of burnt meat.. Or what she thought was burning meat. "Yuck! What is that?" Covering her nose with her arm, Nesta ducked to narrowly avoid the coat rack; which was broken, and haphazardly leaning against the wall. "I think we got the wrong place.. This is a hell-hole."

"I'm not." Bethany, slightly puffing her chest out. "Batman always saves the day." She made her way past the redhead with a scowl, ignoring the remark about the door being difficult. I just made it easier for her, the brunette thought to herself. The pungent odor overwhelmed her, causing her to cover her mouth and nose.

"The Ritz, this is not." She remarked. She agreed that this place gave new meaning to hell hole but there wasn't many options of places to stay. "I'm sure it's one of those handyman specials."

Coughing wildly, Nesta shuffled passed the trash that revealed itself with every step. "Maybe.. We could find a nice box to hole up in.. This looks like a crackhouse- No, this is worse than that!" Once she had made it into what she assumed to be the livingarea, the redhead caught sight of the smell's source; a ravaged body of a business man, half of him was burned, and the other half.. Well, it was still smoking. "Oh, my god!" She yelped, charging back towards the door. "Not a good choice! Not a good ch-" Before she could get there, she tripped over a bloodied wooden box.

"Ahhh! Help me! Help me!" Nesta shrieked, flailing wildy in the thick layers of filth that covered the shaggy carpeted floor.

"So you want to go back outside?" Bethany questioned, her blue green eyes watching the girl stumble across the room. The bile rose in her throat as she saw the corpse. Quickly covering her mouth and looking away, the brunette stumbled back to the front door. Until she saw the girl flailing wildly. Rushing over to the screaming redhead, Bethany yanked up on her and drug her to the door.

"Screw this." Bethany scowled. The scent lingered on them as they walked back into the alleyway. "So, you want to pick a place?" As she spoke this, the same shadowy figure swept by to reveal himself as Batman.

"You ladies shouldn't be out this late at night." He gruffly remarked.

As Nesta was dragged outside, she let herself throw up; the sounds of her wretching effectly drowning out Batman's hoarse voice. "Oh, god.. I can't-" She gagged louder, as her hands gripped painfully tight around Bethany's forearms. It took her several minutes to empty her stomach completely, but when she was finally done, she said."I-I think.. I hacked up my l-lungs.." Letting out a exhausted breath, the redhead felt a wave of discomfort run up her spine.

Turning her head slowly, Nesta noticed the Caped Crusader staring down at her; a look of mild disgust flickering in his eyes "Well, damn.." She swore, a frown forming on her face. When the Batman didn't say anything; infact, he seemed ready to take off, Nesta wiped the corners of her mouth with the bend of her arm. "You're way creepier in person.."

"You two shouldn't be out at night.. Especially at a time like this." Batman said, his voice sounding more robotic than before.

The brunette frowned as she stepped closer to the man in a rubber bat suit. Tracing the outline of his chest muscles with her right index finger, Bethany tsked. "With all the money Bruce Wayne has and he uses a robot?" She remarked with a smirk. "I hope it's at least programed to protect people."

Looking back at the redhead who had just made a not so pretty mess on the street, the teenager chuckled. "Gotham in general is creepier than I expected it to be."

The Batman was completely de-void of emotions, as the brunette let her hands caress his chest. "This is no time for games." Swatting her hand away, the man in black took a large step back. "You two should be heading home." Noticing that Bethany had redirected her glance, the Caped Crusader frowned.

"-Look, we'll leave, if you tell us where some place safe is." Nesta said quietly, as she got to her feet. "Besides, it's not like anything can happen to us, as long as you're here, right?" A cocky smile began to form on her tanned face.

Batman opened his mouth, a long noble lecture just eager to get out. But, unfortunately, before he could begin to spout his 'heroic babble', the sounds of wooden makeshift weapons clanking against the uneven streets filled the air. "Get your friend out of here.. She's in no condition to defend herself.." As he got into a battle stance, he gave the girls a sinister stare. "Go to the police station."

Bethany let out a loud fake cry as Batman swatted her hand. "No wonder you go through ladies like Joker goes through containers of make-up." She grumpily remarked. Her mood soured slightly as the wooden thuds and clanks of weapons made their way closer.

"The police?" The brunette scoffed at the thought that the Caped Crusader was appearing to pawn the girls off on the local police. She had always thought Batman was supposed to be more... heroic, more charming. She shrugged as she grabbed the redhead's hand. "Let's getting going then. I'm sure the police will totally protect us."

Nesta deadpanned. "Ugh.. The Gotham city policemen..?" Taking on a serious tone, she continued to say. "The same police that'll betray you, when they have large bills thrown their way?!" When she noticed that she was being ignored, she said. "Yo have got to be smoking some major hash!" Crossing her arms, the redhead went on, and on, until she was finally silenced by the sounds of the rowdy thugs emerging from the alleyway.

"Go.. Now." Batman growled, as he disappeared in the shadows of the night.

Nesta scowled, before taking off down the street, Bethany in tow. "It's time to go!" Not looking back, the two girls traveled half a block, before the ruckus of the nightly brawl faded out.

Huffing from how fast they scurried out of the vicinity of the ruckus, Bethany glanced towards the redhead. "You know... I don't think I like Batman as much anymore. He's a real jerk." She remarked, her hands gripping her aching sides. Her brunette hair fell into her face as she crouched close to the ground.

Behind them, the sound of a menacing laugh brought their attention to a lone figure making its way closer to them. "I see that Batman didn't want to bother with you two." The voice remarked, echoing in the street. As it came closer and the streetlight hit it, the girls saw that in front of them was one of Joker's henchmen. "You gals look like you could use a place to stay..." With that comment, he had motioned to a few other men who appeared to crawl out of the woodwork and ganged up on the girls.

Bethany, still sore from the running, was caught by surprise when a muscular brute grabbed her from behind. "Let me go, creepo!" She yelled as she proceeded to bite down on his arm. This action caused him to release her and Bethany to gag on the taste of grime, sweat, and cheap cologne.

Nesta laughed breathlessly at the brunette's joke. "Yeah, yeah.. But-" She took a sharp breath. "-he's Bruce Wayne, too... A man not known for his-" Sinking to her knees, she finally finished her sentence with.. "-politeness." After she quieted down, she was able to regain her composure.

When she had heard the voice, the frighteningly sinister noises, Nesta froze in place. "Out of the fire, and into the frying pan.." Was all she was to say, as she felt herself being snatched around roughly. Her loud yelping drowning Bethany's out effectly. "Get away!" As she began to struggle, she heard the loud swear that tore through the throat of the man that the brunette had bitten.

The shout encouraged her to fight back. It took a good amount of strength, and a few choice hits, but Nesta had finally gotten herself, and Bethany, out of arms-length of the men. "What do you want?!" She spat, gripping the brunette's arm tightly. "Why us? Why not some other duo of girls?!"

One of the men rolled his eyes. "Here it comes with the questioning.. And the crying. Maybe a little fighting here, and there." He crossed his muscular arms. "Can't we just get to the 'good part' of this experience? Hmm?" When he took a step forward, he forced both girls to step back. "Don't be shy.." He cooed.

Bethany rolled her eyes as the man did a pathetic attempt of a 'pick up line.' Still walking backwards slowly as he and a couple of his buddies who didn't suffer from the girls' attacks inched closer. Out of the corner of her left eye, the brunette noticed another figure closing in. This one much leaner, more feminine.

"Harley Quinn?" The slightly bewildered teenager stuttered. She froze in her tracks in awe of the lithe woman who strode up to the girls with a smile on her face.

"Mistah J's going to love these two!" Said the harlequin dressed in a skintight red and black outfit similar to the one Bethany seen in the Batman comics.

As Harley's accent filled the night air. Nesta grew less, and less comfortable. "They're just coming out of the wood-works, huh?" Tossing a worried glance towards Bethany, she continued to say. "Atleast, she's not that dangerous..?" Her statement sounding more like a question.

"Boys. Behave.." Harlequin cooed, waving what appeared to be a handgun. "We need 'em alive, and in one piece." As she stalked towards the two teenagers, the masked woman smirked. "Well.. Just alive.." She added, tapping the gun against her temple.

Nesta expression warped into that of extreme fear. "Uh.. What do you mean just alive?" Gripping Bethany's arm with her signature death grip, the redhead whimpered. "I know that you're a nut-case, but really!?"

The princess of insanity stood there, her wicked smirk turning into a full blown grin. "Oh, Mistah J was right.. You do know who I am." She was less than five feet away, now. "This'll definitely be worth my precious time." Pointing the gun at the girls; who stood with their backs against the wall, Harlequin said. "But, just because I like you two, doesn't mean that Mistah J will."

Bethany's jaw dropped. The brunette's sense of awe for the right hand woman of the Joker was turning into fear as the redhead squeezed her arm so tight that the lower part of the limb grew cold and numb. "Um, chica..." Bethany whispered roughly. "Loosen the grip or my arm is going to fall off."

"What do you mean that he knew that we knew who you were?" The teenager asked in a panicked tone. Her mind sluggishly wandered, trying to think of how it was possible for them to know about Bethany and her new friend.

"Doll, Mistah J wouldn't like for me to blab all his secrets." The grinning clown femme fatale remarked, pointing the gun at both girls and pulling the trigger. With a loud pop, the gun released a small flag with the word "BANG!" on it instead of a bullet. This action caused Bethany to swoon and faint.

Nesta didn't hear a word Bethany said, as she was too busy racking her brain for a plan to get away. Though, when she did finally notice how cool the limb in her grasp felt. She had no choice, but to release her grip. "Sorry.." She muttered quietly.

As Harlequin spoke, Nesta felt herself becoming queasy. "What kind of secrets could he possibly h-?!" Her thoughts were quickly, and abruptly, interrupted by the sharp Bang! "What the hell!?" She exclaimed, grabbing her chest. Then there was the sudden sound of Bethany crumbling to the ground.

"Hey! Wake up! I can't take her on my own!" Glancing up in terror at the gang of freaks, Nesta began to shake Bethany with all the strength she had. "Please, wake up!"

And before she knew it, Harlequin had approached her, and wacked her over the head with the fake pistol.

When Bethany had opened her heavy eyelids. Sense of time had escape her and being in the poorly lit room did not help the girl to figure out how long she was passed out. In fact, the brunette entertained the thought that, just maybe, she had awoken from one crazy dream. Until she glanced over and saw that not only was she not in her room but her friend was sprawled out on the cool cement floor.

"Wakey wakey!" The feminine voice called out from beyond a locked door. Bethany cringed as the door swung open and the owner of the voice waltzed in with a tray of haphazardly arranged food and drink. "Mistah J said you guys have to be fed or he would lock me up in the padded room again. Like I would complain about that!"