This fic is the first Batman fic I have ever read that had any hope in it whatsoever. Granted, I only read Batman fics when I'm doing it for an event or some such. So I'm still half fandom-blind.

That first moment is heart-breaking. It took a second read for me to realize it was herself in the mirror she was talking to. Eventually, the price of evil is too much to pay, but what do you do when that happens? I really like the ending - it's ambiguous but still leaves room for hope.

I really like the progression of her thoughts. In this fic, nothing much physical happens, just some walking around and showering, but a lot of very compelling things happen on the inside. I have the utmost respect for people who can keep an inner monologue just as exiting as a chase scene. Wonderful job!

I love the way that Harley recognizes that she has become the monster in the mirror and has not realized how that has happened to her. It also comes to show that she has lost herself and needs to be found again for the time being. I love how you describe the wounds as inescaple and how she hopes that Batman will come and rescue her. I love how you can see both the insanity and the traumatic events that both characters have been through. I also love how Batman winds up agreeing to save her in the end. I also likes how you describe Joker as a demon because it show the symptoms of abuse Harley is going through quite well.

She knows the cost—always has—and she's always been willing to give it. Until now.

Just wanted to say that it might make the sentence better if you put it that way.

Back to the story; I have to say that it was very confusing at times. I don't see why you used they instead of she, and it really threw me off the first time. Otherwise, very well written. It's a story bursting with emotion and really makes the reader sympathies with Harley. Is Joker an alcoholic? He came across as that here, you made him pretty intimidating, somehow, with no more than a few lines. And the part about her changed voice was a nice touch. I can't say I understand how Batman managed to keep faith in her for so long, and it seems a bit strange for him to have gone as far as to give her his number, but it was very cute and made me smile. I enjoyed reading it!

First of all, I'm completely blown away by the way you throw us straight into the story, with no need for a proper introduction. I love it. Not to mention how you capture emotions so perfectly and still keep it perfectly in perspective; that's no easy task(and I would know, lol).

I like how she tries to wish her problems away, though death usually isn't the best escape from problems. But idk, maybe for her it'd be okay.

My favorite part, I think, is how at the end, she realizes that she isn't the stranger she thought she was, but she was still the person she had been, and that the person she had pretended to be wasn't really her(sorry if that didn't make any sense).

Overall, absolutely amazing. I have nothing whatsoever to offer as SPAG or criticism

. Story of the Week . Fandom blind .
Excellent! The way you convey her paranoia is clear, but not too overt; 'show, not tell' is very strong here, with her tiptoeing and slow-door-shutting giving us hints of her fear. The effect of her implied social issues works well; I like that her dialogue is very sparse, since it fits well with her only just finding her voice, and gives her a very timid and frightened look. The way you used a sort of nostalgic feel, when the soft voice reminds her of her younger self, gave a strong emotional feel, especially connected to 'I miss me, too.' It's like she's possibly imagining herself before the 'bad thing' in the character's arc might have affected her? The constant references to her growing fear is so tense that it made me feel cold. I think it's effective how the reminders of what she seemed to regret with the 'Bat' were brought back simply by seeing a bat flying around, like there's a severely hard-hitting memory, and it's almost like a trauma trigger or something. :O I like that the typing on her device further silences her, like her hopes won't be answered. However, I like that, in the end, there appears to be hope when she gets a reply from him; it's a great break from the tension, and a more feel-good ending, since we believe she'll be okay. I have no concrit, but you did great; keep it up. :)

Dislcaimer: I only know the basics of the batman fandom.

Wow. You have completely blown me away- but I'm not even sure I should be surprised. This is amazing, AMAZING. You capture these emotions so well.

Want to apologize- I'm not very good at evaluating this sort of piece, even though I love them. I can never put my finger on exactly what it is that makes me feel the way I do (which is probably why I can't write this stuff) so I'm sorry if this review seems like a discombobulated jumble. I'll do my best!

At first "the stranger" confused me. I thought there must be another person in the room. Then I read on and realized that it was a mirror. Wow. That was such a great effect. It really shows how low she is in her own eyes when she calls herself a stranger.

I'm going to guess the reason behind using "them" when referring to the stranger is to show how Harley's actions and staged personalities are so different from who she really is that it's like separate people? That was a very specific wild guess.

The descriptions add to the tone. The broken tiles, the makeup washing into the drain, the cracked mirror- it gives a really um... hopeless? (I think that sort of works) feel to it. I can't find the right word, but I need to actually say what I'm trying to say here... well, it would be a completely different tone if she actually got to take a shower in a nice bathroom. (That will have to do for now.)

Love how, after Harley gets out of the shower, she recognizes herself. There's the physical change of her makeup being washed off, and there's also the mental change- she's decided to try and get out. She's herself again.

I like how Harley calls the Joker "the demon." It's definitely how he's been acting to her.

I love the theme behind this; how Harley knows she doesn't deserve Batman's help, but she asks, and he comes anyway. It ended before he busted her out of there, but it didn't need to go any farther, and I think it was the perfect ending. I'm also very glad it was a happy ending.

Keep up the great work! Again, this was amazing, and I absolutely loved it. :)

Harley's desperation and underlying sense of futility are evident from the start. The italics used for both thoughts and texts implies a continuity of her deepest feelings. There were a couple of distracting bits of grammatical awkwardness ("As the white fades from their face...", for example). That said, the careful avoidance of Joker's name, the focus on imagery, and the feeling of detachment that the "stranger" evokes show that it's Harley's stream of consciousness without being obvious.

Oh God! That is intense! Blue, you have an impeccable ability for emotion... I felt this like a hammer being slammed across my chest! I've always had a love for Harley, always wanted an understanding of the mind of the woman who supports his every move.

In this short story, you captured fear and horror and a thriller perfectly! I was scared for her, and I found myself wondering like her... would Batman trust her? Would she be okay? How will Joker react when he finds out about what she's doing?

This was so emotionally perfect! If this was in a book of short stories, I'd buy it. I'd buy a few so that others can read and own it. This is going to my favorites.

Scorp has chosen a perfect SOTW.

Good job!
until next time,
Neo

I am deeply impressed. You convey emotion exquisitely.

[The stranger]
This is an interesting and effective choice, showing how far Harley has fallen. However, I question that writing it exactly like there is another person in the room, to the point of deliberately obfuscating their gender.

[I miss me, too]
Spectacular. Really, really nice line.

[the demon]
This is also really good. It concisely conveys fear and revulsion.

[pig tail]
Nitpick: pigtail without a space refers to the hairstyle unambiguously.

[The things she’s done to keep him happy…]
Again, powerful emotions. Though I wonder why it isn’t italicized like the other thoughts.

[in the situation she finds herself]
I found this a bit awkward. Perhaps “in this situation?”

[And condemns herself. She was a fool…]
I don’t think you need the phrase “and condemns herself” immediately preceding her condemning herself.

[Grabbing the soap… Tears flood her eyes and stream down her cheeks]
*Applauds*

[He won’t care. He’ll have her arrested]
I like these pessimistic thoughts; they seem natural for someone in a bad situation.

[For a moment she smiles softly]
Nice little bit of hope.

And I like the rising tension and desperation at the end.

Finally, great last line.

Wonderful! Wonderful angst! Wonderfully in character! Harley Quinn is one of my favorite Batman characters. You described everything great. The story was also paced out perfectly. I could really feel the emotions. A!

I am thrilled to read a story in which Harley regrets what she’s done. Usually she’s depicted as 100% devoted to the Joker, so it’s nice to see her being sane and regretful. It’s nice to see her being recognized as a victim of an abusive relationship that she cannot escape from (or at least is too weak to do so).

Oh I love it. I love the ending. I was so afraid this would be another story of a girl accepting to be an abusive relationship, but we see Harley do enough of that in the canon. I know Bats will come- even if she changes her mind and makes it into a trap, he will always come when she calls, because he really does understand her situation. I think that empathy is partially why Bats cannot kill anyone- he understands them, even when they do insane things. I really like this story and the way it makes me want to analyze the characters involved. Good job!

My only critique is if she’s placing a towel to block light from coming out under the door, then I think you should state that. For example, rather than saying she put it on the floor, say she bunched it up (or folded it up or something) and placed it so it would cover up the bottom of the door.

Even though the only knowledge I have of Harley and her relationship with the Joker comes from cartoons and the Lego DC games, I found this incredibly easy to read.
I loved your use of color through the piece, reds and white and black. It really reminds you of who this woman is, even though no names are used in the entire piece.
Also your writing is so clean and flows well. Sometimes I am distracted by short paragraphs, but I didn't feel that way with your writing because those small paragraphs were so well designed, ie "More tears drop." It is impactful on its own and doesn't anything extra to say exactly what you meant.
Anyhow, I'm still learning how to review, but I'm glad I came over to check you out for the SOTW.

I've never read a piece solely about Harley before, and I have to admit, I loved this. Harley's always been a favorite character of mine, especially with her friendship with Poison Ivy, and I love how you've written her here.
I'm not too familiar with her role in the game, however - while I did some research on that, most of knowledge about her comes from other canon sources.

I really like the way you've shown the duality of Harley's nature - both Harley and Harleen, fighting for prominence. The way she refers to them as separate people too - when she looks into the mirror, and refers to herself as [they] - shows her state of mind really well. It's the memory of herself as Harleen that shows the reader just how lost she's feeling, I think - I can't remember her ever reverting back to her old identity in the Batman canon I've been exposed to.

You have some really strong lines here, that show just how broken she is.
I really loved it when she says [I miss me, too]. I think that's the strongest indicator of just much she feels like escaping - it's a desire to return back to the person she was before she met the Joker.

I really like the pacing of this, and the way she develops as a character in the story, from her anguish to her realistion that she deserves more, and that she needs to try and escape - you've shown her journey brilliantly, from her being broken to attempting to take back control of her destiny.
Even though she appears weak, that shows that she's anything but - it takes a lot of courage for her to stand up against the Joker, even if it isn't to his face, and I think you've shown that well.

I really like the way you've portrayed Batman in this, even though it's mainly the way Harley sees him. The fact that he offers to help her, and that even the "Harley part" of her can recognise [he was a good Bat] says a lot about his character, I think, because it isn't the logical Harleen who's making the observation.

I think you've written the relationship between Harley and the Joker extremely realistically, with the recognition of the abuse and the dysfunction that's an inherent part of the two of them. Harley's terror of the Joker is very nicely done, too.

Another part that I enjoyed was the fact that Harley admits her part in the Joker's actions and the crimes she's committed, but she doesn't wallow in the guilt. She neither shirks her responsibilities nor overdoes her guilt, which I think is very realistic.

This was a really lovely piece - well done :)

Ooh, I like this look at Harley, and her conflicted thoughts about what she’s become by staying with the Joker. Some of my favorite Batman episodes are the ones where she hangs out with Poison Ivy - though at that point, the Joker still has a lot of control over her.

I like how you emphasize that she’s become two persons almost, by having her be startled by the sound of her own voice. The mirror imagery works nicely to reinforce this as well. As does having her tears and the water wash away her caked on makeup.

I think you do a good job of making her decision to leave the Joker come from a desire within herself (a part that she seems to have kept hidden under all the makeup and costumes). And you give the story a sense of urgency by having her not want to wake the Joker, and then you increase the sense of urgency even more when he wakes up and is pounding on the door and yelling. Ugh. That last part with the Joker really emphasizes that she made the right decision.

Ending on Harley hoping that Batman will come is a very powerful ending (even though it kind of makes me wish there was more). Nice work. :)