| Identity |

Harleen "Harley" Quinzel - Batgirl

| Origin & Backstory |

Harleen was born to Paul and Sharon Quinzel on January 26, 1997. she was an only child for the first few years of her life, but in early 2001 Sharon became pregnant with a second baby, a boy they planned to name Barry. this news delighted the entire family, especially Paul who had always wanted a son. Unfortunately, though, during the birth there were complications and both Sharon and the child were lost.

Harley, although she missed her mother dearly, was too young to fully comprehend the scope of the tragedy and was spared the same fate as her father. Paul became a broken a broken man after his wife's death, a shadow of his former self, and threw himself fully into his work as the Director of Psychology at the Arkham Institute. As such, Paul was a poor father, rarely giving Harleen the attention she deserved. Instead, he would more often than not drop his daughter off at her best friend's house, Pamela Isley, under the adult supervision and care of Pam's parents. This routine of practically living at the Isley's persisted into the girls' teenage years.

At the age of ten, Harley was accepted into the middle school division of the Gotham Academy for Higher Learning and the Arts on a scholarship program, having aced the entrance exams. During her first year she joined the junior varsity gymnastics squad with Pam - who had also been admitted to the school through her parents' wallets and above average test scores. It was here she met fellow squad member Bette Kane. Two years later, in seventh grade, the three girls were introduced to transfer student Artemis Crock who also joined the squad. During these middle school years, Harleen's father made her take self-defense lessons, as he knew full well the dangers of Gotham City.

After eighth grade, and at the beginning of ninth, Harleen and the other girls transitioned to GAHLA's high school and all joined the varsity gymnast division. Artemis also picked up track and field - mainly archery - and Harleen joined her as a member of track - in relay, the 200m dash, and the 300m dash. That same year an eighth grader named Barbara Gordon - who had received a similar scholarship as Harley and even higher test scores - was admitted to the varsity squad despite only being thirteen and at least a year younger than everyone else. With her on-again-off-again boyfriend, Alexander Knox, she joined Harley's circle of close friends. Also during this term, Bette and Harley join the drama club, and Pam starts GAHLA's first environmental awareness and protection club.

Paul Quinzel even appears to make an attempt at being a better parent, and begins to pick Harley up from Pam's house every day and spend some time with her. Surrounded by friends, and with her father making an effort, Harley was truly happy. Sadly, though, her happiness came to a brutal end as tragedy once again struck the Quinzel family. On June 6th of 2013, Paul was murdered shortly after picking his daughter up from her friend's house. They were on their way home when they became stuck in a traffic jam. After only a brief few minutes of being idle in their car, a man approached their vehicle and, with no preamble, aimed a gun at Paul and Harleen. Paul, reacting in defense of his daughter, leapt at the open window, throwing his body on the weapon and taking both the bullets meant for him and those meant for Harley. In the confusion and chaos created by the panicking surrounding drivers and passengers, the mysterious gunman disappeared, slipping away without a trace. The police ruled the homicide as a random killing, and Harleen was left without a family.

Almost immediately she was placed in the Martha Kane Foundation for Troubled Youths until a new, suitable home could be found for her. Pamela tried to convince her parents to adopt Harley, and they would have, but unbeknownst to their daughter the Isley's were having financial problems and as such wouldn't have been able to fully support another teenager long term. Surprisingly, though, only a week into her time at the foundation Harley was placed under the guardianship of one Bruce Wayne. She later learned that she wasn't the only ward Mr. Wayne had taken on when she met Richard Grayson, another recently orphaned teenager. Despite Bruce and Richard - and the manor's not-quite-butler, Alfred Pennyworth - attempting to welcome Harleen with open arms, she isolated herself and wallowed in her anger and pain.

Bruce, though, apparently saw within Harley something that he recognized in himself at her age, and in August offered to give her self-defense training to channel her anger through. Still, Harley had lost faith in the world and purpose in herself. So, to give her renewed hope and meaning, Bruce revealed to Harleen his greatest secret; he was, in fact, Gotham's Dark Knight, the Batman. This seemed to work, and shortly after she began intensive training with Bruce, who promised her that she would eventually join him in his fight against crime.

This training with Bruce and Richard - who she had taken to calling Dick, and had also discovered the secret of Batman even before Harley - lasted non-stop for months, not even slowing down for the start of school and the tenth grade. In order to maintain both her grades and training regimen, Harley dropped the drama club. As the months continued, Harley began to grow impatient with Bruce who repeatedly rejected her attempts to join him on his nightly patrols. This came to a head shortly after midnight on New Year's Day. Harleen had stayed home training rigorously instead of going to a party with friends in order to impress Bruce with her resolve. Instead of returning to the manor on time as was planned, though, Bruce went out on another solo investigation involving suspicious house fire at the mayor's residence. This infuriated the temperamental Harley who, after grabbing what limited supplies she had available to her, stormed out intending to perform her own patrol of Gotham.

Clad in dark, bulky clothing and a pink ski-mask, Harley came across crime alley where she found half a dozen thugs in the middle of a transaction involving hardcore drugs. Seeing her chance to help out her city and remove this collection of scum from the streets, Harley jumped them. She was able to take out the first two easily enough with the element of surprise on her side, but the other four reacted quickly, surrounding her. Three were brandishing knives while the fourth had a wooden bat. Moving fast, she utilized the skills she had learned from Bruce, and disarmed two, knocking them unconscious in the process. The bat-user managed to club her across her back, though, and when she turned to deal with him she felt a sharp, stinging sensation in her left side. The last knife wielder had stabbed her and she was losing blood. Had it not been for her leather jacket, the wound would have been deeper and most likely have been lethal.

Despite this, Harley managed to stay on her feet long enough to dispatch the man before collapsing to the ground, leaving only the baseball bat thug who quickly advanced on his fallen attacker. However, at that moment Bruce, as Batman, swooped down from above and knocked out the thug with a single punch. Luckily for Harleen, Dick had reported Harley's actions to Bruce from the Batcave, and Bruce had tracked her down from the receiver he had placed on her bicycle. Bruce, though upset over her brash actions, had been impressed with how Harley had handled herself, and he finally decided both she and Richard were ready to join him in the field. Once Harleen had healed from her injury, Bruce presented his wards with both protective outfits similar to his own, and the code-names Batgirl and Robin.

The following month was hectic for Harley as she was thrust into the world of Batman with three concurrent cases; the mass-arsonist known as Firefly, the mayor-murdering Anarky, and the vengeful Freeze. Working alongside Batman and Robin, Harley fought and participated in the defeat of all three. Afterwards, however, a seeming lull fell over the city as no more 'supervillains' would make an appearance for some time. Harleen satisfied herself with taking down common criminals, and, with Robin, putting considerable dents in Gotham's organized crime.

In July of that year, Bruce was approached by his fellow vigilante, Tarantula, who made his home in the neighboring city of Blüdhaven‎. One of Blüdhaven‎'s own gang leaders, the Black Mask, was causing a larger stir than normal and Tarantula requested Batman's assistance. Batgirl and Robin would also tag along and lend their own help to the investigation and ensuing fight. Nothing further would occur until October when the Circus of Strange rolled into down at the Haly's Fairground - the site of a massacre of a similar circus two years earlier. The circus, under the guise of Haly's friendly replacement, lured innocents to their show where chaos soon ensued as three of the lead showcases, Big Top - an extremely obese and bearded, but strong woman - and Pyg and Toad - two freakish men in eponymous animal masks who were obsessed with making the 'perfect' subservient humans by fusing masks to the faces of and lobotomizing their victims - began to murder the guests.

Batman, Batgirl, and Robin soon arrived on scene - revealing themselves for the first time in broad daylight - and took down the three circus freaks. However, Joker - the madman responsible for the Haly's circus massacre and the death of Richard's family - emerged and revealed himself as the true ringmaster of the Circus, along with his mutated accomplice, Killer Croc. While Robin rushed after Joker haphazardly to avenge his parents, a savage and difficult fight raged on between the giant crocodile-man and the two Bat-themed vigilantes. After a grueling battle which left both Batman and Batgirl injured, and the Joker seriously beaten at the hands of Robin, all six of the psychopathic murderers were arrested by the GCPD.

It's been two months since then, and Harley is looking forward to her next case and some more action.

| Character Notes |

To be filled in later.

| Powers & Abilities |

Harleen is a highly skilled gymnast, and a talented athlete all-around. Richard has also trained her in parkour. From her time in her school's drama club, Harley gained some skill in acting and disguise. As a young girl her father enrolled her in self-defense courses, and since her induction into Batman's war on crime, Harleen has been instructed in a variety of fighting styles. As such, she has become an adept martial artist.

She has received training in the following: Tae Kwon Do, Jujitsu, Judo, both traditional boxing and kickboxing, Kung Fu, Muay Thai, Karate, Krav Maga, Aikido, Savate, Hapkido, Ninjitsu, and the Keysi-Fighting Method. She has become skilled in utilizing a blend of some of these forms in what has evolved into her own unique, idiosyncratic fighting style. Along with her skills in the largely barehanded methods above, Harley has gained some experience in stick and sword fighting. Bruce has also imposed upon Harleen rigorous training in stealth, escapology, tactical analysis, tracking, interrogation, and investigation methods - though her deductive skills aren't improving much due to her impatience.

Aside from all of this, Harley is blessed with a natural, gifted intellect. Unfortunately, her impatience and sometimes rash demeanor occasionally renders this potential advantage moot.

| How is this character different? |

My Batgirl is a teenage Harley Quinn as opposed to any previous incarnation seen. Other than that, I'm too lazy to list more differences.

| What is your goal with this character? |

To eventually have her kick Batman's ass. Oh, and to make sure Sloth doesn't force his Dick on Harley.

| Sample Post |

Harley paced back and forth in the huge cavern some distance behind Alfred, who had come down to join Harleen and Richard, as he did every night, a couple hours ago. Harley had given up her training exercises a little after one in the morning; she had been growing exhausted and Bruce was taking a long time to return. Too long. She figured she would shower back upstairs to wash up after her workout, and by the time she returned Bruce would either have gotten back from his party or at least radioed in to inform them he was on his way.

It had been several minutes since her shower had ended, though, and Bruce had still yet to be heard from. Harley wasn't worried of course, Bruce was more than capable of handling himself, but she was annoyed and frustrated with him. He was supposed to have been back by now, to prepare for his nightly patrol, and Bruce was supposed to finally allow Harleen to go with him. She had thought about this for days; this was to be her moment, her chance, and Bruce was ruining it.

"What could be taking him so long?" She asked nobody in particular for the eighth time in half as many minutes, the aggravation evident in her voice.

"Mr. Cobblepot... Mr. Cobblepot! Oswald!"

The festering, degenerate reprobate, sat amidst the sterility of his surroundings, found himself in relative complacency. Perhaps the direness of his situation had not yet twigged in his mind. Had the air gone to his head? Was he fooling himself? Was he really quite as deranged as the woman, sat afront of himself, truly believed? No. No he was deathly calm because he was confident. Confident that the situation was soon to end, or only beginning to rear its head. This state of pure flux was what the conniving, ruthless 'entrepreneur' was born for. Built for. He was the best prepared man in the room and it would soon pay off for him in a big way. He took a rattled breath, fixed his gaze and began to pitch.

"I'm afraid Miss Young, that you aren't taking this seriously. I may be bound and beaten, but these are still office hours. You will afford me the dignity of my office and my title, and I will do the same to you." He began, snidely. The other began to speak slowly.

"Mr. Penguin... I--"

"Thank you Doctor. Please continue..."

[Hr][/Hr]

Origin & Backstory:
Character Notes:
Powers & Abilities
While possessing no superpowers so to speak, some coukd argue that his enviable skill in accumulating wealth would qualify. He has a strong presence within the Gotham under-and-overworlds and commands a large amount of respect and loyalty.mhe is a master at getting a hold of whatever he wants, whether that be a new shower cap, a rare, near extinct bird or an energy rechanalling android.

How is this character different?
What is your goal with this character?