SLOW FADE
A/N - Sadly, I don't own anything within the realm of Batman...what does belong to me is Olivia, David and any other O/C my mind may come up with.
Now, this story takes place pretty much 3 years after the last chapter of 'Thicker than Water'. Someone had commented about Bane being in this story.....uh...no...I don't think I would ever bring that character into this...I'm trying my best to keep this in a Nolan-verse and whenever I think of Bane, my mind goes to the crappy Bane from the old movies...ugh...so, no Bane here.
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People never crumble in a day...
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Seattle, Washington
August 28th
09:19am
How many times had she looked in that microscope? Twenty? Thirty times? The woman had lost track.
She was anxious.
She had a deadline and it was fast approaching. The woman pushed her auburn hair out of her eyes before looking back into the microscope. The cells were finally dividing. She could finally say that her experiments were a success; and not a moment too soon.
Her colleagues said that it would never work. Many called her insane to think that she would be able to change a genome of a plant. Her mother always told her that insanity according to Albert Einstein was doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. In her case, she was expecting one result; a new species of plant.
The entire Botanical Relief Society had been notified of Wayne Enterprise's visit later that morning. Everyone had been scrambling to tidy things up, print up reports and make the offices and research areas look impressive in order to secure their funding. Dr. Isley hoped that she would have the genome of the new plant she had created completed in time for the tour. She was eager to see Mr. Wayne again and hoped to make a good impression.
"We have one more hour people!"
Pamela looked up over her microscope as Dr. Jason Woodrue walked into the lab. He patted a few of his colleagues on the back until he saw her sitting over her microscope.
"I hope you're ready for this, Pamela."
She smiled happily, just as excited as he was.
"If Mr. Wayne likes what he sees, then we'll be able to continue our research for another seven years," he said, walking towards her.
She stood up, proudly. As excited as she was to see Bruce Wayne in the building, she couldn't hold in her happiness for her successful experiment.
"Jason, I did it," she announced, softly to him. "I was able to recreate an entirely new genome from that blue poppy."
He frowned and sighed.
"It's an entirely new species with similar properties, but different effects," she continued, her voice rising in excitement. To her, it felt like Christmas.
He held up his hand, instantly turning down her happiness.
"I thought I told you to cancel that project," he said. "I don't want this society to become involved with someone like..." Jason paused for a moment. "...well, you know."
Pamela smiled, placing her hand on Jason's shoulder.
"But think of it," she stated. "A brand new species, still unnamed."
"A dangerous one," he added. "And I want you to get rid of it before the executives from Wayne Enterprises arrive. The last thing I want is for them to discover this experiment of yours and then take away our funding."
"But..."
"No, Pamela," he said, sternly. "Shut it down."
Jason turned on his heel.
"I expect you to meet me down at the front doors," he called out. "You'll be giving the tour."
This surprised her. As much as she enjoyed speaking about botany and preserving earth's resources, she could think of at least a dozen people who could do a better job than her.
"Me?"
Dr. Woodrue turned at the door and smiled at her.
"You've met the executives from Wayne Enterprises before," he said. "Besides, you're one of the most knowledgeable people in the building. If they have questions, you'll have the answers."
He walked out of the laboratory, leaving Dr. Isley alone. She looked down at her notebook, seeing the pages upon pages of work that she had done to create this new flower. Quickly, she closed them all. Moments later, she was pushing as much of her research into her locker. She didn't have the heart to destroy her work. Besides, in her mind, Dr. Woodrue didn't want Wayne Enterprises to discover her experiment. He never said anything about destroying it.
Pamela sighed as she rested her back against the lockers. She pulled off her small glasses and set them down before pulling her hair into a tighter pony tail.
Dr. Isley was quite beautiful, but she would hide it behind her glasses and baggy white coat. She turned and looked into the mirror. Her bright green eyes stared back at her and seemed to smile. After giving herself an internal pep-talk, she walked down to the front door to wait for the executives.
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An hour earlier...
He ran. Bruce felt the scratches of every branch he pushed through. They were like bony fingers pulling at him in the night, trying to slow him down. Once in the clearing, he stopped. He turned, unsure of which direction to go next. It was dark and the moonless night made it even more difficult to figure out where he was. His heart pounded in his chest as he tried to listen for anything. The wind whipped through the trees, knocking the branches together and picked up the dried leaves off the ground.
"Bruce!! Hurry!!"
Her echoed voice seemed to surround him. He didn't know which way to go next. He was beginning to feel desperate.
"Olivia!! Where are you?!?"
"Help me, please!!"
Her voice sounded frantic and painful and he was certain that she was sobbing.
Bruce spun around, trying to decipher where she was. Finally deciding, he raced back into the forest, clawing past trees and thick brush to get through.
"Mr. Wayne."
Bruce stopped, hearing his name. He recognized the voice but his mind couldn't connect it with the name.
"Mr. Wayne, wake up."
This time he felt a hand on his shoulder.
His eyes opened as he gasped and he slid down slightly in the leather chair. Bruce looked up, seeing the concerned face of the CEO of Wayne Enterprises.
"That must have been some dream," Mr. Fox commented as he sat back down across from Bruce.
"More like a nightmare," he stated as he pinched the bridge of his nose as he sat back up. Bruce turned to the window beside him and glanced out to see that they were still flying high over the clouds.
Lucius, meanwhile shook his newspaper as he turned the page.
"I take it that you didn't get much sleep before we left," Mr. Fox said.
Bruce thought back to when he returned from his nightly routine to find Olivia fast asleep in their bed. He longed to climb into bed beside her, just to feel her warmth and smell her familiar scent but this day had other plans for him. Instead, he went into the bathroom to shower up and quickly changed into his suit before he met Alfred downstairs to drive him to the airport.
"I didn't get any sleep. I didn't even get to see my wife awake."
Lucius winced and folded the paper down. For the past three years since they had been married, Bruce had purposely planned to be home for their anniversary, but this year was different. They were on a direct flight across the country to Seattle to meet with the directors of the Botanical Relief Society. It would be a short meeting, but the fact that it happened to fall on the same day as Bruce and Olivia's anniversary was another thing. Lucius knew the importance of spending time with his wife on their anniversary and could just imagine the wrath that Bruce could endure when he arrived home.
"I presume that you told her that you were going away for the day," Lucius said, to which Bruce nodded.
"I told her," he said. "And I also promised to be home later this evening. I think I'll take a break tonight too. It's been a while since I've stayed in all night."
Lucius smiled. 'Smart man,' he thought.
Bruce looked down at his watch, which was still set to the eastern time. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed before waiting to hear a voice. Her voice.
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Gotham City
Olivia wasn't surprised.
Bruce had told her a few days prior that he had to make a quick flight out to Seattle on their anniversary but she inwardly wished that she could've seen him that morning before he left. The last time she saw him was just before he left to do his nightly ritual of beating Gotham's criminal's to a pulp. She missed hearing his voice in her ear as she woke up in the morning and even those days were becoming increasingly rare.
Bruce had boughten Olivia an older restaurant as a wedding gift three years prior and she had spent a good six months with renovations in order to turn it into a sort of bakery/coffee house. When it opened, she would wake up early in the morning to go into work and prepare the baked goods for the morning rush. Most times she would miss Bruce before he would even arrive home.
Olivia was thankful for Alfred. If it wasn't for him, David would never get off to school in the mornings. She would pick David up at the private school which Bruce had once attended as a boy before returning home to see her husband for a few hours before he would leave again for the evening. And so, the days would continue like this, with a slight break in the summertime before it all began again. Olivia enjoyed the predictability of it all, but she missed Bruce.
When her cell phone began to ring in her jeans pocket, she reached for it and smiled, instantly recognizing the number. She excused herself from the front cash and allowed one of her co-op students to take over while she pushed open the door to the kitchen.
She flipped the cell phone open.
"Hello my love."
She could hear him chuckle softly and could tell he was smiling.
"Hi honey," he said. "Sorry I missed you this morning."
"Yeah, I missed you too. How's the flight?"
"Not too bad," he said, purposely neglecting to inform her of his nightmare involving her. "I was just calling to tell you happy anniversary and that I promise that I'll be back tonight."
"Will you be staying in all night?"
She heard him sigh.
"I know that there are things that you need to do," she said, looking through the kitchen window to the front cash where a few patrons stood in line. "But could you stay in at least one night. It's our anniversary, Bruce."
"Actually, I was planning on staying home all night," he told her as her smile widened. "I was planning on telling you later on."
"That has to be the best anniversary gift," she exclaimed. "Just wait until you see yours. Tell me now though; do you want it wrapped or unwrapped?"
He looked confused and sounded it.
"Shouldn't it be wrapped?"
She leaned against the kitchen wall and smiled, proudly. She chuckled.
"Okay then, I'll make sure that I'm dressed."
Olivia could hear him stammer slightly. Even after all these years, she could still cause him to stumble over his words. She could just imagine Mr. Fox's face as he shared the private jet with his employer.
"In that case, unwrapped would be fine."
She smiled.
"I thought so," she said. "I love you."
"I love you too," he said. "I'll be home soon."
"Bye.
"Bye."
Olivia tucked the cell phone back into her pocket and pushed through the door into the front part of the bakery. It was now quite busy as patrons filled the place.
"Mrs. Wayne," a young college girl at the till called to her. "Do we have any of those sticky buns left?"
"I'll check, Celine," Olivia said, ducking underneath the counter.
As much as she enjoyed working at the bakery, Olivia couldn't wait for the day to be over.
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Seattle, Washington
10:30am
They were late. An unexpected rain storm caused a slight delay at the airport but they finally arrived at the Botanical Relief Society. The door to the Mercedes opened and Bruce stepped out and under an opened umbrella. He waited until Mr. Fox was beside him before entering the building. When they stepped inside, they were instantly greeted.
A man in his mid-fourties eagerly reached out his hand to shake with the two business men.
"Mr. Fox and Mr. Wayne," he said. "I'm glad that you could make it."
Both Bruce and Lucius smiled as they shook the man's hand.
"Dr. Woodrue," Lucius said. "Thank you for accommodating us."
"Of course," he stated as he turned to the woman beside him. "And you remember Dr. Isley."
The woman happily extended her hand towards them. Mr. Fox was the first to shake her hand and nodded in greeting.
"How have you been, doctor?" Bruce asked as he shook her hand. He smiled.
"Very well, thank you," she replied. "If either of you have any questions, I'll try my best to answer them for you."
Pamela began the tour and showed the two men the various departments within the Botanical Relief. She noted that Bruce Wayne didn't seem to interested in what he was seeing and this was starting to concern her. She had hoped that he would be excited to see what his money was doing for the environment. In her mind, someone of his stature and influence could have a great impact on how others view the importance of protecting the environment. She was determined to do what she could to secure their funding.
When they arrived in the research department, she turned to a large array of plants that they had growing within a small table top greenhouse and began to speak about how they've been created to survive in climates and conditions where they would normally die.
Her presentation didn't seem to interest the billionaire either. He always seemed to be looking around the room. She was beginning to wonder if he had any interests either than buying extravagant things or flirting with woman.
She led them into the lab where a dozen microscopes sat proudly on the tables.
Bruce once again glanced around the room. It must have been obvious that he didn't want to be there. Botany was never something that interested him but he liked how the society was busy with cleaning up the environment. He was busy thinking of his wife and eagerly waiting for when they could leave. He listened to the questions that Mr. Fox asked and listened half-hearted to the answers he was getting. Suddenly, something caught his eye. He couldn't believe what he was looking at. He walked away from where Mr. Fox stood speaking to Dr. Isley. She glanced over to where Bruce walked as she spoke, her words suddenly escaping her when she realized what the billionaire had found.
Bruce picked up the small blue poppy. It was the same.
"Where did you get this flower?"
Pamela's face paled. How could she had forgotten to put the flower away with her research?
"It's actually a new species based off of an existing one," she said, walking rather quickly over to where the billionaire stood. "It was donated and the project has been terminated, so I'm not certain where it originates from." She gently took the flower away from him.
"Oh, I was just wondering where you got it because I'm certain it would be something my wife would like," he said, making up the first excuse that he could come up with. It was a realistic one too. Olivia would appreciate that flower and Bruce was sure that he waas looking at the same flower that he once picked on the hills of the Himalayas.
Dr. Isley stared blankly at Bruce.
"Your wife? I wasn't aware that you were married yet."
Bruce grinned. "Three years today."
Pamela winced inwardly and forced a smile. "Congratulations. Send my regards to your wife."
"I'm so sorry, Mr. Wayne, Mr. Fox," Dr. Woodrue said, suddenly appearing in the room. "May I speak with Dr. Isley for a moment?"
"Of course," Mr. Fox said, smiling as the woman walked out of the lab and into the hallway.
Lucius turned to Bruce.
"Is that what I think it was?"
Bruce nodded. "How the hell did that flower get here?"
"Do you think there could be any connection to those men that terrorized Gotham a few years back?"
"Ra's Al Ghul is gone," Bruce reminded him. "What I learned is that they are nothing without a leader but the fact that this flower is here concerns me."
A few moments later, Dr. Woodrue walked into the lab, alone.
"Sorry about that," he said. "Something has come up and the tour will have to be put on hold. Perhaps we can discuss any further questions you may have in my office upstairs."
Bruce shrugged and plastered a smile on his face before following Dr. Woodrue out of the lab and into the hallway. They reached the elevator when a loud buzzing alarm flooded the hallways.
"What the hell?" Dr. Woodrue cursed as dozens of scientists and office personnel filled the hallways. With the alarm on, the elevator was shut down. He grabbed hold of the first person that rushed past him. "What's going on?"
"There has been a containment failure in research room 5," he said, pushing to get past. "I'm not sticking around to see what exactly has lost containment."
Dr. Woodrue thought for a moment as his eyes widened, realizing what was stored in that particular room. He turned to Mr. Fox and Mr. Wayne.
"You both need to leave this area," he told them urgently, pushing them towards the stairs. The hall was already beginning to fill with a light dust. "Get out."
Bruce usually would argue with the man, but he had no authorization to order him to leave. In actuality, everyone would expect him to leave. He turned with Lucius at his side as they rushed down the stairs.
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The alarms were deafening, but it was worth it. She was angry. How could Jason fire her for something as simple as leaving a plant out? Granted, it was from a project that he told her to discontinue. Rather than simply leaving the building, she thought it best to ruin any chance of him getting his precious grant from Wayne Enterprises by destroying years of research. Pamela looked up as the haze filled the room. She found it odd that it wasn't bothering her in the least. The dozens of spores; some safe and some lethal were at hazardous levels in the room.
She was surprised when the door suddenly opened and Dr. Jason Woodrue fell into the room. He coughed and choked as he looked at her standing calmly in the middle of the room. A small smile tugged at the side of her mouth.
"Hurts, doesn't it?"
Pamela couldn't understand why she was getting satisfaction at seeing him choke to death on the toxins in the room. She now felt empowered after earlier being yelled at by the man that now cowered at her feet in pain. He looked up at her with wide eyes as his mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. Dr. Isley seemed to know the question he was asking.
"I don't know why I'm standing here and you're down there," she began. "But once I opened that containment, I haven't felt better than I have in my entire life. I have no idea why I'm not laying on the floor beside you."
A revelation came to her.
"Perhaps it's from all those years of using myself as a test subject for my experiments," she said, excitedly. "In a way, I could be immune to sicknesses and diseases. The very plants that kill you, give me life."
She leaned over Jason as he started up at her, wide-eyed with his mouth open. Suddenly, she could hear footsteps coming down the hallway. Quickly, she ran out of the room by a back door as men in haz-mat suits walked into the room.
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7:48pm
Gotham City
Olivia stood on the tarmac, waiting anxiously to see Bruce walk off the private plane as it came to a stop a few hundred meters away from her. The numerous news reports and photo's of the environmental emergency in Seattle was enough to make her sick to her stomach. She had received a phone call from Wayne Enterprises to the bakery earlier in the day, prior to any news reports that Bruce was in the building at the time of the accident. She had tried to keep herself busy at the bakery but after having to prepare the same bread dough recipe twice, she knew that she would be useless for the rest of the day. Olivia left the closing of the store to a couple of her university co-op students and headed home. After speaking with Bruce on the phone when he was finally released from the hospital with Lucius, she still couldn't relax. She had to see him. It had been the longest afternoon that she could remember.
Now as she stood, watching as the stairs moved towards the plane, she squinted to see when Bruce would walk off. She walked towards the plane as the door opened and she could then see Lucius and Bruce begin to walk down the stairs. She could see the flashes of light reflecting off the stairs coming from photographers closer to the terminal eager to get a picture of Bruce and Lucius as they come off the plane from their Seattle trip.
"Bruce!"
He looked up and smiled, seeing Olivia walking quickly towards the stairs. He turned and shook Lucius' hand before once again turning his attention back to his wife.
Olivia had never seen him smile so broadly in a long time. She jumped up and wrapped her arms around his neck as Bruce held her tightly. He took a deep breath, feeling her hair against his face. Slowly, Olivia loosened her grip around his neck and felt herself being lowered until she was face to face with Bruce. He pushed her hair away from her face and leaned in and kissed her.
"I'm so glad you're okay and that you're home," Olivia said when they broke the kiss. He wrapped his arm around her waist as they walked off the tarmac towards the car. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine," he said. "I can't wait to get home though."
Olivia smiled.
"David is eager to see you. He's joined the soccer team."
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Wayne Manor
9:36pm
"You've should have seen me," David said, as he stood in the middle of the den, still wearing the school soccer uniform and holding a ball in his hand. He excitedly recounted how he scored one of the five goals during the first soccer practice of the school year and included every highlight in dramatic detail. Olivia chuckled as he even reenacted his team's victory dance after each goal. At nearly twelve years old, the boy was looking more and more like his father all the time. He still had her nose though and her lighter brown hair. Olivia couldn't believe how tall he had gotten over the summer. He would be twelve before Christmas. Olivia shook her head. She never thought she'd live to see the day.
"Alfred mentioned that Jessica McLaughlin was there as well," Olivia said.
David nodded. Jessica had become a familiar name and face around Wayne Manor. Both she and David had started at the private school on the same day three years prior and quickly became friends. She would spend days in the summertime playing at Wayne Manor. Her father worked as a stock broker at the bank while her mother worked for the city.
"Jessica and I are working on a school project," David explained. "She wanted to talk about it after the practice. Could I go over to her house on the weekend to work on it?"
Olivia nodded. "I'll talk to Mrs. McLaughlin about it, but it shouldn't be a problem."
Bruce stretched and glanced at the clock on the wall.
"It's nearly ten o'clock," he said. "Bedtime, David."
Olivia stood up. "I think it's bedtime for all of us. Some of us have had a busy day."
She stopped and put her hands on Bruce's shoulders as David ran out of the room, soccer ball in hand. A moment later, she heard it bouncing over the marble floors.
"Not in the house, David!" she called out just as the bouncing stopped.
Bruce chuckled as he stood up and took Olivia's hand.
"Now," he began as his arms encircled Olivia's waist. He lightly kissed her neck. "Let's talk about that anniversary gift."
"Upstairs," Olivia whispered as they left the room and headed towards the master bedroom.
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Seattle, Washington
9:34pm
Pamela sat at her laptop, her hair in a loose pony tail on top of her head as she typed busily on the keyboard. She casually blew her hair out of her eyes and pushed her glasses up higher on her nose. Her co-workers had been calling her all afternoon, trying to track her down. She ignored the phone calls. The last people she wanted to see were those from the Botanical Relief. They were the same people that caused her grief. It was too bad that they weren't inside that research room along with Dr. Woodrue. She wouldn't have minded to see them all twitch on the floor as they choked to death on the spores and toxins in the air.
She felt different since returning back to her apartment. She felt more empowered as a woman and as an environmentalist.
She glanced over at the blue poppy plant sitting on her counter. Pamela turned to the notebook beside her and looked at the first page where she had written in it. A sudden knock on the door caused her to glance up. She unfolded her legs and walked towards the door. She peeked through the hole, her eyes widening when she realized who stood on the other side. Quickly, she opened it.
"It's you," she said.
The man walked into her small apartment.
"You're the one that brought me the flower."
"That's right," the man said. "My name is Henri Ducard."
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A/N - I know it's slow right now, but I don't want to leave loose ends and I need to set things up for what's to come...please read and review...I always appreciate hearing from my readers...