TITLE: Good Day In Hell
AUTHOR: Shawn Carter
EMAIL: gfshawn@earthlink.net
DISCLAIMER: DC owns the comic. The WB has temporary custody. Hopefully another net will show some vision and grab at it. No infringement is intended. SUMMARY: We know Helena has anger management issues. We know she's done some rather not so innocent things in her times. And we know that she is hopelessly drawn towards the lawless nature of some. Now she has to face up to a nightmare from the past that could have implications towards the future. RATING: PG-13. Language. Violence. Adult situations.
Music: Title and lyrics are the Eagles.
*****
I used to hurry a lot, I used to worry a lot
I used to stay out till the break of day
Oh, that didn't get it,
It was high time I quit it
I just couldn't carry on that way
Oh, I did some damage, I know it's true
*****
She kicked out, her foot connecting solidly with his jaw. He groaned and fell back. "This is too easy," she muttered, apparently to no one.
"I'm sorry," the voice came back. "Next time I'll try to find someone for you who's more up to your standards."
"Oracle," Helena Kyle admonished. "Sarcasm will get you nowhere."
"And yet," Barbara Gordon replied dryly. "Hey, you've got an incoming signal from Detective Reese."
"Oh?" Helena asked, trying not to sound too terribly interested. Things had been odd and confused between the two of them as of late. He had picked up on the vibe she had kicked out when he had started talking about the masked vigilante who called himself The Batman.
Her father. And really only Batman.
She had thought they had gotten past that. She had figured that he had gotten over his meta issues. But apparently that idiot psycho cop Morton was still in his head. Just a little bit.
Enough.
"I know you too well, Huntress. That 'oh' doesn't fly with me," Barbara said, practically smiling through the comm.-line.
"I should turn you off," Helena commented.
"Sure but then who would you rant at?"
"Point taken," the blue-eyed crime-fighter replied. "Okay, these guys here are ready for pick-up. So where am I going next?"
"Park and View."
Helena snorted. "You know I always wondered who the genius was who thought it'd be funny to place streets named Park and View right next to each other. I bet he stayed up at night and."
"You think too much."
"Should I take that as a compliment?" Helena asked as she jumped across one of the rooftops. It was exhilarating. It got the blood pumping wildly.
"No," Barbara said with a laugh. "Okay, I'm getting some details. Looks like a murder."
"Ooh. Original. Unusual even for New Gotham."
"And I'm the sarcastic one."
"I see him," Helena said, ignoring her mentor.
"Him as in Reese or the murder victim?" Barbara prodded, amusement in her voice. No matter how much Helena protested, she could tell that the handsome cop was deep under the younger woman's skin.
"The murder victim," Helena snapped back. "You're nosy, you know that?"
"I'm a voice in your ear, Huntress. It's my job to be nosy."
"Well you do it well. Hang on a sec." She jumped down from the roof and moved to stand behind Detective Jesse Reese.
She saw him tilt his head backwards and sigh. His hand went into his pocket and he pulled out a smile pill bottle. He flipped the top and removed two aspirin. He paused for a moment and then took a third. He put them in his mouth and began to crunch down on them. She winced a bit.
"Yuck," she said, leaning against his squad car. He glanced up at her and grimaced. She saw his hand go back to the bottle. She was quicker.
"Hey!" he protested as she took the aspirin bottle from his hand. She turned it over and looked at the label. Then she grinned and tossed it back to him.
"So I should guess you're not happy to see me?" she asked, mock hurt.
"Very smooth," Oracle said into her ear. She could hear typing in the background.
"That depends," Reese commented. "Do you ever just drop in to say hello and hey, how did you sleep last night?"
Helena frowned, "Really don't have time for that. You know, with all the ass-kicking and all."
"Ever wonder why none of your relationships last longer than a couple dates?" Barbara commented. "It could be the constant threat of bodily harm."
Helena snorted.
"Something funny?" Reese queried. He moved to stand beside her and gently urged her off of his hood.
"You have no idea. Okay.so, who's dead?"
"Are you okay?" Reese asked, gazing at her. "You're acting a little bit."
"Chipper for a murder scene?" Barbara put in.
"Odd," Reese finished.
"I'm fine. Just.business as usual. You know." Helena moved away from Reese and over towards the corpse. "How did he die?" She felt suddenly very strange. Almost unnaturally amped and on-edge.
"Mmm, got the hell beat out of him," Reese replied. "And how did you know it was a he?"
"Generic," Helena said. Then she smiled. "Plus my Voice told me so."
"The Voice," Reese said, shaking his head. "This is nuts." He moved back towards the body. "No ID yet. A male somewhere in his 20's."
Helena followed him for a few steps and then stopped. "God."
"Huntress?" Oracle asked quickly, picking up on her protégé's sudden change in mood and attitude. "Are you alright?"
"Huntress?" Reese asked, coming to her side. Her face had gone pale and she looked like she was wavering.
"Falco," she said, her voice very quiet.
"You know this guy," Reese asked, a tint of something unidentifiable slipping into her voice. "Or knew?"
"Yes," she replied. "I.I have to go." She turned from him quickly and began to move away. He reached out for her but she evaded his touch.
"What's wrong?" he called out after her.
He saw her jump and then just like that, she was gone. He blinked, still a bit surprised. He knew that she was prone to abrupt emotional changes but this had taken even him aback.
"Falco. Okay, Falco.who are you?"
******
"Huntress? Huntress?" Barbara called out into her transceiver. "Damn it, Helena.talk to me."
"No," she said flatly. "Going off-line."
"Helena, no!" Oracle cried out. The moment the line went dead, she hit her fist against the table. "Damn."
"Barbara?" Dinah Redmond said, entering from the kitchen. She was holding an oversized sandwich on a plate. Alfred had no doubt constructed the monstrosity. "What's wrong?"
"Helena," she muttered. She took a deep breath. "Some skeletons don't stay in the closet like they should."
Dinah pulled up a chair and sat down. "Talk. Sounds juicy."
Barbara moved quickly away from the girl. "It's not. And it's not mine to talk about." She punched two buttons on a keyboard and the monitor above her flashed the words: Dialing Helena.
The phone rang three times and then the machine kicked on. "Not here. Talk."
"Helena, it's Barbara. When you get in tonight, call me. We need to talk about this. Don't do anything stupid."
Dinah lifted an eyebrow. It didn't take a lot to figure out that whatever Helena's skeleton was, it wasn't just a case of stealing a pack of smokes from the local Texeco.
Barbara disconnected the line and then swung back around. She dropped her head so that it was lying against the pad on the rear of her chair. "Shit," she muttered. Then she glanced at Dinah. "We should work out. It's been awhile."
Dinah shook her head. "Not a chance," she said, just before she shoved the sandwich into her mouth.
Barbara lifted an eyebrow. "We agreed that your workouts."
"Oh right...but not when you're in whatever mood you're in," Dinah said with a laugh. "I may be crazy for wanting to be a superhero but I'm not stupid."
Barbara grunted, "Fine." She spun back to the keyboard. She started punching keys quickly and with a little more force than was absolutely necessary. A picture came up on the screen of a man named Trevor Falco.
"Who's that?"
"The skeleton," Barbara muttered. She clicked on the picture and a file sprang to life. It had numbers stretched across it. And a prison ID. She turned towards another screen where a progress bar was reaching its end. A few seconds later it kicked out several paragraphs related to the new murder victim. There was a lovely black and white photo attached to the file. It showed a corpse with various bruises up and down his body.
"Dinah," Barbara said turning towards her charge. "Shouldn't you be doing something?"
Dinah lifted an eyebrow. "Such as?"
"Uh.I don't know." Barbara admitted, frustration in her voice. "Look.I."
"I'm part of the team, right?" Dinah asked, her voice suddenly very quiet. Barbara nodded. "Okay then, let me help. I get that you don't want to tell me what's going on.even if I should probably know.but let me help how I can."
Barbara sighed. "Okay. Do me a favor then."
"Anything."
"Head over to the bar and see if Helena is there. If she's not, check No Man's Land."
"You're worried about her."
"I am," Barbara agreed. "Very."
******
She slammed the bottle down on the counter and then looked up at the bartended. "Another."
"I think you've had enough," the tall man said, taking the bottle and then moving away from her.
She reached out and grabbed him by the collar. "I'll make that decision, okay?" She yanked his head down towards the bar. "Okay? So another beer, right?"
"Wrong," a voice said from behind her.
She turned. And smiled.
"Detective Reese," she called out loudly. She tossed her arms around his neck. "How is the good Detective?"
"Apparently not as good as you," Reese said with a hint of amusement. He pulled her loose of him and took a long look. "You're ripped."
She smiled. Then she nodded. "I am." She seemed almost proud.
"I should guess then that you're a loud drunk?" Reese asked, reaching into his pocket. He turned to the barkeep. "How much?"
"About thirty."
Reese shot Helena a look of amazement. "Tell me each beer cost ten bucks."
"Not even close," the barkeeper replied with a chuckle. "You a friend of hers?" There was an air of suspicion around him that made Reese guess that the barkeep was well familiar with Huntress. And a bit protective. It crossed his mind that this man probably knew what her real name was. He sighed. Neither the time nor the place.
"Something like that," Reese muttered. He handed the man a twenty and a ten and then looked back at Helena. She was already starting to amble towards the pool table. "Nuh uh."
"What? You gonna play protector guy now?" she goaded. She turned and grinned up at him, looking almost loopy.
"Come on. You need some air."
"Not the only thing," she said with a grin, just a moment before her lips were touching his.
He melted.
And for a long moment, it was just like that. Passionate and hungry. She touched his face and pulled him closer, her fingers stroking his stubbled cheek.
And then he remembered. "Wait," he said, breaking away. "Come on, no."
"Whatever," she said, turning away from him. Then she turned back. "I don't need this shit, Reese."
"Okay, sure.what shit exactly?" he asked, confused. He stepped back and away from her, as if anticipating a tirade.
She motioned wildly. "I can't figure you out."
"Me?" he exclaimed. "You're joking, right?"
"You're hot. You're cold. I'm a thing.what am I, Reese?"
"That sounds loaded," he observed cautiously. "Look, you're not doing so well. Let me get you home." He reached out and took her arm.
She grinned. "Always wanted to get me home, huh?"
"Come on, Huntress," he said with a grunt as he spun around and lifted her up. She laughed loudly as he tossed her over his shoulder. "Can you tell me where you live?"
"Yes," she replied solemnly. "But then I'd have to kill you." She started laughing then. She reached across and nipped his ear.
He closed his eyes for a moment. Then, having collected himself he replied, "My apartment it is."
"Why Detective."
"Shut up, Huntress. Just.shut up," Reese ordered. He strode over to his car and then tossed her into the backseat. He wasn't in the mood to deal with her odd come-ons. No matter how normally receptive he might have been.
His intention had been to unwind. To cool off after a long day. He was still waiting on reports from the murder scene. Still waiting to find out who this Falco guy was. He hadn't been looking for her but apparently this didn't matter; she was with him now.
Falco, he thought. That was when things had turned upside down.
"Of course," he said, looking back at his now fast-asleep passenger. "That's why you're drunk." He sighed. "You are a mystery."
She just snored lightly in response.
TBC.
AUTHOR: Shawn Carter
EMAIL: gfshawn@earthlink.net
DISCLAIMER: DC owns the comic. The WB has temporary custody. Hopefully another net will show some vision and grab at it. No infringement is intended. SUMMARY: We know Helena has anger management issues. We know she's done some rather not so innocent things in her times. And we know that she is hopelessly drawn towards the lawless nature of some. Now she has to face up to a nightmare from the past that could have implications towards the future. RATING: PG-13. Language. Violence. Adult situations.
Music: Title and lyrics are the Eagles.
*****
I used to hurry a lot, I used to worry a lot
I used to stay out till the break of day
Oh, that didn't get it,
It was high time I quit it
I just couldn't carry on that way
Oh, I did some damage, I know it's true
*****
She kicked out, her foot connecting solidly with his jaw. He groaned and fell back. "This is too easy," she muttered, apparently to no one.
"I'm sorry," the voice came back. "Next time I'll try to find someone for you who's more up to your standards."
"Oracle," Helena Kyle admonished. "Sarcasm will get you nowhere."
"And yet," Barbara Gordon replied dryly. "Hey, you've got an incoming signal from Detective Reese."
"Oh?" Helena asked, trying not to sound too terribly interested. Things had been odd and confused between the two of them as of late. He had picked up on the vibe she had kicked out when he had started talking about the masked vigilante who called himself The Batman.
Her father. And really only Batman.
She had thought they had gotten past that. She had figured that he had gotten over his meta issues. But apparently that idiot psycho cop Morton was still in his head. Just a little bit.
Enough.
"I know you too well, Huntress. That 'oh' doesn't fly with me," Barbara said, practically smiling through the comm.-line.
"I should turn you off," Helena commented.
"Sure but then who would you rant at?"
"Point taken," the blue-eyed crime-fighter replied. "Okay, these guys here are ready for pick-up. So where am I going next?"
"Park and View."
Helena snorted. "You know I always wondered who the genius was who thought it'd be funny to place streets named Park and View right next to each other. I bet he stayed up at night and."
"You think too much."
"Should I take that as a compliment?" Helena asked as she jumped across one of the rooftops. It was exhilarating. It got the blood pumping wildly.
"No," Barbara said with a laugh. "Okay, I'm getting some details. Looks like a murder."
"Ooh. Original. Unusual even for New Gotham."
"And I'm the sarcastic one."
"I see him," Helena said, ignoring her mentor.
"Him as in Reese or the murder victim?" Barbara prodded, amusement in her voice. No matter how much Helena protested, she could tell that the handsome cop was deep under the younger woman's skin.
"The murder victim," Helena snapped back. "You're nosy, you know that?"
"I'm a voice in your ear, Huntress. It's my job to be nosy."
"Well you do it well. Hang on a sec." She jumped down from the roof and moved to stand behind Detective Jesse Reese.
She saw him tilt his head backwards and sigh. His hand went into his pocket and he pulled out a smile pill bottle. He flipped the top and removed two aspirin. He paused for a moment and then took a third. He put them in his mouth and began to crunch down on them. She winced a bit.
"Yuck," she said, leaning against his squad car. He glanced up at her and grimaced. She saw his hand go back to the bottle. She was quicker.
"Hey!" he protested as she took the aspirin bottle from his hand. She turned it over and looked at the label. Then she grinned and tossed it back to him.
"So I should guess you're not happy to see me?" she asked, mock hurt.
"Very smooth," Oracle said into her ear. She could hear typing in the background.
"That depends," Reese commented. "Do you ever just drop in to say hello and hey, how did you sleep last night?"
Helena frowned, "Really don't have time for that. You know, with all the ass-kicking and all."
"Ever wonder why none of your relationships last longer than a couple dates?" Barbara commented. "It could be the constant threat of bodily harm."
Helena snorted.
"Something funny?" Reese queried. He moved to stand beside her and gently urged her off of his hood.
"You have no idea. Okay.so, who's dead?"
"Are you okay?" Reese asked, gazing at her. "You're acting a little bit."
"Chipper for a murder scene?" Barbara put in.
"Odd," Reese finished.
"I'm fine. Just.business as usual. You know." Helena moved away from Reese and over towards the corpse. "How did he die?" She felt suddenly very strange. Almost unnaturally amped and on-edge.
"Mmm, got the hell beat out of him," Reese replied. "And how did you know it was a he?"
"Generic," Helena said. Then she smiled. "Plus my Voice told me so."
"The Voice," Reese said, shaking his head. "This is nuts." He moved back towards the body. "No ID yet. A male somewhere in his 20's."
Helena followed him for a few steps and then stopped. "God."
"Huntress?" Oracle asked quickly, picking up on her protégé's sudden change in mood and attitude. "Are you alright?"
"Huntress?" Reese asked, coming to her side. Her face had gone pale and she looked like she was wavering.
"Falco," she said, her voice very quiet.
"You know this guy," Reese asked, a tint of something unidentifiable slipping into her voice. "Or knew?"
"Yes," she replied. "I.I have to go." She turned from him quickly and began to move away. He reached out for her but she evaded his touch.
"What's wrong?" he called out after her.
He saw her jump and then just like that, she was gone. He blinked, still a bit surprised. He knew that she was prone to abrupt emotional changes but this had taken even him aback.
"Falco. Okay, Falco.who are you?"
******
"Huntress? Huntress?" Barbara called out into her transceiver. "Damn it, Helena.talk to me."
"No," she said flatly. "Going off-line."
"Helena, no!" Oracle cried out. The moment the line went dead, she hit her fist against the table. "Damn."
"Barbara?" Dinah Redmond said, entering from the kitchen. She was holding an oversized sandwich on a plate. Alfred had no doubt constructed the monstrosity. "What's wrong?"
"Helena," she muttered. She took a deep breath. "Some skeletons don't stay in the closet like they should."
Dinah pulled up a chair and sat down. "Talk. Sounds juicy."
Barbara moved quickly away from the girl. "It's not. And it's not mine to talk about." She punched two buttons on a keyboard and the monitor above her flashed the words: Dialing Helena.
The phone rang three times and then the machine kicked on. "Not here. Talk."
"Helena, it's Barbara. When you get in tonight, call me. We need to talk about this. Don't do anything stupid."
Dinah lifted an eyebrow. It didn't take a lot to figure out that whatever Helena's skeleton was, it wasn't just a case of stealing a pack of smokes from the local Texeco.
Barbara disconnected the line and then swung back around. She dropped her head so that it was lying against the pad on the rear of her chair. "Shit," she muttered. Then she glanced at Dinah. "We should work out. It's been awhile."
Dinah shook her head. "Not a chance," she said, just before she shoved the sandwich into her mouth.
Barbara lifted an eyebrow. "We agreed that your workouts."
"Oh right...but not when you're in whatever mood you're in," Dinah said with a laugh. "I may be crazy for wanting to be a superhero but I'm not stupid."
Barbara grunted, "Fine." She spun back to the keyboard. She started punching keys quickly and with a little more force than was absolutely necessary. A picture came up on the screen of a man named Trevor Falco.
"Who's that?"
"The skeleton," Barbara muttered. She clicked on the picture and a file sprang to life. It had numbers stretched across it. And a prison ID. She turned towards another screen where a progress bar was reaching its end. A few seconds later it kicked out several paragraphs related to the new murder victim. There was a lovely black and white photo attached to the file. It showed a corpse with various bruises up and down his body.
"Dinah," Barbara said turning towards her charge. "Shouldn't you be doing something?"
Dinah lifted an eyebrow. "Such as?"
"Uh.I don't know." Barbara admitted, frustration in her voice. "Look.I."
"I'm part of the team, right?" Dinah asked, her voice suddenly very quiet. Barbara nodded. "Okay then, let me help. I get that you don't want to tell me what's going on.even if I should probably know.but let me help how I can."
Barbara sighed. "Okay. Do me a favor then."
"Anything."
"Head over to the bar and see if Helena is there. If she's not, check No Man's Land."
"You're worried about her."
"I am," Barbara agreed. "Very."
******
She slammed the bottle down on the counter and then looked up at the bartended. "Another."
"I think you've had enough," the tall man said, taking the bottle and then moving away from her.
She reached out and grabbed him by the collar. "I'll make that decision, okay?" She yanked his head down towards the bar. "Okay? So another beer, right?"
"Wrong," a voice said from behind her.
She turned. And smiled.
"Detective Reese," she called out loudly. She tossed her arms around his neck. "How is the good Detective?"
"Apparently not as good as you," Reese said with a hint of amusement. He pulled her loose of him and took a long look. "You're ripped."
She smiled. Then she nodded. "I am." She seemed almost proud.
"I should guess then that you're a loud drunk?" Reese asked, reaching into his pocket. He turned to the barkeep. "How much?"
"About thirty."
Reese shot Helena a look of amazement. "Tell me each beer cost ten bucks."
"Not even close," the barkeeper replied with a chuckle. "You a friend of hers?" There was an air of suspicion around him that made Reese guess that the barkeep was well familiar with Huntress. And a bit protective. It crossed his mind that this man probably knew what her real name was. He sighed. Neither the time nor the place.
"Something like that," Reese muttered. He handed the man a twenty and a ten and then looked back at Helena. She was already starting to amble towards the pool table. "Nuh uh."
"What? You gonna play protector guy now?" she goaded. She turned and grinned up at him, looking almost loopy.
"Come on. You need some air."
"Not the only thing," she said with a grin, just a moment before her lips were touching his.
He melted.
And for a long moment, it was just like that. Passionate and hungry. She touched his face and pulled him closer, her fingers stroking his stubbled cheek.
And then he remembered. "Wait," he said, breaking away. "Come on, no."
"Whatever," she said, turning away from him. Then she turned back. "I don't need this shit, Reese."
"Okay, sure.what shit exactly?" he asked, confused. He stepped back and away from her, as if anticipating a tirade.
She motioned wildly. "I can't figure you out."
"Me?" he exclaimed. "You're joking, right?"
"You're hot. You're cold. I'm a thing.what am I, Reese?"
"That sounds loaded," he observed cautiously. "Look, you're not doing so well. Let me get you home." He reached out and took her arm.
She grinned. "Always wanted to get me home, huh?"
"Come on, Huntress," he said with a grunt as he spun around and lifted her up. She laughed loudly as he tossed her over his shoulder. "Can you tell me where you live?"
"Yes," she replied solemnly. "But then I'd have to kill you." She started laughing then. She reached across and nipped his ear.
He closed his eyes for a moment. Then, having collected himself he replied, "My apartment it is."
"Why Detective."
"Shut up, Huntress. Just.shut up," Reese ordered. He strode over to his car and then tossed her into the backseat. He wasn't in the mood to deal with her odd come-ons. No matter how normally receptive he might have been.
His intention had been to unwind. To cool off after a long day. He was still waiting on reports from the murder scene. Still waiting to find out who this Falco guy was. He hadn't been looking for her but apparently this didn't matter; she was with him now.
Falco, he thought. That was when things had turned upside down.
"Of course," he said, looking back at his now fast-asleep passenger. "That's why you're drunk." He sighed. "You are a mystery."
She just snored lightly in response.
TBC.