Chapter 10

It was a moment that would stay with Ivy forever. One minute she had been sitting in her front room with Ed and their son, then Ozzie came rushing in pale and breathless and scared.

"The barn is on fire!" he said tearfully, "Lilly's in the barn!"

"What?" Ivy said in horror, then she dashed to the window and looked out.

"Look at the smoke, Mommy!" said Eddie as he pointed skyward.

Ed took his phone from his pocket and turned to Ivy.

"You stay here with Eddie, I'm going over there, I'll call for help on the way!"

"What can I do?" asked Ozzie.

"Go home and tell your parents what's happened. By the way, where's Ivan?"

"He went back to save Ivy!"

"Go home!" Ed urged him, then he dashed out of the door, calling the emergency services as he ran towards the place where smoke was rising high into the sky.

"Mommy?" said Eddie, as for a moment, Ivy stood there frozen with fear as she looked to the fire in the distance.

"No, no no... not my baby!" she suddenly gasped, then she turned back to her son with fear reflecting in her eyes.

"Stay here!" she told him firmly, "Do not leave this house, I have to go and fetch Lilly! Do not go out of that door, do you understand?"

Eddie nodded.

"Good boy!" she said, then she ran to the front door, went out and closed it heavily behind her.

As the smoke continued to rise, Eddie stood alone in the house, watching from the window.

Ivy ran along the path, her heart racing, her breath in short bursts as she raced towards the barn. All she saw was smoke and raging flames as she reached the end of the path, Ed had just arrived and he was looking in horror towards the open barn doors where inside, the walls were on fire.

"LILLY!" Ivy screamed.

Ed glanced back.

"I'm going in," was all he said, but then something happened and it felt like a miracle:
Ivan staggered out of the barn, he was marked with soot and coughing and carrying Lilly in his arms. He got clear of the barn and fell to his knees, as Ed helped him, they laid Lilly on the ground. There was a crash as the barn roof caved in and the fire continued to burn.

"Help is on the way," Ed said, and he placed a hand on Ivan's shoulder, "Well done, you got her out!"

Then as he turned back towards Lilly, Ivy was beside her. She fell to her knees looking in shock at her daughter, who was motionless. She wasn't burned - but she wasn't moving, either. Her right leg was shattered, the ankle was crushed and twisted.

"Lilly!" Ivy said tearfully as she leaned over her, "Lilly, wake up!"

"Don't move her!" Ed warned, but Ivy wasn't listening as she raised her up and cradled her in her arms and sobbed, pressing her face against hair that carried the smell of the smoke.

"I need to feel for a pulse!" Ed told her, "She might need CPR!"

Ivy gave a cry of anguish and carried on holding her tight as she wept, sobbing as she held her motionless child.

"No, no, not my Lilly," she sobbed, "My little baby Penguin... I love you so much, my special baby, my Pengie's baby... I live for you, don't leave Mommy!"

Ed reached in carefully as Ivy rocked her daughter, and as he felt her pulse at her throat he breathed a relieved sigh.

"Ivy, she's alive!"

As the words registered, Ivy held her tighter and sobbed harder, then Lilly suddenly gasped a lungful of air and coughed. Now Ed took over, releasing her from Ivy's grasp and laying her down on the ground as she coughed again. She opened her eyes and looked up at her mother and pain registered on her face as she gave a weak cry.

"It's okay," Ivy said tearfully, "I'm here for you, Lilly..."

In the distance, sirens could be heard.

"Lilly?"

As she heard Oswald's voice, Ivy looked up sharply.

"Our baby..." she sobbed, as Oswald hurried over to her leaning on his cane. He fell to his knees beside Lilly, not caring about the pain to his knee as he dropped his cane and swept soot from his daughter's face.

"Lilly?" he said anxiously.

She looked up at him, then coughed and gave another sob.

"It really hurts, Daddy..." she wailed.

He saw her shattered leg and looked back into her eyes.

"Lilly, what happened?"

She drew in a breath and coughed again.

"I don't know... I had candles... there was fire... I fell through the floor!"

Then pain took over and she gave another weak sob.

Sirens were louder and flashing lights were growing closer.

"It's okay, Lilly," Oswald said as he took hold of her hand, "Help is here now."

Then Ed got up from the ground and had to say her name twice before Ivy heard him.

As she looked at him, his gaze was filled with concern.

"Where's Eddie?"

"At the house."

"On his own?"

"Yes, on his own..." she turned back to her daughter, taking hold of her other hand as she tearfully spoke again.

"I thought I was losing her," she said to Oswald, "Our baby Penguin... I thought she was gone!"

"She's going to live," Oswald said firmly, "This could have been much worse!"

As Rose and Gertrude arrived on the scene just as the ambulance and the fire trucks arrived, Gertrude looked in horror at the sight of the barn, now reduced to a pile of burning timber.

"Lilly?" Rose said in alarm, and Oswald looked up from his daughter's side.

"She's alive, she'll be okay," he assured her, then as the ambulance pulled up, he grabbed his cane and got up and placed a hand on Ivy's shoulder, as she saw help had finally arrived, she got up too and stood beside him as the medics tended to Lilly.

"I'll go home and check on our son," Ed told Ivy, but she didn't even turn her head as Oswald put his arm around her and they stood together watching over Lilly as her injuries were assessed.

"Ivy..." Ed said again, "Ivy, I said, I'll go home and check on our son?"

She turned her head.

"Whatever," was all she said blankly in reply, then she looked back down at Lilly, watching anxiously.

Ed turned and walked away, as he passed Rose and Gertrude, Rose called his name. He briefly turned back.

"Where are you going?" Rose asked.

"Home to Eddie, someone needs to be there for him," Ed replied angrily, and then he hurried off down the path as he wondered exactly how much Ivy cared for their son. The boy had been left alone, he was five years old...

"Eddie?" he called anxiously as he entered the house.

Then Ed felt a flicker of panic: Where the hell was his son?

"Eddie?" he called again, and then Eddie wandered out from the front room.

"Mommy said wait here, so I did," he told him as he looked up at his father.

Ed leaned closer and gave his son a big hug.

"You're a good boy," he said as he blinked back tears.

"Is Lilly okay?" Eddie asked him, "The fire got bigger, I saw it from the window. It was scary."

"Yes, it was scary," Ed agreed, "But she's okay. Ivan got her out of the barn. She's broken bones in her leg and she's taken in some smoke, but she's going to be alright."

"Oh good," Eddie replied, "Because I love my big sister."

"We all do," Ed told him, then Rose and Gertrude came in through the back way and joined them in the hallway. Both women looked pale and shocked.

"Ivy and Oswald went to the hospital with Lilly," Gertrude said, "You and Rose join them, I shall take Eddie back to the house, I will look after the boys tonight."

"Is Ivan okay?" Ed asked, "He was coughing when he came out of the barn."

"The paramedics checked him over, he had some oxygen and he was just fine," Rose replied, "He's back at the house with Ozzie. We should go, Ed. Lilly's hurt."

Ed turned back to his son.

"Go with Grandma, I'll see you later."

Eddie gave him a hug, then he took Gertrude's hand as she led him out of the house.

"Maybe you should stay here, Rose. I'm thinking how stressful this has been, and you're pregnant."

"I'll be okay!"

Ed shook his head.

"No, the fire was a shock for all of us. Lilly getting hurt is a huge worry. It's bad enough that we have Lilly to worry about – if your pregnancy was affected, I'd blame myself for allowing you to have additional worries. Leave the worry to me, please? Lilly's parents are with her, they don't even need me there – I'm just going to be there for Oswald."

Rose gave a heavy sigh.

"Okay, I'll stay here."

"And rest!" he reminded her.

"Yes, I will," Rose promised, then she gave him a hug and he kissed her cheek.

"I'd better go now," Ed told her, "As soon as I get there, I'll tell Oswald you're resting, otherwise his next worry will be his unborn child, he's got enough on his mind with Lilly."

Then they left together, Rose heading back to the house, and Ed taking the path around to the front of the mansion, where his car was parked on the driveway outside. By now the rain was falling heavily and there was a storm overhead.

As he started the car, Ed was still thinking about all that Ivy had said. He was still wondering exactly how much their son truly meant to her; from the moment she had seen the smoke rising from the barn, it was as if Eddie didn't exist. Her thoughts had been entirely with Lilly, her baby Penguin... As he drove away from the house, he was still turning it over in his mind as he wondered how Ivy would react when he showed up at the hospital. He knew fear and distress could do strange things to a person, but it had been the way Ivy had spoken, as if all that had ever really mattered was her baby Penguin. He had never heard her call Eddie her little Riddler...

The rain was running down the window pane like the world outside had turned to liquid. The night sky was lit by flashes, the thunder rolled heavy and as Ivan watched the storm, he looked over to the barn in the distance, now it was a fallen ruin of charred wood. The fire had been out for hours, the crisis was over. He had taken a shower and changed his clothes, but he was sure he could still smell the smoke.

He suddenly realised he had been standing in the dark for too long and turned on the lamp, it lit the room with a reassuring glow. He thought of Lilly and felt tearful. Then the door opened and Rose came in.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

Ivan nodded, then he went over to a sofa by the window, sat down and looked to the storm again, catching a streak of lightning that lit the world for a split second as below the raging sky, he caught sight of the destroyed barn again.

"You don't want to look at that," Rose said, and she closed the heavy drapes, blocking out the sight of the storm and the memories of the fire, then she sat down on the sofa next to Ivan.

"Do you want to talk about what happened?" she asked.

Ivan met her gaze, and began to speak quietly.

"Lilly lit candles in the barn. Ozzie told me. But I didn't know at the time, not when we walked away. She had to go up to the hay loft, it was her latest goal, to climb the scary ladder. She wanted us to come back, she wanted Ozzie to go back inside the barn, but he said no. I didn't see the smoke or the flames until I heard her screaming for help. That's when I sent Ozzie back to the house."

"And you went in that barn even though it was on fire, and you saved Lilly."

He nodded again, pausing for a moment as the event played over in his mind.

"There was a lot of flames. I kicked the door and all this heat came out, I thought it was going melt my skin. I took a few steps back, took a breath and then I ran in and grabbed her. It was so hot. The smoke was burning my eyes. As I picked her up I thought I might lose sight of the way out, but there was stuff falling down from the roof so I knew we didn't have much time. I saw the way out through the smoke and I ran, that was when the smoke made me cough and by the time I got her out, I had to fall down on my knees because it was hard to breathe. I didn't know if she was still alive. I was worried she might be dead..." he paused, then his voice became tearful, "I know she's crazy and she's annoying and sometimes she's a bit scary, but she's Lilly and -"

"I know," Rose said kindly, "She's Lilly, and we all love her."

Ivan nodded, then he gave a quiet sob and Rose hugged him.

"Lilly is having surgery on her leg," she told him, "She needs to have some pins and plates put inside it so she can walk again. But she's going to survive. She wouldn't be alive now if you hadn't gone into that barn and got her out."

Ivan wiped his eyes.

"I just did what anyone else would have done."

Rose looked at him in surprise.

"No, Ivan – not everyone would have gone into a burning building to save someone! Not everyone is as brave as you are. I think Lilly is very lucky to have you as a friend."

"I'll always be her friend," he said, "I like her. I'm not sure why, she's so annoying... but I do like her, very much."

"She needs a friend like you," Rose told him, "I doubt you can keep her out of trouble, but today you certainly kept her safe. Now get some rest, you need to sleep."

"Are the boys okay?" he asked.

"Ozzie was very upset but he's gone to bed, at last. Eddie's crashed out on the couch downstairs and his Grandma is with him. Everyone is fine, Ivan. Stop worrying and get some rest."

"I'll try and sleep," he replied.

"And I'll let you know how Lilly is doing in the morning," she replied, "When she's feeling a little better you can go and see her."

Finally he managed to smile.

"Thanks, I'd like that. Goodnight Rose."

"Good night Ivan," she replied, and then she left the room and closed the door.

As Ed approached the waiting area, he felt strangely guilty for slowing his pace and pausing to listen around the corner. But he could hear Ivy and Oswald talking, and after his suspicions about Ivy having a favourite child, he felt as if this was Riddler guiding him, being sneaky because perhaps there was no other way to find out the truth. He carefully peered around the corner and then ducked back again. Ivy was sitting down facing Oswald, he had his back to the corridor, they were in deep conversation and as he listened, Ed began to take in all that was said:

"She's always been so special," Ivy said, "It was like fate, I saved you and fixed your bullet wound, then we made love -"

"And I lasted less than half a minute and it was a disaster," Oswald said candidly, "Let's not sugar coat this, Ivy. I was probably the worst you'd ever had, at the time I had no experience of sex, no closeness with anyone. I didn't know what I was doing."

"But we made Lilly that night," she replied, "That precious little girl who is like you in every way."

"Except I wouldn't have used candles in a barn or gone up to that rotting hayloft. I always listened to my Mother."

"You still do," Ivy said fondly.

There was a pause. Ed stepped closer to the corner, listening harder as she spoke a little more softly.

"When I think back, I remember how we used to quarrel all the time...I didn't appreciate you."

"And that doesn't matter now."

"Yes it does! I sometimes think if we'd stayed together, maybe it would just be us and a few more kids... but then I remember you have your life exactly as you want it and you have Rose and Ed and you wouldn't have it any other way. I'm glad things worked out the way they did."

"I often think of us, how we met and what happened all those years ago," Oswald replied, "Every time I look at Lilly, I know she's meant to be here, I'm so proud of her."

"When I found out I was pregnant it was the last thing I wanted," Ivy admitted, "I had no plans to have kids – certainly not a kid by Penguin, back then that name was associated with so much trouble... but your reputation wasn't like the man I came to know as Pengie. Then you told me how your future was uncertain, how you didn't know if you'd get sick, and I wanted to keep that baby, your baby... " Ivy's voice became tearful as she started to cry, "When she was born I looked at her and I saw you looking back at me and I'm still thankful I see you in her eyes every single day... my little baby Penguin... I just want her to be okay!"

"And she will be, hush Ivy, please calm yourself," Oswald said softly as he pulled her closer and hugged her tightly.

Ivy was still sobbing quietly. Ed felt awkward, stuck behind the corner, unable to step out because this was a bad time. But it was starting to worry him even more that she hadn't mentioned Eddie once...

He looked around the corner again in time to see them stand up as a doctor joined them. He listened, heard that Lilly was out of surgery, the damage to her leg was serious, but she was going to be okay. Then they asked to see her and started following the doctor down the corridor. Ed gave a heavy sigh. He was glad to know Lilly would be okay, but doubts still nagged in his mind as he thought again how she had not once mentioned Eddie.

"She doesn't love your son!" Riddler said inside his head, "Because she doesn't love you! Your kid was part of a deal. His kid wasn't made that way. Ivy doesn't care about Eddie!"

Ed sucked in a sharp breath.

"Shut up!" he whispered, "Or I'll up my meds and shut you up myself!"

Then he walked over to the waiting area and took a seat, waiting for Oswald and Ivy to return as he tried to block out the voice in his head - it always got louder in times of stress and now was a really bad time for it to happen...

Forty minutes later, Ivy and Oswald walked back down the corridor, they had spent time with Lilly, who was weak and tired and just wanted to sleep, but now they knew she was going to be okay and that was all that mattered. Neither of them wanted to leave her, but she needed rest. They had promised to come back in the morning, but Lilly had already been asleep by the time they both kissed her goodnight and said goodbye.

As they walked through the waiting area, they saw Ed sitting alone, he wiped his eyes and then he put his glasses back on, turned his head and saw them standing there.

"How's Lilly?" he asked as he stood up.

"She's shattered her leg, it's never going to be the same again, but she's going to live, she's okay, that's all that matters," Ivy replied, "My little girl is going to survive."

"It's been a terrible night," Oswald added, "I don't think I've ever been so worried in my entire life!"

Ed looked at them both, his gaze darkening as anger swirled inside him and he swore he could hear Riddler laughing and telling him to say exactly what he was thinking.

"I guess there was no point in me being here tonight," he said as tension crept into his voice, "Like you said Ivy, she's your little Penguin, your precious child, the only one that matters!"

Oswald stared at him, then anger shone in his eyes.

"Don't talk to her like that! What's wrong with you?"

"It's okay," Ivy said, glancing at Oswald, "I can handle this. Ed's under stress, he needs to up his meds, don't you, Mr Crazy?"

Ed looked shocked as Oswald shot her a look of annoyance.

"Don't talk to Ed like that! Have some respect, he has a personality disorder!"

"Well he's not taking it out on me," she added, then she stepped closer to Ed as her anger rose.

"Why don't I love Eddie? What's your reason for saying that?"

"You left him at home by himself!" he said accusingly.

"Yes, I did, stupid!" Ivy said angrily, "I had my twelve year old daughter trapped in a burning barn, do you think I'd want my other child – little my five year old son - to be out there near a raging inferno? Say something!"

"You called her your precious little baby Penguin! You didn't mention Eddie once!"

"Because Eddie is okay, he's not been in a fire, he doesn't have shattered bones!" she blinked away tears as she leaned closer to Ed, "I would have been the same with Lilly if Eddie had been trapped instead of her. All my focus would have been on him. And by the way, if you tell your son to do exactly as you say, he does it! He stayed in the house because I told him to! Lilly would have been straight out the door, that's the difference! I knew I could trust him alone while I went to the barn!"

As he watched them quarrel, Oswald wished this was the old days, and he had his shot gun. A quick blast to the ceiling would have shut them both up...

"Okay," Ed said, stepping back to put some space between them, "Prove it. Say for example, the barn was on fire and both your kids were in there but you could only save one. Which one would you save, Ivy?"

"That's enough!" Oswald said sharply, but Ed flashed a manic grin as anger still darkened his eyes. He wasn't quite full blown Riddler mode, but his other personality was definitely woken up, he could see it in his face...

"No, let's do this!" Ed insisted, "I can't wait for your answer Ivy! Which child would you save, remember, you can only choose one!"

Ivy gave a heavy sigh.

"Then I guess I'm dead, because I would go in and try and get them BOTH out! That's my answer!" she leaned in close again, "Get out of my way, I'm going home before I hit you! And by the way, I'm stopping off to pick Eddie up, because I'm not letting him stay with you while you're out of control! He's been through enough, he doesn't need to listen to your crazy talk!"

"He hasn't been through anything!" Ed said angrily.

"Yes, he has!" Ivy exclaimed, "He's seen you clinging to life in ICU after you had a bullet taken out of your head, now he's seen the barn go up in flames and had to wonder if his sister was dead! He's a little kid, he needs to be safe at home and forget the scary stuff and enjoy being a five year old! Get out of my way, moron..."

She pushed past Ed, then glanced back at Oswald.

"Make sure he ups his meds, I can't take his attitude right now," she told him, then she walked away.

Oswald glared up at Ed as they stood together.

"You didn't have to talk to her like that!"

"Why not?" Ed demanded as his voice trembled with emotion, "She did nothing but talk about Lilly, her precious baby, the one she made with you! What about my son? Ivy loves you. She's your mistress, friend with benefits, your... whatever, and I'm just her friend. She will never have the kind of bond with me that she shares with you! This leads me to conclude that she will always love Lilly more than Eddie."

"That's not true!" Oswald said sharply, "Of course she was thinking only of Lilly – our daughter could have died today! If it wasn't for Ivan, she wouldn't be alive now!"

Suddenly his confusion stopped sharply and Ed blinked away tears.

"Thanks to Kristen's son! He saved her..."

"Yes he did!"

Ed indicated to the scar on his brow, the faded bullet wound from the shooting.

"That was a lucky bullet! It brought her son to us and he saved Lilly!"

Then as emotion took over, he hugged Oswald tightly.

"I'm sorry I'm such a mess tonight..."

"You'd better up your meds when we get home."

"I will," Ed promised, then he let go of him and wiped his eyes.

"We're going home now," Oswald reminded him, "Don't fall apart again, Ed. This is a really bad time for you to go crazy."

"I won't," Ed promised, then they walked out of the building together as Ed mentally told the voice in his head to shut up again. It had been a few years since Riddler had last made his voice so strongly heard, and Ed didn't want to risk him taking over. As soon as he got home, he was upping his meds – he knew he owed an apology to Ivy, too.

The events of the day had almost let his dark side take over, but by the time they were driving home, there was no voice in his head and Ed felt what he considered to be normal again. With that came a sense of victory, but he was still taking his meds when they got home, he was part of a family now and he cherished them as much as he cherished Oswald. Nothing would come between that love, not even the voice in his head...

Three days after the fire, Lilly was vastly improved. Her leg would take a while to heal and by a cruel twist of fate, like her father, would always need to walk with the support of a cane. But she had survived and that was all that mattered. She was visited every day, first by her parents, then by her grandmother and Rose, who took the boys with them. Ivan gave her flowers and told her he hoped she would be home soon, and Lilly had smiled and replied, "Thanks for saving me, Parasol Boy."

The next day, Oswald visited her and when she saw he had brought her paper and pencils, she smiled as she rested in her bed. She still looked pale, far paler than usual, but she was starting to brighten up now, and it was a relief to see that as Oswald took a seat next to her bed.

"Thank you!" she said, "I've missed my drawings. It will help me to pass the time. I really want to go home."

"You must be recovered and out of pain before you come home," he reminded her, and she gave a sigh, "I really miss home, I want to leave!"

"You will soon," Oswald promised, "Wait a few more days and you can go as soon as the doctor says you're well enough. Your Mom said you can sleep downstairs when you get home, until you can safely use stairs again. How is your leg today?"

She smiled, but he could tell she was faking it.

"Like you said, Dad, us Kapelputs are strong, we are used to pain."

Oswald smiled back at her as he hid the ache in his heart on hearing her quote his words.

"Yes, Lilly, we are. That is very true."

Lilly laid the paper and pencils aside and then paused for thought. What she said next was unexpected.

"I'm sorry about the barn. It was all my fault. But at least I have no one else to blame for my injury."

"And that's forgotten now," he promised her, "You've been through a lot, Lilly. We won't talk about the barn again."

Lilly looked at her father.

"But like I said, my injury was my fault. Yours was not. Tell me about Fish Mooney."

He stared at his daughter, recalling how he had mentioned the past sometimes in front of her – he had not said much in her presence, but he had said Fish had broken his leg... As their eyes met, her gaze reflected so much of his own soul. She was so like him he knew she could hear it and wouldn't be upset. But the rest? No, she was only twelve, she couldn't hear about the true extent of the stuff Fish had made him do...

"I... I might tell you more when you're older... not much more... it's complicated..." he stammered, feeling awkward and caught off guard by her request.

Lilly was still looking at him intently.

"You looked scared. But you're not scared of anyone?"

Oswald took a deep breath and gathered his thoughts.

"I was very young when I started working for her. It took me a while to work my way up to be her umbrella boy. She was my way into the underworld. But she was very cruel, even before I betrayed her, she was very nasty."

"What did she do?" Lilly asked.

Oswald looked away.

"At first, she was mean, but she would also be nice to me, like she wanted to date me, so I got used to her being a bully but then she got worse and worse. I thought when the time was right I could destroy her empire and take over. But she found out I betrayed her and she smashed a chair and beat me with it."

"Did she hurt you before that?" Lilly asked.

Oswald closed his eyes, recalling every beating she had ever given him, then he turned his head and met her gaze.

"Yes, Lilly. She was very powerful and she used to enjoy hurting people, especially those who worked for her. She treated her umbrella boys terribly. I hated her. I wanted to destroy her, but it went wrong because she beat me so badly she smashed my leg to pieces."

There was a flicker of emotion in her icy gaze, then it was gone as Lilly asked another question:

"If she was here now, what would you to her? She gave you pain that will last for the rest of your life. What punishment would you give her in return?"

He fell silent, pretending to think about it as he recalled throwing her off a rooftop. Then he knew exactly what he would do if she was here now, the blade would be out of his cane and straight across her throat and Fish would be bleeding on the floor...

He blinked.

"I don't know, Lilly," he replied, "It was so long ago. And I believe she is dead now. There was a big underworld fight and she was apparently killed. I really do think she's dead. No one has ever seen her since."

Lilly was deep in thought. Something was stirring deep in her mind, as if her true nature had finally started to wake. She thought of the pain in her shattered leg, then the pain her father suffered every day. His pain had been no accident, but she shared it, just as she shared what Grandma called her father's darkness...

"When I run the business you want me to look after, I won't hurt or kill anyone who makes trouble, not unless they deserve it," she told him, "I'll always think and plan before I do anything to anyone. I'll make sure that if I have to kill someone, or teach a hard lesson, the punishment will fit the crime."

"I'm hoping it will never come to that. The underworld has been peaceful for several years now. My connections are very discreet these days. And you don't have to think on such things yet!" Oswald reminded her, "You're far too young, Lilly. And say nothing of what I told you about the future!"

"I will think about it, though," she replied, "Great plans require careful thought."

As she smiled, he smiled back and his worries faded away. He wasn't sure if he ought to be scared for her, proud of her or both – but Lilly was exactly like him and as she was getting older, she was even going beyond him. She wouldn't let emotion be her weakness in times of trouble – she would be calculating, he could see it in her eyes.

"You will be proud of me when I'm older," she told him.

"I'm always proud of you, Lilly," he replied, and then he hugged her and told her she needed to rest, before kissing her cheek and reluctantly telling her he had to leave.

After her father had left, Lilly picked up the note pad and a pencil and started to think. Then, she began to make notes. The notes she made while she recovered from the accident would be the start of many that would fill her next few years; what started out as a few words would one day become intricate plans, diagrams and instructions and detailed notes. She was yet to find inspiration for the path she would one day take, but for now, twelve year old Lilly Kapelput wrote down a few words as she thought of her future role, and then thought back to her pain, the pain of shattered bones that she shared with her father. Then she thought of what she would do to people like Fish Mooney and began to write:

Power, responsibility, planning, punish enemies and destroy the wicked (but be smart and don't get caught). Don't play with matches or candles ever again. Never upset Mom and Dad. Always clean the crime scene. Always wear nice clothes. Get a nice cane with a big blade. Always get away with it.

Then she paused again, recalling she had once heard her father say that everyone wanted something, and if you could find out what it was, you had an advantage...

"What do I want?" she wondered aloud, then the answer came to her as she realised the spark that would drive her and she wrote down words that would later define her:

Balance. Fairness. I will be strong. My pain will remind me of this. But those who cross me will fear my wrath. Those who truly deserve it, will know the full force of my vengeance.'

Then she closed the notepad and settled back and shut her eyes, as a brief smile flickered about her face as she suddenly felt the need for a long sleep. Those words she had noted down felt like the start of a long project – but she knew she had years to build it up, and when she did, she would have plans that would be perfect. She felt that something was yet to fall into place, but in time, she knew it would. Then Lilly slept well, as her shattered bones began to heal.

Back at the house, life was slowly returning to normal – at least, it was feeling that way at the Cobblepot mansion. Ozzie had stopped getting upset over Lilly's accident, he had even gone over to Ivy's to watch the remains of the charred wood get cleared away. Ivan missed Lilly tapping on the back door with her parasol, every morning at breakfast he would look to that door, and Gertrude would exchange a look with Rose that conveyed a reference to their conversation one evening when Gertrude had confided an observation : "I think Ivan is very fond of Lilly. He will be such a fine young man one day! If they stay friends, when they get older, who knows? Perhaps..."

Over at Ivy's place, her quarrel with Ed had been forgotten with a hug and Ivy insisting that it had been a terrible night for everyone, and she didn't blame him for losing it the way he did. Now he could see life rationally, he knew she loved Eddie as much as Lilly. But Ivy wasn't truly happy, not with her daughter yet to recover well enough to come home. She saw her almost every day, and called her every night. Ivy just wanted her little baby Penguin back home, so life could return to normal...

It had now been over a week since the fire.

As Rose lay back against her soft pillow and gave a sigh, all she wanted to do that evening was sleep, but then the bed shifted and she opened tired eyes and started to smile, enjoying the sight of Oswald turning away from her as he wrapped his arms around Ed and they shared a deep and passionate kiss. She loved to watch them together, but the pregnancy was making her feel exhausted already, and as she heard Ed murmur to her husband and then he gave a soft moan of enjoyment, she smiled as she closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep to the soft sounds of their togetherness. It felt like life was returning to normal at last – she hoped it would stay that way for a long time to come, but there was a nagging doubt far at the back of her mind; Gertrude had once said her family had strange luck, and she guessed she was right. Nothing ever seemed to go smoothly in this house for long.

It will be okay, she said to herself, as her concerns for the future left her alone while she rested, warm beside her husband as he embraced Ed, and then Rose slept deeply, for now, no longer troubled by fears for the future...