THANK YOU so much to each and every one of my amazing reviewers. Tesla-stache cookies to all of you from my eternal cookie b**** chartreuseian...because I haven't forced her to make virtual cookies in such a long time and I feel I ought to else she feel safe. ;)
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It was raining outside as Helen stalked determinedly through the streets of London. Not outrageously, and certainly not enough to deter the woman in her steely resolve. She was garnering a number of nervous and curious looks from the people she passed by. Her clothes may be more in line with the modest cuts of the era, but it seemed she stood out just at starkly as before for her attitude. She clearly did not belong in this time, not anymore. She had never really thought about just how much she herself had changed since her young, bright-eyed days of her true timeline. Of how much she had been forced to change. Because that is what it always came down to in the end, era to era, decade to decade, she was forced to adapt whether she wished to or not. Imperceptible as some of those changes were, they were still there. It was another of the reasons she often resented her source blood 'gift' (even if momentarily). She was terrified that she would someday lose who she was in the tumultuous shift of time.
She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she hardly noticed when she'd arrived. She gritted her jaw as she gazed upon the gentleman's club, the architecture of the building leaving only the slightest pang in her chest as she thought about home, about this time. She leant against a lamppost across the road, her left hand gripping her umbrella a little tighter than strictly necessary as her right sought out the support of the post. Within those walls, within the backwards club of which women were still barred, was the man who had done nothing but serve as a thorn for many years. The countless lives that had been lost due to his carelessness and callous lack of concern astonished her. He was the embodiment of so many of the things she had spent a life-time fighting to prevent.
She let her right hand slide down the lamppost, slick from rain, and to her side where she retrieved her poorly concealed weapon. She relished the feel of its comforting weight in her hand, so familiar, so soothing.
She took a deep breath as she caught sight of Adam through the window. Taking a deep breath, she made to move to cross the road. But something caught her arm, preventing her from storming into the club and ending this right now.
She spun around, furious to be interrupted, and ready to fight whatever person dared unwittingly manhandle Helen Magnus. Her gun was pointed in their face within seconds and the attacker relinquished their hold of her arm.
She let out a relieved gasp, some of her anger melting away to be replaced by frustration.
"Nikola," she hissed.
She lowered the weapon but only slightly, she may just be tempted to shoot him regardless.
"What are you doing here?" she said.
"Preventing you from doing something irreversibly stupid," he responded calmly.
She was seething now.
"Ending this with Adam is not stupid, Nikola," she said, "It's a necessity. How many lives, how many more lives, do you think he's going to destroy before he gets his way? And when he saves his daughter, what then? I doubt he'll be satisfied to settle down in a nice little sea-side cottage and write sonnets for the rest of his days!"
Nikola blanched at her outburst. He knew she could get rather one-minded in her determination at the best of times, particularly when it involved protecting others, but this was more emotional than he was used to seeing her.
"Helen, I want to prevent Adam from altering history as much as you," he reasoned, "But charging into a club with guns literally blazing is not the way to prevent such a thing."
"But he's in there Nikola, we're so close!" she said. "Who knows when we'll get another chance such as this?"
"Did you think about what would happen should you do just that, Helen, charging in there?" Nikola said, not really used to having to play the logical party to a foolish plan, "How it would change the timeline? 'Dr Helen Magnus kills scientist Adam Worth in plain sight...' My God, Helen, that's a stupid plan even for you. And this is coming from someone who usually thrives on ambitious, rushed schemes so you know I'm right."
She huffed, crossing her arms.
"We're so close," she uttered, more softly this time, and he was struck by just how broken she sounded. He frowned. This wasn't just about Adam, this was something else.
"What is it, Helen?" he said, taking a step toward her, "Tell me, ljubav, what's wrong?"
She looked up at him, her arms wrapped about herself in a protective cocoon now. She looked so vulnerable he wanted to do nothing more than to pull her into his arms himself. But, when he tried to do so, she took a step back, evading his reach.
"Helen..." he said. His voice sounded weaker than he was comfortable with, hurt when she recoiled physically from his touch.
"Is it... is it your father?" he said, having a thought. After all, Worth was responsible for her father's death in Praxis. Her wide blue eyes found his face and he frowned quizzically. No, it wasn't that, but he had hit a nerve.
Suddenly, it became clear, and he let out a small puff of breath. He didn't know how he hadn't seen it before.
"Ashley," he stated. Her eyes flittered away from him to the ground. He could see she was desperately trying to prevent herself from crying as she bit her lip. This time she didn't move away as he took a step closer to her.
"Adam Worth is literally breaking the laws of science as we know them," she whispered softly. "Moving heaven and earth... to save his daughter." She let out a strangled sob. "And here I am, trying to stop him so desperately...chasing him into the past to prevent him from doing so... when all I can think about is how much I want to do the same."
Nikola's heart almost broke as her eyes met his. He hadn't seen her so sad since the death of her daughter. He tried to swallow the lump in his throat as he pulled her into his arms, this time without any resistance from her. She choked out another sob and the tears became to flow down her cheeks with any more fight from her. Nikola stood in the rain of Victorian London, a terrible weight settling over his heart as he held in his arms the woman he loved as she fell apart. The knowledge that she was reliving history, that she had the chance to potentially save her daughter but could not (and was working so hard in preventing Worth from doing what she wanted to do so badly), was killing her. There wasn't a damn thing he could do to alleviate her pain.
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Not much action, I know, but I thought I owed it to Ashley to throw it in there, even if I wasn't particularly partial to the character herself. I think it ought to have been addressed more in the show. After all, it must have killed Helen to go back in time to stop Adam from doing what she must have been sorely tempted to do herself...