Helena snapped her eyes open, she was lying on the floor of her apartment. The first thing she saw was Quinzel. She pushed herself back.

The blonde lifted a hand to her.

"Don't you dare touch me…" the brunette growled, feral eyes threatening the woman who was trying to get close to her.

"Helena, easy, it's me…. Helena, you know I would never hurt you."

Images flashed in the brunette's head, she and Quinzel, touching, tasting. The brunette pushed herself back with her feet, only to be stopped by the wall. She didn't want to look at her face; she knew that if she looked at her again, she would be lost, lost in her spell. She closed her eyes and covered her face trying to get those images out of her mind.

"Hel, focus on my voice," Barbara said gently. After her unsuccessful attempts to reach the brunette over comms and on the phone, she'd gone out to look for Helena at her apartment. She found her lying on the floor, unmoving, staring vacantly and totally lost. The redhead had moved out of her wheelchair and had to practically slap her cheek to wake her, but Helena still seemed to be dreaming.

Worried, she noticed the younger woman was shaking. She dragged herself slowly to where Helena was curled up against the wall.

"Helena… it's me, please concentrate on my voice, I need you to wake up."

"No…." The young woman tightened in on herself even more.

"Breathe, take a deep breath… breathe and calm down…" She noticed Helena's trembling began to diminish. "That's it, that's it."

Helena was numb, drained. She opened her eyes slowly and stared at the floor, still afraid to look up.

Barbara watched her carefully. She looked tired, with big rings under her eyes. She noticed blue eyes finally lifting to look at her.

"Barbara?" she mumbled.

"Are you all right?"

The young woman nodded. She felt so tired, mentally exhausted. She wanted all the nightmares to stop, so she could sleep and rest. She was losing the control of everything. The last thing she remembered was walking into her apartment after her shift at the bar… and then… she thought she had gone to take a shower and Quinzel…. It was all a dream.

She felt tender fingers caressing her back and she jerked back at the touch. Barbara looked at her, startled.

"Please, don't touch me…" she mumbled. She needed to organize her ideas, her thoughts. Everything was so confusing.

"Let me help you," Barbara requested softly.

"I'm okay…"

"No, you are not okay. Please… let me help you."

Helena raised her head just enough to find tender green eyes regarding her. She felt so ashamed and she lowered her eyes. She couldn't face her. "I'm okay… I just fell asleep... and…"

"I know, Helena," Barbara said quietly.

"You know?"

"I know… I know about your dreams."

"They're just nightmares, Barbara." The brunette sat with her back against the wall, trying to catch her breath.

"I know that Quinzel is behind this… I talked to her a few hours ago."

"Crap…"

"I know about your visit to Arkham last night. Why didn't you tell me before, Helena?"

"They are just dreams, Barbara!" The brunette stood up, annoyed.

"No, you know that's not true! Stop saying that! She is trying to drive you mad."

"Stop! Just stop!" Helena closed her eyes and clenched her fists.

"Please, Helena! They are not 'just' dreams, let me help you. Quinzel told me everything, she told me she is controlling your dreams, your mind -- and she is not lying, each time will be worse than the last, you pass out while you are awake; you wake up frightened, not knowing if you are dreaming or not."

Helena crouched down and covered her ears. She was so confused and so ashamed. Barbara knew… knew she had been having sex with the insane woman. How could she face her now?

"Helena?" Barbara tried to touch her.

"Please, don't…" Helena stepped back again.

Barbara felt her heart break seeing the intense pain in the blue eyes.

"We fucked… I don't know how many times, but I did it…." the brunette said, almost in a whisper. She felt she couldn't face Barbara anymore, she had failed her again. She hadn't told her the truth in the beginning and, now, Quinn had told her they were not just dreams that they had slept together. She loved Barbara more than her own life. How could she fail her that way? She could never forgive herself. Barbara had always been so loving with her, always thinking of her, taking care of her. "I failed you, Barbara… I never… I love you so much… and I failed you."

Barbara noticed tears filling her eyes. "You never failed me."

"I failed you… I…."

"And we will fuck many more times. I need you, kitten."

Helena's eyes widened. Barbara's face changed into Quinzel's.

"No…"

"You love it… you need me, you want me."

"Fucking bitch! No!" … She suddenly ran and jumped through the window, breaking the glass, not giving Barbara any time to react.

"Helena! Dammit!" the redhead cursed, angry at her own limitations that prevented her from standing up and running after her.

She scrubbed at her face with her hand and noticed that she, too, had been crying.

"I can't find her," Barbara said, frustrated. She covered her face with her hands. To stop this nightmare, she needed Helena with her, so she could understand what was happening inside her mind and block Harley's influence. She had run away, totally disoriented and confused. Barbara looked for her everywhere she could think of, but she seemed to have disappeared. "I have tried in all the places she should be… and not a single trace of her."

Dinah turned her chair to face her mentor, "I called Reese, he is helping."

"I hope he has more luck than I did. I called Gibson. Maybe our friend at No Man's lands can help, too."

"She'll come back by herself, Barbara."

"I'm not sure…" the redhead leaned back in her chair, biting her lower lip. "I'm worried, she is not well. She seemed very disturbed, she is not in control of her actions. She just vanishes and falls into a deep dream. The dreams come regardless of whether or not she is awake." Barbara looked at the young teen. "She is dangerous… I'm afraid she may even try to kill herself…. Quinzel is pushing her so far. And I couldn't talk to her, I don't know exactly what she is dreaming."

The older woman was silent for a few moments.

Damn Quinzel.

She was screwing with Helena's mind. Would there ever be a day when they would be free of her? She was trying to destroy her by using Helena. That was not fair. Quinn was obsessed with Helena, she knew it, but she never thought her it would turn into a sexual obsession.

Helena was beautiful, sexy.

The image of the young woman, smiling, appeared in front of her. She smiled lightly. Thinking about how the psychotic "therapist" had taken advantage of the young woman in her hypnotic state made her blood boil with anger; that was so low and sick.

Her mind went back to the prison and remembered each word that she had exchanged with the blonde. She needed to remember everything -- maybe something that the blonde had said would help her find her young friend.

"Barbara?" Dinah's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"She mentioned a book." An idea came to the redhead's mind. "Bluebird: Deliberate Creation of Multiple Personality by Psychiatrists by Dr. Colin Ross'"

"And?"

"It provides proof, based on 15,000 pages of documents obtained from the CIA under the Freedom of Information Act, that the Manchurian Candidate is fact, not fiction. He describes the experiments conducted by psychiatrists to create amnesia, new identities, hypnotic access codes, and new memories in the minds of experimental subjects."

"Hypnotic access codes?"

"That must be the clue. Somehow, she created an hypnotic code in the Helena's subconscious when she was hypnotized a few months ago."

"She's smart. She knew you would break the spell."

"Yes… and she must have programmed Helena to trigger the code after a certain time period or when she heard a word."

"Can you stop it?"

"Yes, but I need to find her first."

Barbara resumed her research. She couldn't stop.

A thought hit her mind. Helena loved her.

Quinzel had told her. She never imagined Helena could have such deep feelings for her. They had lived together for so many years. It was natural that they spent so much time together. When had Helena's feelings for her changed? Why hadn't she noticed it before? Helena was sweet and tender with her. Always keeping an eye on her.

How could it be?

How could it be that a beautiful and strong woman like Helena could see her, in her current condition as a woman? Maybe she was confused by her feelings, mixing up gratefulness with love.

But, meanwhile, Harley Quinn knew about those feelings and she was trying to destroy her by using Helena. Helena felt guilty.. And she knew the feeling was killing her, she had seen the pain in her eyes, the sorrow.

It pushed Barbara to keep going, to not let the woman win. Helena was strong. Barbara would not let her fall into Quinzel's hands.

Helena stumbled on the floor feeling spent. She had run between buildings for hours. Running, she thought she would escape Quinzel's voice echoing in her mind, calling her. She laid on the cool ground of the rooftop, unmoving for long minutes. She was exhausted; she didn't have the strength to keep fighting. She couldn't handle it anymore. The sensation of cold snowflakes make her open her eyes, her head throbbing.

She still felt so tired, and sleepy. It was like being drugged. Her thoughts were confused and distorted. She only could think of Harley. And she didn't want to.

It couldn't be… she was a criminal. She was using her.

Her eyes closed and she could see the blonde calling her; asking for her.

"No..." She needed to go back to the Clock Tower. Barbara would help her.

She needed to clear her mind, but the confusion didn't allow her to think. She felt her body trembling, fighting Quinzel's spell, she was trying to control her actions, her thoughts, her mind.

The voice of sounded louder in her hears. She closed her eyes, trying to focus and not listen to Harley's voice.

Barbara's face appeared in her thoughts.

She loved Barbara, she couldn't betray her. She needed to go back to the Clock Tower. She needed to clear her mind. She slowly raised her hand toward her necklace. Call Barbara, she must call Barbara.

Quinzel's voice again got louder in her head.

She covered her hears with her hands and winced. She wanted it to stop. It was making her crazy.

"Barbara… please…" she mumbled.

Dazed, she half-opened her eyes. She couldn't refuse the call, but she couldn't betray Barbara, she loved her.

She needed to fight.

Fight against the fatigue she felt invading her body, against the heavy eye lids…she couldn't sleep, she would be in another Harley nightmare.

But her body betrayed her and, against her will, she passed out.

The blonde turned the page of the book in her hands. She loved this book, maybe she would write a book, too, and give tips about how to get rid of annoying crime fighters. There were just so many creative ways. Yeah, it would be helpful. Who said that being a superhero was a good idea? She would have been rich years ago if superheroes were just in comic books.

She raised her head and noticed a dark figure standing against the wall.

"I was wondering where you were." She stood up and turned to the wall. "Damn, Helena, you are so hard to control."

The young woman stepped toward her. A light from the dark cell lit her face. Her expression was serious and cold. Quinn observed her and smirked.

"I thought it would be easier, but I was wrong. But you need me, you need me more than the air you breathe."

Helena remained unmoving, staring at her, fist in balls.

She was struggling against herself. Her mind was telling her to stop, that this was wrong, but she couldn't control her feelings, her instincts.

She closed her eyes.

She wanted her. She wanted that woman.

Barbara.

She loved Barbara, this was so wrong.

"Helena.." Quinzel said, knowing the brunette was hesitating. "You are mine, you can't fight it… you can't refuse the call of my voice. You want me, you want me more than you have ever wanted anything."

"I…" the brunette felt her body humming. Her desire growing.

"You need me, Helena, you need me more than you have ever wanted anyone."

The young woman walked toward her, slowly.

"Yes, come to me… You owe me, you are mine…."

The young woman put her hands on the glass and rested her forehead on it.

She wanted Barbara, she loved Barbara. But the voice, the voice was a damn call she couldn't refuse. She was trying, but the voice was overwhelming all her senses, all her reason.

"Now, my little pet, it's time to go. We have a lot of work to do. Get me out of this cell and we will go. Break this cell open."

Helena raised her head and looked at her.

"Let's go home."

TO BE CONTINUED...