Trigger Warning: self-harm

It was raining.

Of course it was.

Can't have a life or death showdown without a little rain, Selina mused, peering through the fat droplets at the angry dark sky above. Although she hoped life or death was an exaggeration, she couldn't exactly be sure of anything at this point.

The rain was falling heavier now, sliding off the sleek leather of her outfit, matting the thin strands of hair on her forehead. She supposed it would be smarter to take shelter in the alleyways below, but the rooftop allowed her a better vantage point.

And she'd received a tip off from a contact or two that Harley Quinn was headed this way. Not that the spies had been completely necessary, Harley wasn't exactly keeping her actions secretive nowadays…if ever really. She hadn't been discreet upon escaping Arkham again.

She was on the warpath.

And Selina had to stop her.

She crouched near the rain gutter, peering down into the dingy streets below. Harley had been hunting for Ivy, that was the rumor, and it made Selina sick to think that even after that clown had been put in his grave, that Harley was still bound in his clutches.

Wherever Ivy was now, Selina had to honor her wishes. Pamela would have wanted Harley to be kept safe…Especially from herself, now that Joker was gone. Selina was a lot of things, but she wasn't a coward…and she would not abandon her friend now.

A flash of movement caught her eye in one of the alleyways. Red…and bits of black that blended into the night. The chaotic energy of the movements, the scuffle, the noise. It was Harley alright. But Selina didn't have a chance to make her way off the roof before Harley began scrambling up the fire escape.

Taking a few steps back, Selina waited in the center of the roof, hand poised above the whip at her hip. She'd never felt fear before when it came to Harley. She was Harley. A little off, unpredictable, but soft hearted, loyal…to a fault.

But now…Well, Selina didn't know what to expect from her friend. And she wasn't exactly itching to find out.

There was a slap against the wet brick as a single gloved hand found its way onto the rain gutter, then the other, and then Harley was pulling herself onto the roof. She shook herself off once she was on her feet, her eyes immediately finding Selina's.

They glinted in the dark, the only light on her face save for the eerie, too wide smile that stretched her painted lips.

"Kitty."

The nickname didn't sound so endearing anymore.

"Harley."

"Whatcha doin all the way up here?" Harley asked, taking a step forward, cocking her head, the ears on her cowl swinging with the movement. Selina tensed, holding her ground, her hand now resting on the whip.

"Waiting for you," Selina replied with as much calm as she could muster.

Harley was gone. In her place something Selina hadn't seen before, but something she'd known existed. Harley was sick. And deep inside there had always been a twisted part of her, a darkness just waiting to come out.

"I hear you're looking for Ivy."

Harley stilled, her smile fading, a sharp glint appearing in her eyes. "Yeah, I'm lookin' for her. I'm gonna find her too. And I'm gonna tear her apart itty bitty piece by piece till she's beggin' me for mercy."

"Harley…This isn't right. You don't want to do this. Ivy's your friend."

"My friend?" Harley's wild grin faded. "Nuh uh. My friend wouldn'ta stuck an axe between Mistah J's ribs."

"Listen to me, Harley. Ivy loves you. She did what she did to help you. And I know you can't see it now, but you will. Just give it time. Give this a chance, please." Selina didn't move, preparing herself for any signs of lashing out from Harley, but the clown remained still as well.

"Yer not my friend either," Harley continued, pointing right between Selina's eyes. "Else you wouldn'ta let it happen."

"Don't you get it, Harley?" Selina tried again, unable to hide the anger in her tone now. "You're sick. All your jokes? They're cries for help. Ivy saved you. She freed you."

"She didn't free me. She betrayed me." Slowly, Harley reached around, hand sliding into the small pouch she wore around her waist and Selina grabbed for her whip at the same time Harley said, "You stopped me once, it ain't gonna happen again!"

The whip whistled through the air, catching Harley's wrist before she could release the smoke bomb she held. Shouting in pain, Harley crumpled, holding her hand to her chest and shooting a murderous glare at Selina as the bomb rolled into the gutter.

And that's when it detonated.

Choking on the pink powder that filled the air, Selina didn't wait to try and track Harley's movement. She moved, leaping away from the spot she'd been rooted to just as Harley landed there, her body twisting with the force of the hook she'd been aiming at Selina's head.

Backflipping out of the range of the smoke, Selina raised her whip again, hoping to keep Harley at a distance, but the blonde had pulled another goodie out of her bag. The small, powerful pistol she kept with her on heists. And it was already aimed straight at Selina.

She didn't have a chance to move before a bullet tore through the handle of her whip, barely missing her palm, taking the weapon to the ground in tatters.

"Jesus, Harley!"

A thin giggle emanated from the blonde. "Now we're even."

"Not quite," Selina gritted. Springing forward into a tuck and roll, Selina popped up in front of Harley, knocking the gun from her hand with the momentum of the maneuver. Harley shouted in surprise, stunned only for a moment, before pushing Selina back with a quick succession of well-timed punches. One at the gut, two at her face, one hook the Selina barely managed to catch by ducking her chin into her shoulder.

Harley's blows were quick and precise. There wasn't an excessive amount of power behind them, but she knew where to hit and she was too fast to block entirely. Selina took a few good hits to the ribs before she managed to shove Harley off and come back with a quick roundhouse kick.

Harley ducked, rocketing upward, her uppercut nicking Selina's chin. She stumbled backwards, her heel slipping in a puddle of rainwater. Harley took advantage, attempting to sweep her legs out from underneath her, but Selina turned her fall into a roll that took her a safe distance from Harley.

Through the thick veil of rain, she saw Harley rushing towards her in a series of flips, the dangerous heel of her boots nearly crashing into Selina's head. Straightening, Harley aimed another hook at Selina's head. The brunette, managed to catch Harley's wrist and twisted it around her back, wrenching her to the ground with a dull 'thud'.

Harley gasped as the air left her lungs, blinking away the pain and then swinging her legs, leaping back onto her feet. Selina barely dodged the swing of her boots, backing up a few paces in preparation for Harley's second attack. And it came without fail. Fists swinging, body twirling, legs a flurry of low kicks. One caught Selina in the gut, a fist knocking her in the temple next.

Shaking away the stars that filled her vision, Selina rounded on Harley, ducking low and swinging her legs to take Harley off her feet. But the blonde leapt to avoid the maneuver, coming down hard just as Selina rolled out of the way.

Picking up the ruined tatters of her whip, Selina used the shortened length to keep Harley at a distance, snapping the whip at her torso, her arms, legs, gashing her cheek.

Shrieking with rage, Harley charged forward, her blows landing hard, forcing Selina to curl inward on herself to keep from taking any serious damage.

A brief pause in Harley's assault came as she drew back for a heavy punch and Selina used her position to duck lower, ramming a fist into Harley's gut. The breath left her in an almost comical gasp as Selina landed another blow and then tossed her head up, her crown coming into contact with Harley's chin.

Winded, injured, Harley stumbled backwards, but Selina didn't relent, aiming a roundhouse kick at her temple.

This is for all the times you've been a fucking idiot.

The blow was cushioned slightly by the ears on Harley's costume, but it knocked her to the ground anyway, where she lay still for a moment before gasping and attempting to struggle to her feet.

Selina aimed a swift blow to her stomach, rolling her onto her back before kneeling on her shoulder to keep her pinned. Harley was glaring at her, murder in her eyes as she struggled and squirmed and screamed insults over the rain.

They both knew she'd been beaten. But Harley refused to accept it. She was bruised, blood dripping from her nose, mouth and the gash on her cheek. Her costume was torn open and Selina was about 90% she'd sprained one of Harley's shoulders in the fall, but the blonde refused to relent.

"It's over, Harley," Selina said, wincing when the blonde spat a globule of blood that landed on her cheek. She didn't respond with words either, just another guttural scream. Selina leaned into her knee, holding Harley down with all the strength she had.

"It's over and you're going to be okay. You're not going after Ivy. You're not going back to Joker's goons. You're going to find yourself again, Harley. You're free now."

Harley's screams grew louder until Selina had to yell to be heard over her and the rain.

"Harley—,"

Suddenly, Harley's chest heaved and then her scream turned into a gut wrenching sob, her face scrunching as enormous wails wracked her body. Slowly, very slowly, Selina lifted her knee from Harley's shoulder, pity heavying her chest as Harley curled into a ball on the rain soaked rooftop and choked and sobbed.

Her body spasmed from the force of it all, loud wails blending into the sounds of the honking cars below. Slowly, Selina sat beside her friend, pulling the cowl off her head and running her fingers through wet blonde hair. Harley shifted, grabbing onto the pant of Selina's costume with cold fingers and clinging so tightly it hurt.

"Kitty…" she moaned, hiding her face in Selina's leg. "Kitty…Kitty."

"It's okay, Harley," Selina said, looking up into the rain and closing her eyes. "You're going to be okay."

/

Harley stayed on the couch for the first few days. And all she did was sleep, like a woman dead. Selina couldn't blame her, after all she'd been through…after what she'd endured. The first day, she lay still, her body burning hot to the touch, quiet moans coming from her every now and then.

"Red…" she'd groan softly, over and over again, until the word seemed to lose its meaning. Selina came to her, checking her temperature, rubbing her back—But Harley didn't even seem to register that she was there.

"I…I want P—I want to see…Red," she murmured to herself. "She—," Her sentences always dissolved into moans, leaving Selina to ponder what on earth she thought of Ivy now.

The second day Harley was sick, leaving the couch in lieu of the bathroom and it was up to Selina to bring her fluids as she spent most of the day expelling them. Selina sat beside her, holding her dirty, matted hair back when she heaved.

"Am…Am I gonn' die, Kitty?" Harley asked, after there was nothing left in her, and yet her body refused to allow her to rest.

Selina shook her head. "You'll be alright, honey. I promise. Drink this."

She held up a cup of cool water that Harley sipped at carefully…Only to lose it a moment later.

The third day she shook, violently. Hot and cold warred over her body, but Selina didn't dare bring a doctor in. Not after the path of blood Harley had left behind her in her attempts to find Ivy. Instead, she sat at Harley's bedside, wiping the sweat from her brow, covering her in blankets, taking them off, giving her more pillows, offering food, water…But what Harley needed most, she realized, was time.

And it passed slowly.

After a week of this, Harley emerged from the other side, gaunt, paler than usual, tired, but alive.

Withdrawal, was all Selina could think. Withdrawal from a drug, a disease, that had poisoned her for so long.

On the fifth day, as they sat around the kitchen table, Harley nursing a cup of orange juice, she looked up at Selina through tired eyes and croaked, "Where's Red?"

The nickname gave Selina hope, but she was too cautious to give Harley the truth now. It wouldn't be good for her. She depended on Ivy almost as much as she'd depended on Joker. If Harley was to actually heal now, she didn't need either of them in her life.

"I'm not sure," Selina replied, halfway truthfully. "She left Gotham for good, that's all I know."

To her surprise, Harley just bobbed her head and picked her cup up in both hands, taking a small sip. "That's good," she murmured, her voice tiny. "She never did like it here."

Selina blinked. "No…No she didn't."

"She does better with the trees and the flowers and grass," Harley said, setting her glass down and licking her lips. "Maybe she went ta go hide in a jungle."

"Maybe," Selina chuckled.

"I bet she's happier there."

I can think of one reason she's not.

"Maybe," Selina said again. "Harley?"

"Hm?"

"What are you going to do now?"

Harley stared down at the juice in her cup. "I…Dunno."

"Because I'll help you in any way I can, but it's up to you to pick a direction. I can't tell you how to live the rest of your life, no one should."

"Can I…" Harley trailed off.

"Can you what?"

"Can I stay here a few more days, jus' till I figure out where to go?"

Selina reached out and placed a hand over Harley's cold one.

"Of course you can."

"Thanks, Kitty," Harley cracked a genuine grin, although her eyes were still dull. "What would I do without ya?"

Selina just smiled softly.

I don't know, Harley. But we'll find out.

/

Harley was curled up on the couch watching cartoons, Selina beside her, when the knock came. Three sharp raps on the front door, each one the exact same speed and cadence, like they had been rehearsed. Which…they had. Selina sprung up from her end of the couch, knocking the blanket off Harley's feet, who whimpered in protest.

"Hey," Selina breathed as she opened the door. "Come in."

Harley lifted her head off the pillow just enough to see that Bruce who had entered the apartment. Her face pulled into a frown and she tucked the covers tighter around her shoulders.

"It's good to see you again, Holly." The concern on Bruce's face melted into a soft smile. "When Selina told me you'd fallen so ill…"

"I'm alright," Harley interrupted quickly. "And you can say 'got sick'. This isn't 'My Favorite Year'."

Bruce raised a brow in Selina's direction.

"She's spent a lot of time in front of that television," was Selina's explanation.

Harley growled and pulled the blankets tighter around her shoulders, seemingly determined to ignore Bruce—even as he took a seat at the end of the couch. His eyes fell to the many DVD cases that lay scattered around the base of the television stand.

"'Breakfast at Tiffany's', huh?"

"It's misleading," Harley complained. "They never even eat breakfast."

Bruce chuckled, gratefully accepting the cup of water Selina brought him and taking a long sip. Moving around the couch, Selina set another glass on the end table by Harley's head.

"You need to drink something."

Harley's brows furrowed and she shot a quick look at Bruce out of the corner of her eye, who was watching her with an expression that was now far more thoughtful. Selina studied both of them carefully. Bruce was smart enough not to say anything to set Harley off on purpose, but she was so volatile nowadays. Her moods swinging from sullen and depressed to giddy as a kid to angry as a motherfucker. Selina was having a hard time keeping up, and an even harder time stopping herself from straight up smacking some sense into Harley.

Ivy wouldn't want that. She'd give Harley all the patience in the world. Well…Before Harley had verbally torn her to shreds anyway.

"Drink," Selina commanded again, like she was talking to a disobedient child. And Harley did, finally, mumbling grumpily to herself.

"Selina tells me you stayed in the city during the bomb threat," Bruce continued suddenly, and Harley's whole body tensed. She cast a quick, worried glance at Selina. "Seems like a dangerous decision."

"Yeah," was Harley's only reply. She took another long sip of her water to fill the silence.

"Is Pamela safe?"

Both Harley and Selina tensed this time, but Bruce's expression remained neutral.

"Your partner?" he clarified, although nobody in the room needed it.

"She was out of the city when Joker—," Harley momentarily choked on her words. "When he made the bomb threat. Business trip. She's fine."

"That's good." Bruce leaned back, slinging one arm over the back of the couch. "I'm sure she was worried about you."

Harley looked away, fingering a loose thread on the blanket. "Probably."

Selina hadn't gotten word from Ivy since she left Gotham, and she didn't expect to. Ivy was long gone. If Harley's words were anything to go by, Selina doubted they'd ever see her again.

She realized her pain must have been showing on her face when Bruce took her hand, running his thumb over her knuckles and offering her a small reassuring smile.

Bruce returned his attention to Harley. "I think it's very brave what you're doing."

Harley blinked.

"You're safe now. Joker's no longer a threat to the city, and you're in good hands with Selina." Bruce smiled and then rose from the couch. "If you'll excuse me."

He turned and made his way towards the kitchen, Selina following after quickly patting Harley's shoulder, who stared after them with a bewildered expression.

"Are you alright?" Selina asked when they'd entered the privacy of the kitchen. Bruce stood with his back to her, chin ducked to his chest. "Bruce?"

"Ivy called me a coward," he said suddenly, voice low. When he turned to face her, his face was etched with sorrow.

"You're not a coward," Selina consoled, pushing him back towards the counter and setting herself against him, hands resting on his hips. "Bullheaded, stubborn, stuck in your ways, yes. But you're not a coward, Bruce. Ivy was right in saying you should have killed Joker a long time ago…But, one could argue…We all should have. How many times has he thwarted the GCPD, or borrowed the loyalty of the other Arkham inmates. We should have stopped him a long time ago. This isn't all on your shoulders, Bruce. And even if it was…It's over now. Ivy made sure of that."

"I made a promise," Bruce replied, his eyes searching Selina's. "I thought I could keep him contained."

"You're not Superman," Selina winked, drawing a chuckle from him. "Although I'm not sure Clark would have had any qualms about taking him out." Bruce pursed his lips again. "You're a brave man. And strong. And human. You make mistakes. Joker is gone, you can continue protecting this city the way you always have. Gotham still needs Batman."

She placed her hands on Bruce's cheeks, forcing him to look at her.

"I love you, Cat," he murmured.

Selina's smile was instantaneous. "I love you, Bat."

/

It was more symbolic than anything else. Harley had dozens more like it scattered across the various bases she'd occupied with Mistah—With the Joker. But as she watched her old costume go up in smoke, the red flames licking into the night sky, she felt a sense of peace come over her. A rebirth or sorts. Like a weight the size of the world was being lifted off her shoulders.

She hadn't realized how tightly she'd been chained inside that outfit, until it was spread out before her, the smell of burning fabric stinging her nose.

"Thing smells like shit," Selina growled beside her, arms crossed tightly over her chest to fend off the cold. "What the hell is it made of, human skin?"

A smile cracked Harley's lips. The first genuine one in a while. "Nah…There's just a whole lotta years of sweat in there."

"Don't forget blood and tears," Selina added, her eyes flickering away from the outfit to Harley.

Pursing her lips, Harley tossed a bit more gasoline into the flames, stepping back as they rocketed upward into the inky black sky.

"Okay, and we're done with the gas," Selina gently plucked the canister from Harley's iron grip. Straightening after setting it a safe distance away, Selina rejoined Harley, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"You ready to go?"

Harley nodded. Although she didn't know where she was going yet. Or what she was doing. Or what she should work towards. But she was certainly ready for…whatever.

Ready to step away from her old self. And embrace whoever—whatever—she was now.

As she turned and walked away from the fire with Selina by her side, another smile spread across her cheeks.

"What?" Selina asked, her own lips twitching as she studied Harley's face. "What's the grin for?"

Harley's shoulders bobbed in a shrug, her smile widening.

"Wanna head back home?" Selina had clearly decided not to press the question, gesturing with her thumb to the apartment.

But Harley shook her head. "I think I'm stayin' out here."

"Out here? In the street?" Selina blinked.

"Mhmm," Harley's nod was immediate. She took a step away from Selina, tucking her hands into her coat pockets, her smile disappearing beneath the scarf she wore. "G'night, Kitty."

She felt Selina's eyes on her as she spun on her heel and started down the street, her boots clicking on the asphalt. Staying with Selina as she physically healed from the showdown between Joker and Ivy had reminded her painfully of the old days. When all three of them had lived together.

When…

Taking a deep breath through her nose, Harley lifted her chin, picking up her pace as she moved further into the city. There was no way Harley could ever pay Selina back for what she'd done for her. And she hadn't even tried to express her gratitude, not really.

Promising herself to at least try to return the favor eventually, Harley tucked herself deeper into her coat, leaving Selina, the apartment, and the ruined costume far behind.

/

Pamela sat a moment after shutting her car off. Breathed in the wet air. The silence of the empty highway. The crisp evening wind that bit through the threads of her cardigan.

Why did you ever leave, Mother?

She wished her answer to that question didn't sound so impossibly naïve.

To save the world.

That's what she'd told herself then, anyway. Told herself she didn't have time for selfish girls. For liars. She had a new and divine calling, and Linda had made her choice.

The truth was, she'd been embarrassed. Heartbroken. Her actions were rash. Not premediated in the least. When Linda arrived at the hospital that day, Pamela had every intention of running away with her and never looking back. Linda was a scientist; she'd be able to help Pamela navigate her new condition. Help her hide her differences, her abilities…

Everything would be just as it was before, but this time, Linda would be hers. Their time apart had only made Pamela want her more, and she—foolishly, with the innocence of a young woman experiencing her first love—thought Linda would feel the same. Thought her coming out of the coma would be the final nail in the coffin of Linda and Alec's marriage.

But, in reality, all Pamela's absence had done was strengthen Linda's bond with him. Allowed Pamela and whatever love they'd shared to slip away…fade into the recesses of her memory…

Linda had thrown her away, so Pamela…she did the same. Though she made sure it was permanent.

There was nothing profound about Pam's actions—Poison Ivy's first moments as a villain. Nothing more than an angry, jealous girl enacting her revenge on a former lover.

Pathetic.

Even with superpowers, abilities most couldn't even conceive of, she was still pathetic. Still just a girl clinging desperately to selfish women who would never love her back. Could never. Were too enamored with themselves and their…men.

But she was through blaming them. Not even her mother could love her. And the only common denominator in those relationships was Pamela herself. It was she who was unlovable.

She waited for the approaching car to pass before quietly popping her door open and stepping out, drawing her scarf tighter around her neck, and gripping a wrapped package tightly in her hand as she walked around the convertible and off the road's grassy shoulder, into the old-growth forest the highway so rudely bisected.

The day was overcast to begin with, but Pamela could feel it getting darker. Feel the cold beginning to seep through her clothes and into her bones. That didn't stop her from unbuttoning her jacket, though. From discarding it as she walked. Doing the same with her scarf, and then her sweater. Leaving them scattered around the snow covered forest floor.

It wasn't long before she lost sight of the road, descending deeper into the dank silence of a rural Washington winter.

She stopped at the sight of a snow covered log, registering the other that lay no more than two feet behind it.

They weren't logs.

But only Pamela would ever know that.

She stripped off the rest of her clothing, and stood silently, now naked in the frigid cold. It took a moment, and a few muffled whimpers of pain, but soon she'd grown a leotard, one thick enough to combat the breeze that attempted to ruffle her leaves.

"Hi," she whispered, the word already choked in her throat.

Pamela wasn't expecting an answer, but still, she waited. For what, she wasn't sure.

Permission.

Ignoring the cold, she gingerly lowered herself to the ground, until she was kneeling beside the smaller body in the snow. Her hand shook as she extended it, rested it on her moss-covered back.

"I'm sorry for how long I've been away. I know I promised I'd come back…but at least you weren't alone." She gently traced her spine, the petrified bone trapped forever within the root system of a nearby tree. Tangled up in it. Held fast.

Pamela wished those were her arms cradling her.

"I…am so…sorry." Her tears dripped into the snow, creating bullet holes in the otherwise smooth blanket of wet warmth. "I know it's far too little, far too late…and that no amount of remorse, or self-loathing will ever un-do my cruelty…" she closed her eyes, trapping her tears against them. "Perhaps my suffering is cause for celebration…though you were never the type to rub it in," she said, mostly to herself. "How is it simply to sleep? Does it all just…melt away?"

"Perhaps." Linda sat down beside her, studying her own frozen remains. "But do you really think you deserve that? Deserve the serenity of true silence?"

There were no dark corners to retreat to within her mind anymore. Nowhere for her lies to bloom. Her baptism in the blood of the unholy had left every surface a mirror, and the woman she found staring back at her now was just as foolish as she had always been. Just as hopeful at the idea of being adored as the day she learned her Mother didn't love her like a mother was supposed to love her child. Didn't love her at all…

Why Ivy thought Harley could love her, she really had no idea. The fact that she'd believed her, taken her words at face value and just trusted was as appalling as it was upsetting.

"No," Pam whispered.

Woodrue had made her a toy. Nothing more than a sex doll with superpowers. And stupid, needy, desperate Pamela had given Harley Quinn full access, believing—for some ridiculous reason—that Harley's intentions were different from any other human that had propositioned her since her transformation. Her torture. Pamela gave her access to everything she was. Her body, her mind, and her heart. The keys to her castle. And Harley did what all humans do. What Woodrue did. What Linda did; she devoured her whole, leaving behind someone Ivy didn't like in her entrails. Spitting out this pitiful husk of a woman that Pamela recognized all too well.

Linda's cold hand drifted over the snow to Pamela's shoulder, the touch sending a chill down the redhead's spine. "So then what is it you think you deserve?" she wondered.

Pam smiled slightly at a thought that crossed her mind then. A smile that managed to coexist with the tears now falling steadily down her cheeks, rather than cut through them. "You once told me I deserved love. You were the first person that ever said that to me…"

"And I meant it."

"Did you, then?" Pamela asked, turning to look upon her pale face. "Love me?"

Linda's smile was so warm, it felt as though she'd wrapped a thick cloak around Pamela's shoulders. "I'm sure I did, my love."

Pam could feel her own smile broaden, a happy, yet pained little laughed escaping her as she wiped her own tears away. "Then why didn't you choose me?"

Linda leaned forward with her thumb outstretched, wiping away what Pam had missed. "Because you made me brave, Darling. I wasn't strong enough to remember how much I loved you on my own."

Her jaw trembled as she felt Linda pull her hand away. "No, please." Pam's eyes filled with new tears. "Hold me, Linda, please. Just hold me. Like you used to. Like Harley did."

"Pamela…" there was pity laced in the sound. "You know I can't do that."

Pamela felt herself shaking inelegantly in the cold, freezing at the edges as Linda moved further away. "Why not?" she cried.

"Because you don't believe in ghosts," her voice was so soft… "And I've been dead a long time."

The forest was silent save for Pamela's sniveling, and still…so very still, the corpse below her hand motionless.

Forcing her eyes fully open, Pam unwrapped her package, the polished silver of the knife's blade shining against the crisp, white snow, seeming to absorb the first faint rays of moonlight that drifted down through the bare branches of the trees that surrounded her.

Hold me….

Someone, please hold me.

She gripped the knife's handle tightly in her right hand, pressing the tip of the blade into the soft skin at her wrist.

I just want to sleep.

I don't want to be alone.

Pam watched as she sliced down the length of her vein, continuing all the way to her elbow for good measure. Her green blood gushed out of the wound, dripping off of her arm and sizzling as it hit the snow.

Her chest heaved with her excited breathing as the thought of escape suddenly looked like it could truly become a reality.

But as she watched, the bleeding gradually slowed, her skin bridging the gash she'd created, sealing itself back together.

"No." Pam shook her head in denial, trying again, deeper this time. Wanting so desperately to get away, it hurt worse than any physical pain she could possibly inflict. But to her utter dismay, her skin again stitched itself back together, the cut disappearing like it was nothing more than a trick of the mind. Like it had never really happened at all.

"No," she cried, slicing violently now. Hopelessly. "No, no, no." She stabbed downwards, leaving the knife in her arm this time. "Let me go," she sobbed. "Let me go!"

But the knife fell to the ground as her body rejected it, the wound healing, and the puncture disappearing.

"Let me go!" Pam shrieked.

But the dense forest swallowed up her screams, just as it had Alec's.

Just as it had Linda's.

"No, no, no." Her body shuddered frantically in the clearing her poisonous blood had created. "Let me go…"

Pamela…Linda's voice slithered into her ear, causing the redhead's body to suddenly go rigid. Go home, my love.

Ivy quickly pulled her hand back from the other woman's remains, though she'd felt no movement. The forest remained still. Her surroundings deathly silent.

The sound had come through The Green.

Go home, Mother.

No. It was The Green. Just as it had always been. Nothing had changed.

Pamela was still trapped.

Unlovable and alone on this planet she couldn't save.

The only difference was, now she knew her hell was right here on Earth. And like any prison of eternal suffering, she couldn't escape.