The Haunting Past
A/N: This is my first ever fan fiction, and I have only seen a couple episodes of Birds of Prey, so any reviews would be helpful. Thanks and I hope you enjoy it.
Disclaimers: The Birds of Prey along with its characters belong to the WB.
****************************************************************************************************************
Both Helena and Dinah walked into No Man's Land. Helena had not had
a chance to have fun in awhile. Barbara spotted what the fighting, sweeps, Reese had all done to Helena's emotions and mentality. Barbara took it upon herself to give Helena a few nights off, but a loud and abusive fight erupted between the two. To stop the escalating quarrel between the two, Dinah grabbed Helena's arm and guided her out of the clock tower and now to a couch at No Man's Land. Helena had not spoken a word since leaving the tower, except for the occasional grunts and snorts letting Dinah know to leave Helena lost in her own thoughts for a few more minutes. Finally, after they had been sitting there for 15 minutes, Helena looked over to Dinah and exclaimed, "I can't believe she said that to me!"
"What, that your in love with Reese, or that you have lost a step?"
The anger once again overcoming Helena, forcing her eyes to change, and
before Dinah could blink, she was at the bar.
B: Dinah, you there?
Dinah was still trying to get used to the communicator, so the sudden voice in her ear caused her to jump.
D: Yeah, I'm here.
B: Thank goodness, she looked so angry, I thought she was going to
kill you.
D: In all fairness Oracle, I don't think I am the one she wants to
kill or at least seriously injure.
B: Yeah, I know. I can't believe my telling her to take the night
off caused a huge fight.
D: I know, something is going on with her. It's starting to worry
me.
B: I am worried too, hey where did you go?
D: No Man's Land, she's sitting at the bar, gulping down her second vodka on the rocks.
B: Try not to let her get too drunk, she's just way too much work
that way.
"Hey Oracle, did you mean what you said, about her losing her step?"
Dinah asked as she turned her back to the bar and Helena.
B: No, not really. I just meant that she needed to rest. I doubt
that she has slept more than an hour in the last 4 days.
D: What do you think is brothering her?
B: I really don't know. Every time I ask her she cuts me off, says
she's fine and walks away or turns off her comm. set.
D: Oracle, this is serious, what are we going to do?
B: I don't know, but¦
Suddenly Barbara was interrupted by Dinah's scream.
B: Dinah? Dinah? Are you okay?
In response, Barbara could hear Dinah screaming, "Helena don't you ever do that to me again. Oh my god, you scared me."
"Dinah what happened?" Barbara asked with a slight chuckle. Barbara listened as Dinah tried catching her breath, she could hear Gibson in
the background trying to clam down Helena. So much for trying not to
let Helena get too drunk, Barbara thought as she asked the same question
again.
Finally catching her breathe, Dinah responded, "Oh, Helena just hugged
Me from behind. I was going to scream for her, before I realized it was
Her trying to break my ribs."
B: Well, at least she is in a better mood.
D: Oracle, hang on a sec. Helena is seducing Gibson, and well it being
Gibson he is more then willing.
Dinah walked over to the couch where Helena was straddling Gibson and
biting his ear. Gibson appeared more than pleased to have the lady of his dreams giving him such a treat. Dinah grabbed Helena's arm in a feeble attempt to make her stop. Helena pushed Dinah away and continued biting and kissing Gibson's face and neck. Dinah, getting angry and losing her ability to control her telekinesis lifted Helena into the air and threw her across the room. Helena in her state of intoxication just looked at Dinah and started to laugh.
Barbara hearing the commotion shouted into Dinah's hear: What the
hell is going on? Is everything alright?
D: Oracle, I can't control her. I need help.
B: Okay, okay, I am on my way.
The comm. unit clicked off, and Dinah stood there looking at Helena and
thought what am I going to do until she gets here? She could see Helena's eye start to close, as her drunkenness sent her into a sweet oblivion. About ten minutes later the elevator opened and Barbara emerged. She quickly wheeled over to Dinah who had Helena's head in her lap. The two just looked at one another and then down at Helena. Finally Barbara leaned down to the two and stated with a slight hint of disgust and concern: Okay help me get her to the car.
************************************************************************
Helena slowly lifted her head from the comforting pillow. A slow groan
escaped her throat as she looked around the room to find two very
exasperated and troubled eyes staring at her through the blackness. The night's memories gradually seeped through her mind as she stared into the eyes that were relentless in their pursuit to understand. Helena simply turned away, refusing to speak to the intruder. Seconds, minutes passed with both declining to speak. The pain, the questions, the silence was too much for either to bare, and yet the answers scared both of them even more. Why? Is possibly the most difficult and unforgiving question in all human languages and now both were faced with having to ask it of themselves and each other. Neither knew the answers to any of
the questions and so they sat.
The sun's beams erupted across the sky as it rose from its slumber. Finally at the same moment the two women looked at each other staring into each others' tortured eyes they knew everything and yet nothing at all. Finally Barbara lowered her chin to her chest and asked, "What is wrong?"
Helena could hear the confusion, the exhaustion, the hurt, in Barbara's
voice. She wanted to tell her, she wanted to tell Barbara everything,
but in spite of that she couldn't. She couldn't even tell herself.
After a few moments she finally answered the only answer she could with, "It's complicated."
Barbara raised her head methodically and gazed into the protégé
eyes. She wheeled herself over to Helena and placed a comforting hand on her knee.
B: What do you mean?
H: Well, I know that you didn't really mean what you said last night, and at the same time it still feels like a dagger in my back.
B: I am not asking about last night. I am asking about all of this last week. What is going on? Why aren't you sleeping, hell why are you not even eating? All you are doing is sweeps, sweeps, and more sweeps. I am really worried about you.
"I just feel like fighting crime," Helena answered sheepishly, knowing that Barbara would easily see through the lie.
B: Dammit Helena, why won't you tell me?
H: Fine, the other…¦
Helena was cut off as the last of the trio knocked on the door and then
entered the room.
D: Sorry to interrupt, but Barbara we are already late.
B: I will be down in a second.
Dinah glanced at Helena, who was looking at the floor, seemingly lost
in her own thoughts. She didn't even bother to whisper a goodbye as she
left the room. Barbara continued to look at Helena.
B: Promise me that you will be here when I get back.
Helena knowing she wouldn't be just nodded her head, and then listened as Barbara left. She slowly climbed to her feet and walked to the bathroom. She turned the water on in the shower, and pulled all of the clothes off of her torn body. She climbed into the shower and allowed the water to cascade over her body. Thoughts were rampant throughout her mind, and tears started to flow down her cheeks. Great, she thought, I have eight hours to figure out away to tell Barbara what happened last week.
She dressed rapidly, and moved to the streets outside. She left her
comm. unit along with a note in the elevator. She had to figure this out for herself, and that meant disappearing, without answering any questions. She hoped that Barbara would understand, although she doubted the elder of the two would. She walked to her apartment and grabbed a duffle bag and filled it with the things that were the closest to her. She walked to the door and sullenly grabbed the handle turned it and pulled the door ajar. Without looking back, she walked out and closed the door.
************************************************************************
Barbara hurriedly dismissed her last class of the day when the final
bell rang. She and Dinah meet at the car and headed to the clock tower
without a single word. Both had a bad feeling and neither knew how to express it. Finally they reached the tower and entered the elevator to see the note and familiar necklace and earrings. Dinah quickly reached for it and read the simple writing to herself, before handing it to Barbara. Barbara clutched the note in her hand and read aloud
Dear Barbara and Dinah,
I am so sorry I don't know how long it will take, but I have to
figure this out on my own. Please understand,
H
Barbara looked in horror at Dinah. She couldn't believe the note's
message.
D: What are we going to do?
B: I don't know. She has never done anything like this before. We
have to find her, we have to find out what is wrong.
Both of them went back out to the car and started out to Helena's apartment. When they reached it they found somr of the belongings gone. Barbara quickly went to the bedroom and saw the picture of Helena and her mother was gone. She would never leave without that picture. Barbara's stomach sank, with each passing moment. Something was wrong and if they didn't find out what it was now, she didn't know if she would see Helena again for a long time.
************************************************************************
Reese stood outside of the precinct. He couldn't believe he had gotten a call from the elusive Huntress. Even since she told him her name, she still came and went as she pleased. He scanned the street, looking for
her. He was shocked when she simply walked down the street to where he was, wearing the usual black leather. She was also wearing black glasses and carrying a black bag over her shoulder.
When she was within five feet of him, he stated, "Wow, no extravagant
entrance, something must be wrong."
H: I just wanted to talk to you before I left.
R: What? Your leaving? What is going on?
H: Nothing, I just need to get away and think about things.
R: Huh, it sounds like you are hiding something.
H: Reese you forget, I am always hiding something.
R: I know that, but this seems so much more then the usual secretes.
H: Yeah, well I have to go. I guess I will see you later.
R: Does this have something to do with what happened last week?
H: No.
R: When are you getting back?
H: I don't know.
Reese could see and hear the pain in her voice, but he could innately feel that she needed sometime.
R: Well, is there anyway to get in touch with you.
H: No.
Reese gazed at her with concern: Fine, bye.
Helena looked at him one last time and then turned and sauntered away.
She didn't know where she was going, but she had to go. The images kept
seeping through her thoughts. She had to get rid of them. She had to stop the pain. She just had to. Once she got away from Reese's eyeshot, she hailed a taxi.
He asked her "where to?", and with no going back now she answered
"anywhere but here." So he drove until the sun faded into the night. Finally, she had him stop at a motel. Without a single word she paid him the large sum of money, grabbed her bag, and walked into the office of the building.
************************************************************************
Dinah and Barbara sat at the kitchen table, neither of them touching
the meal Alfred had placed before them. In all the years that Helena had stayed and worked with Barbara she had never disappeared this way. She had always just left the tower and stayed in the city, but now she was no where to be found. She had vanished. After, they came back to the tower from Helena's apartment they had called and checked everywhere imaginable, but to no avail.
Suddenly a thought crossed Barbara's mind: What about Reese? We didn't try to talk to Reese.
D: Well, do you think she would have talked to him?
B: Yeah I do. I can't believe I didn't think of this earlier.
Barbara rapidly went to the elevator, and then to the computers. After
a few minutes of rapid typing Barbara printed out a sheet of paper.
B: Okay I have his address, let's go.
The two women left the tower and headed to the apartment that was
listed on the paper, wordlessly.
************************************************************************
Reese walked into his apartment, and threw his keys, badge and gun on
the kitchen counter. He was still shaken by his encounter with Helena. The conversation ran repeatedly through his mind. Why was she so upset? He knew that that night a week ago had disturbed her, but he never thought she would leave town over it. He was abruptly taken away from his deep thoughts with a pounding on the door. He strolled to the door and slowly opened it. He was rather taken back, to find the blonde Dinah and another red head in a wheelchair outside his door.
B: Hello, detective Reese I am Oracle, and we need to ask you a few
questions.
R: Um, okay, come in.
Reese moved away form the door and let them enter then he moved back
to the door and closed it. He could sense the reason why they were there so he told them strait away: I don't know where she went.
B: What?
R: She called me at about one, we meet at two. She said that she was
leaving. She seemed really upset.
B: She didn't say where she was going?
R: No, just that she needed to be alone and think.
B: Did she tell you away to contact her?
R: No, she didn't. Does this have something to do with what happened last week, she wouldn't tell me?
B: What? What happened last week?
R: She didn't tell you. I thought she told you everything.
B: Reese, she never tells anyone everything. So what happened?
R: Well, we were out walking around one night last week you know
talking. A fight broke out about a block away, when we got there, there was a full on brawl with at least 20 men. I tried the standard, "Freeze police," but they didn't care. So, Huntress started to fight them all. She had about ten of them beaten, when this man dressed in this weird Bat costume came down and helped finish them off. Huntress seemed really confused and pissed, like she knew him and wanted him to leave. He told us that he had been watching the two of us for a few weeks. He started to talk to Huntress, and she told him to, well I don't think any human could do what she told him to do. We started to walk away, and he said that he knew who she was and that the Joker was coming back to town. She just looked at him and walked away. She got
really upset after that. I tried asking her about the man in the bat
costume, and who the Joker was, but she just got more and more upset.
She wouldn't talk to me, I turned for one second and she was gone. And I haven't really talked to her since.
Barbara dropped her head and rubbed the back of her neck, she couldn't
believe what she was hearing. Bruce was back, he knew who Helena was,
the Joker was coming back, and now Helena was gone. She was lost in her own thoughts when she heard the phone ring. Reese glanced at the two women before moving to the phone.
R: Hello.
H: Hey, have they come to talk to you yet?
Reese knowing she wouldn't want to be given away said: Hey mom, can
you hang on a second I have company.
Reese pulled the phone away from his ear and gazed at Barbara: Sorry I
have to take this.
B: Okay, we will leave.
R: No, it's okay. We need to talk, I will just take it in the bedroom.
Barbara nodded as Reese walked around the corner and into the bedroom
Closing the door behind him.
R: Sorry about that. Where are you?
H: Mom? You called me mom.
R: Yeah, well Oracle and Dinah are here. Did you want me to tell them
That you are on the phone?
H: They are there right now?
R: Yeah, they are. Hey they are really worried. Did you not tell
them you were leaving?
H: Well, somewhat.
R: What do you mean by somewhat?
H: Well I left a note.
R: A note? You left a note?
H: Yeah.
R: Maybe you should talk to Oracle.
H: Did you tell them about what happened?
R: Yeah, I did. I really think you need to talk to her. She looks
like she is on the brink of breaking down.
The silence rested on the phone for a few moments, Reese called her
name a few times.
H: I don't know.
R: You don't have to tell her where you are, just talk to her, okay?
H: I am sorry Reese, but I just can't.