"Helena, come here!" Barbara shouted as she looked around. "Helena, this is the last time that I'm going to call you!"
She heard Alfred behind her and turned. "Alfred, have you seen her?"
"She is with Miss Diana untying knots with her lasso in the balcony. I already told her that you are looking for her."
"I need do some tests on her."
"Do you think she will get back to normal?"
"Yes, but I need to know exactly how much the potion affected her and her senses: We know that her strength increased, that she acts like a cat, she purrs and makes strange sounds from her chest that a normal human being can't. Her memory was overwhelmed, although not totally because she recognized us and she turned very friendly."
"Yes, that is the strangest part," he joked and winked at her.
"True." Barbara smiled and heard Diana entering to the infirmary from the balcony with Helena playing with her golden lasso. "Hey, you two having fun?"
"She is doing it well." The princess smiled.
"I'm glad she don't know how to use it." Barbara raised her brow looking the golden lasso.
"She would make us give her poptarts all day." Alfred chuckled and went to the elevator.
"Come here big girl, I need to do some tests on you." Barbara patted the special chair where she could examin her brain. Helena moved and sat there trying to undo a knot on the lasso.
Diana crossed her arms and looked at them. "What do you think?"
"I don't know yet what I'm looking for." The red head looked at Helena. "Diana, how much do you think she can understand?"
"Excuse me?"
"How much do you think she can understand us, when we talk to her?."
"Well... I'm not sure. You'll have to try and see."
Barbara sighed. "Okay." She took the lasso from the brunette. The girl protested with a soft mewl. "Helena, I need do some test on you, don't move." She put the helmet down over the brunette's head. She stopped playing and growled. "Don't worry, it's just a few seconds. Diana, help me here."
The amazon stood up next to Helena, who looked around the glass. Barbara wheeled toward her computer and turned on the scanner. Helena jumped slightly on the chair and Diana touched her hand. "Don't worry…"
The girl began to watch the light moving from side to side and tried to catch it. After a few seconds it turned off. The helmet moved up.
"That's all Helena." Barbara said.
"See? You can go now." The princess touched her shoulder. She moved down and went over to the desk next to Barbara, sitting on it.
"That is a bad habit that she has when she's in possession of her senses too." The redhead sighed.
"What do you have?" Diana asked.
"I analyzed her blood; her meta cells increased by 130%, she normally is 50 - 50%; so she was overwhelmed by her meta side and it has had consequences… look at this image of her thorax."
The princess examined the image on the screen. "It's bigger…"
"And I detected changes in her vocal chords, too… And in her brain. Her frontal lobe where cognition and memory reside… the ability to concentrate and understand, elaboration of thought and the area of motor speech have diminished by 65 %. As has her temporal lobe: that is the auditory reception and association area and where you can express behavior, it also controls receptive speech and the retrieval of memory."
"That sounds bad. It produces severe injury: Inability to recognize self. Disorientation of environmental space and the inability to write," Diana read from the screen.
"Go on, Helena." Barbara helped her to stand up and pushed her as she pointed at Alfred. "Go with him, I don't have time now," she ordered gently, eliciting a mewl of disapproval, but the girl acquiesced.
Barbara kept working in the lab. Dinah was studying with Gabby and Wonder Woman was investigating more clues. Barbara was trying to find an antidote and trying to guess the next movement of Circe. She was taking her time and that didn't mean anything good. She had changed the codes of all the exits to prevent the brunette from running away. She heard Alfred talking to Helena in the kitchen. She turned her head back and saw them both there. She kept working; she knew Alfred was very smart and he could manage the girl very well.
"Miss Helena, that is dangerous." Alfred raised his brow, Helena sat on a chair in the kitchen. He was cutting slices of meat and she was trying to sniff it. Everything in the place smelled very good. There was food all over the table and she wanted a bit.
He finally tired, cut a small slice of raw meat and put it on the table next to her; he stopped watching her reaction. She smelled it and put it in her mouth. A few seconds later she hissed and spit it out onto the table.
"That was not polite." He smiled "But it was a good lesson."
She growled in protest at him. That had tasted terrible. He put the meal in a pot while she kept smelling the groceries on the table. Alfred opened a chili bottle and put a drop on his hand to taste it. He went to the stove and looked for some matches. Helena took the bottle and dumped some on the table, licking it. In the lab, Barbara heard a loud growl and the sound of a bottle breaking against the floor. She looked up. "What happened, Alfred?" she asked. Helena was groaning, moving her head and flicking her tongue around like crazy. Alfred looked down and saw the bottle shattered. He sighed and took a glass and a large jar and filled both with water. "Curiosity killed the cat." He went to the girl and gave the glass to her. "Drink this." Helena looking him with her tongue hanging out of her mouth looked at both containers, and took the big one, the jar. She stuck her tongue in it and drank it. "Yes… not so much polite." Alfred smiled. "What is happening, Alfred? Barbara's voice was heard again. "Miss Helena had learn to not eat chili sauce. Don't worry, Miss Barbara," he responded, watching in amazement at how she emptied the jar of water. Helena growled, still feeling her mouth burning. "I hope this teaches you to keep your nose out of my food. Take this." He showed her a bag with pop tarts. She took it and stood up; he saw her hopping out of the kitchen. She was funny and yet still had a lot of her normal charm.
Barbara typed at the keyboard; suddenly, she heard the noise of a plastic bag ripping behins her back. She turned her head and saw Helena sitting on the floor, munching a poptart. She sighed, at less she was quiet. Dinah usually kept her distracted, but now she was with Gabby. A few minutes later, Helena kneeled next to her and rested her head on her arm.
"Not now, Hel.." Barbara said, raising a test tube.
Helena felt the redhead never had time for her. She spent all day working there. She bit her hand gently to get her attention.
Barbara smiled and brushed her hair. "Helena, I need to work on an antidote, I can't play with you now. I need you back to normal."
She mewled sadly, but Barbara kept working. Helena was annoyed, she growled loud in disgust at her.
"Yes, yes…" Babara said, distractedly. "Later…"
Barbara's chair suddenly moved back and she almost dropped the test tubes. The chair hit her back against one of the desks and some tubes fell to the floor. Helena had pressed one of the buttons on the arm of her chair. Barbara could almost see a grin on the girl's face. "That was not nice Helena!" she said, angrily.
Helena meowed again.
"No, young lady! I need to work!" Barbara scolded her. "I can't play now! Go to your room, now!"
Helena took one of the test tubes that had fallen to the floor and hopped outside the lab. Barbara realized it was the antidote that she had been working on. "Dammit, Helena, no!!!"
Helena jumped over the rail and sat there looking down and playing with the test tube.
"Give me that!!" Barbara shouted from the lower floor "If you break that you are in serious trouble. Alfred!! Come here!!"
The old man turned and saw Helena crouched over the rail in the living room on the upper floor.
"She has the test tube with the potion!" Barbara said.
"Uh..oh.." Alfred walked toward the girl but she jumped easily to the other side of the rail where Barbara's desk was.
"Damn, Helena!" the red head yelled. "Your ankle is sprained! Be careful!! Don't throw that tube or I'll kill you!"
Diana walked in, she noticed the confusion inside the place. "Hey, what is happening?"
"Damn," Barbara said, exasperated. "Helena wants to play and she stole the antidote that I'm testing."
Helena looked down at both women, she had finally managed to get the redhead's attention. Maybe she'd understand that she wanted be with her. She saw the other tall woman, maybe she wanted to play too.
"Let me try…" Diana walked toward the brunette, and looked up. "Hey… how are you?" Diana said smiling at her. "I see you have been busy." Wonder Woman jumped to the second floor a few meters from Helena.
Helena jumped toward the mechanism of the clock and she sat on the top giving a playful growl.
"She thinks you are playing," Barbara said to Diana.
"Yes, I see." The amazon stood up on the trail. "Helena, give me that test tube and then we can play."
The brunette watched her without moving.
"Give me that… and we can play."
The brunette jumped toward the rail next to the kitchen.
"Impressive," Alfred muttered.
"Yes…" Barbara said.
Wonder Woman flew quickly toward her, stopping in mid-air. "I'm not going to play more, if you don't give me that," Diana said. "You will hurt your ankle."
Helena looked down trying to figure out where she was standing up. She stared at her up and down, confused. She moved carefully and tried to step on the air too.
"No!" Diana said, to avoid an accident and prevent the tube from breaking.
The brunette jumped to the lower floor and tried to run, but Diana blocked her way. She crouched and growled playfully again.
"I won't play if you don't give me that. Come on…" Diana pointed at the test tube.
The brunette looked at it and pouted. She didn't like that the woman's tone of voice wasn't friendly, she didn't want play. Barbara wheeled toward her, as well.
"Give it to me. " Diana kneeled in front of her. Helena lowered her head and looked the test tube. Diana held the girl's hand softly. "Please, give it to me, Hel."
The girl refused to open her hand. "Come on Hel… give it to me," she said in her sweetest voice.
Annoyed, the girl opened her hand and moved back against the wall. She was bored and upset. The redhead never had time for her.
Barbara stopped behind Diana.
"It's okay, I got it.," the princess said, giving the tube to Barbara.
She sighed in relief, looking at her protégé, she seemed very sad. She wheeled toward her. "Hel… We can't play now…"
The brunette avoided her look and turned her head. She didn't understand why she always rejected her.
"We need to work," Barbara said to her.
"Maybe I can give her a few minutes." Diana took the girl's chin and raised it with her hand. "We can play."
Helena looked at Barbara and lowered her head, she just wanted to play with her and now she was angry again; it was always the same.
"Came on, let's go," the amazon said softly, taking her hand.
The brunette refused to move.
The amazon looked at the red head. "Maybe she thinks you are angry because she took the test tube."
"I'm not mad…" Barbara said.
"Did you hear Barbara?" Diana asked, trying to make Helena raise her head "She is not mad with you, she just wanted the test tube."
"Helena," Barbara explained, "I'm not mad with you but I can't play."
Helena growled and moved her head to the other side.
Diana took her hand. "Come on, let me show you that Barbara is not mad with you."
Helena refused to move again.
"Hey, what's wrong with you? You don't want go see her?"
Helena growled. Diana observed her in silence a few seconds. Helena was avoiding Barbara's gaze. Diana figured out that Helena was mad because Barbara didn't pay attention to her.
"Okay, okay…" Diana smiled at her "Why we don't go to your room? We can play now."
Helena meowed softly and raised her eyes to her. The woman was being warm and friendly.
"Yes." Diana laughed. "We can play now. Want to come?" Helena suddenly threw her arms around Diana, purring and rested her head on her shoulder.
Barbara tried to meet Helena's eyes again, but the girl moved her head again to avoid her. She sighed. Seemed as if Helena was annoyed with her.
"It's okay…" Diana rubbed Helena's back. "Let's go to your room while Barbara works, right?"
"Thanks, Diana." Barbara said.
"No problem, I'll be right back in a few," the amazon responded.
Barbara wheeled back and went toward the lab.
"What is happening to her?." Alfred asked joining the redhead in the lab.
"She is always unsociable… the drug affected her… seems as if when she's feral, the anger is gone, and she's very affectionate towards us and wants attention all day now… I need to stop this nightmare."
"It is a nightmare that she wants love?" he asked.
Barbara blinked. "No… it's not that Alfred, you know it."
"She needs you now, she is just asking for attention. Maybe it's a good moment to try to give it to her."
Barbara sighed. "Yes… oh… but I need to finish this to help her."
"I understand that, but maybe taking a few minutes for her will be good."
Barbara smiled. "As always, you are right. Okay, I'll go to see her."