Wow many reviewers and even more readers, I'm so delighted you like this fic.
Chapter 4 posted below, it's rather short (sorry Rouge-Phoenix but some other chapters are a bit longer) but I hope you'll still stick with it.
TheHuntress06 : no need for an AU, believe me you'll understand later Helena and Bruce's behavior.
Lucy76 : thank you for taking the time to review every chapter, means a lot to a writer to see this :D
The End, chapter 4
Placing a gentle kiss on the top of her head, Helena squeezed Barbara a little tighter to her, feeling sleep enveloping her, yet unwilling to let go.
She remembered a few years back waking up from a nightmare, drenched in sweat, to feel strong arms encircling her, shielding her from the pain. That has been Barbara's, much in the same posture as she was now. She had felt safe for the first time in weeks.
Barbara might have been paralyzed at that time, but she had managed to climb in bed with her, encircling her in the safety of her arms. Her strength never ceased to amaze her. Even now she still was: that strong and independent woman who had raised her.
She thought back to the events of the past months. One night she had come back to the clock tower after sweeps to find a massive man, broad shoulders hugging Barbara. Both had tears in their eyes and she'd always remember Barbara's glance when she noticed her standing nearby: a huge smile had creped over her lips. That's how she remembered her first meeting with her father, Bruce Wayne, Barbara's smile. Wasn't it odd?
Seemed that every part of her history was linked closely to Barbara Gordon: her becoming her guardian although she wasn't really close friend to Selina Kyle, her endless prays to the principal to keep her at school even though she had punched a few of her classmates many times, her decision to become a crime fighter even as Barbara did her best to discourage her, then she guided her through it, showing her how the job had to be done.
She had always been there for her, no matter what she did, what mistake she made. She was there, always caring, always gentle, and always supportive…
And there was Bruce Wayne, 40-something, back in town after 8 years and learning that he had left behind a teenager, now a grown up woman. He had been very gentle from the first day on, not pushing her in any way, making sure she was ready before taking things any further, asking her to move in with him. "No pressure," he had said "all I want is you to have the place you deserve". It was nice at first to move into the Wayne's manor, as big as it was. She wasn't too lost since Alfred was there, Dinah as well.
She missed Barbara a lot, their late night conversations over the comms, the way she'd hear her breath catch every time she'd kick some ass during her sweeps (which happened quite often). But Bruce had told her that Barbara had to live her life now, that the French Sorbonne Universitycontacted her for an exchange program, which was a great opportunity for her career, that she couldn't let the chance pass. And she had agreed, Barbara certainly deserved the happiness that life had thrown her way.
For once she was on the receiving end. It hurt to feel like Barbara was closing her out of her life, but she knew she never meant to hurt her, so Bruce might have being right. After all they had been crime fighters side by side, so he might know her fairly well. But now she knew, Barbara never left on her own will, and Bruce had manipulated her from the beginning. Who did he think he was? Her father…yeah right, but Barbara had been both her father and mother for long, never thinking she owned her.
Sighing, she managed to lie back on the bed, Barbara secure in her arms, nestled against her side, head resting on her chest, oxygen mask safely in place. She wasn't about to let her father deny her this moment of rest; she needed it as much as Barbara.
Tomorrow and its problems will come soon enough.
End of chapter 4 - Reviews only a click away :D