Ch.51: Aroma

[I went down, down, down and the flames went higher]

"Agh!" yelped Harley, thrown through the pair of glass doors, snivelling as she feels broken glass shred her where she falls. Wincing and turning, exasperating her already tortuous position that she found herself in. Trembling eyes, quivering lips and her pulsating chest take her over, unable to focus on what was unfolding before her.

[And it burns, burns, burns]

"This...? You will pay dearly witch! You dare taint his mind!" warns, Talia, daughter of the demon, Ra's al Ghul. Positioned on her knees, the woman unsheathes her sword in response to the approaching figure cloaked within the shadows, white eyes ripping through the blackness, staring into her soul. Across from herself and her foe, lied Jason Blüd sprawled out on the floor and out of consciousness. Emerald green eyes that are close to her own connect, belonging to Selina who was in an equal of a rough state.

Entering in and out of unconsciousness herself, Selina feels her body weigh like stone, unable to pick herself up, "...B-Br...p-please... F-fight her..."

[the ring of fire. the ring of fire]

Removing himself from the blanket of darkness, Batman shows himself, less of a man and more of the animal. The illuminative glimmer of his eyes giving a soulless look, never altering or closing, making the woman before him feel like a deer in the headlights moments before the collision.

"You like my new toy, Cat?" slender fingers glide over the Dark Knight's chin, gently raking nails over the exposed skin. Poison ivy, willowy beauty with long crimson hair, flawless pale lime skin and smooth glossy lips. Surrounded by an aura of temptation, irrespirable to whoever she wants. Unmatched in beauty and sporting a smirk that was anything but, the edge of her lips stretch the span of her face, devious in nature which was her game.

"E-en-enough..." Struggling for breath and wheezing, Selina calls out to Ivy.

"Oh, Selina... how cute..." curving her wrist, Ivy signals weeds to emerge through the ground near her once friend, entrapping her through the vines, meeting little resistance from its exhausted captive, "Where has that fiery spirit gone?" hummed the dangerous beauty, eyes gleaming at the suffering of Selina.

With little more than a dismissive glance, Ivy reverts back to Talia, "Oh darling, would you kindly finish her?" Puckering her lips, Ivy's mouth expels tiny clouds of spores burst into the vigilante's mouth. Flashing emerald, Batman's eyes narrow to resemble a harsher gaze.

"Beloved, please..." Talia struggles to stand, plagued by shaky hands and wobbly knees. Her pleads land on deaf ears, with a rush of adrenaline coursing through her system, she bears witness to the beginning of the brainwashed man's attack, watching him charge at her with all of the viciousness of an animal, and none of the mercy of a man, Batman's coming for the kill.

[I fell into a burning ring of fire]

12 Hours Earlier...

Wayne Enterprise Tower

- Board Room -

Sitting at the front of the table is Carlyle Joseph, a man with grey-hair and appearing to be in his sixties. Holding his glasses on, he reads over the paper that he's holding, "As detailed by the reports given out, Wayne Industries is haemorrhaging money, between the government shutdown of Gotham via Checkmate and egregious funs given our RD department, Wayne Enterprise is barely in the black." His wrinkly face ruffles, intaking the sound of snoring, appearing to come from across the room.

The reaming board members track the source of the sound, stumbling upon a slumbering man seated at the end of the table, none other than Bruce Wayne. Among the various board members, Talia found herself unable to face him, shielding her eyes from landing on him, from either embracement or pity.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me..." exhaled the Carlyle at the other end of the board table, slamming the papers on the table in a sudden jerk, "Somebody wake him up." With a roll of her eyes, Talia flicks her pen at Bruce's shoulder, ripping him out of his sleep.

"I'm awake! Just resting my eyes!" declared Bruce with a sudden jounce from his chair, waking to the ire of the board, prolong stares linger on him with fierce wickedness. Within the awkwardness, he thought fit to retrieve the pen hurled his way and slides it back to its owner, "So, what did I miss?"

"Glad you're taking this seriously, Mr Wayne" the older man dryly comments, "You're the one who insisted on being here. It's kinda enlightening that the first board meeting that you show for in months was one that didn't invite you."

"Well, you can imagine my renewed interest when I'm the subject that you seems to want to meet about...Jeez, have these seats always been so unconformable, or is it just me?" playing the part of a playboy, Bruce acts against his instincts. Changing how he sits with a cross of his legs, Bruce rolls his shoulders, "It can't just be me, right? These things are awful for posture."

"Your name may be on the building, Wayne, but that's as far as your involvement goes with this company since your return."

"You kidding?" ganders the billionaire with an opening of his eyes, "C'mon, Joseph, we all know that I've been focusing my efforts in other areas of the company."

The older man named as Joseph throws a sharp glare in Bruce's way, "Are you referring to the restructuring of the Skylight project by you and Mr Fox? A detail that you've failed to mention to us before you announced it on live broadcast?"

Leaning back in his chair, Bruce stretches his arms, "Uh-huh, that one! Bingo."

"Were you not listening to-Oh of course, you weren't," snarled Joseph, slamming his hands on the table, "Wayne Industries is bleeding money, and you see fit to announce a multi-million dollar project so cavalierly? Wake up, Wayne, this little project of yours is going to destroy this company! You're going to put thousands of people out of work!"

Continuing in his chastising of Bruce, the anger in Joseph's voice growls over time, "Don't you get it? This is why I called this meeting...because of your ineptitude! Your public image is tarnishing this company, you authorizing endless funds to R with no return on investments and you saw fit to hire unqualified people into this company? Do I even have to get into the tabloids unflattering depiction of you? This company has been on a downward spiral ever since you got back!"

And finally, "If only Thomas was here, he wou-"

And just like that, the mask slipped, "Don't you DARE bring my father into this...," slinging forward, Bruce makes his annoyance known to the entire board, "You are on some mighty thin ice. You better watch what you say, or we're going to have a problem..."

"Wake up and smell the goddamn stench of a burning hole in your pocket, Wayne!" undeterred by Bruce's words, Joseph continues on with little concern, "Your father worked his ass off his entire life to build this company up, a lifetime of devotion undone in less than two years, by his own son nonetheless..."

"I said to-"

"No!" scolding the billionaire, the older man stands his ground, "No! It's about time someone finally told you *No*. Lord knows that it's long overdue that someone finally did," pressing both of his fists on the table, the man stands, "This is a multi-billion dollar company, not a club for your friends! I suggest you start taking this seriously before you cost a whole lot of people their jobs!."

And then silence.

Later.

- CEO office -

"Oh, wow...he actually said that l-like to ya face, B? Damn that's some cold stuff, like damn...Man, I wish that I could've been there," sniggered Harleen with a mix of innocence and mischief in equilibrium, perfected harmony between the two.

Talia whose seated in the corner of the room smirks, hiding it behind a magazine, "Well, I was and you should have seen beloved's face, it was quite...the experience." She flips through the pages to make her charade look convincing to the others, "But I have to say, excellent impulse control, Beloved. I'm impressed, I would've murdered him if he brought up my father like that."

Rubbing his temple, Bruce gathers the minimal effort needed to grunt, "Alright, enough the both of you. Can you please just let me think for a second?"

Finding the simple act of being quiet impossible, Harleen speaks up, "So, is it true that the guy called B-man inept...?"

Answering with a nod to confirm the blonde's question, Talia's tough personal begins to crack, "Oh, yeah, and then some..."

If Bruce hadn't reached his boiling point, he was quickly approaching it. Finding his way to his feet, breathing in and ready to scream, but he doesn't. He controls himself, waiting until his anger had subsided enough before he speaks, "Harleen, Talia...please get out. I need to think about this whole ordeal, alone."

"B-but..." came as the blonde's plea to reason with the man, failing as he doesn't respond, "Fine, B."

"You too, Tal" approached Bruce, coming in close to the demon's daughter, "Unless you suddenly are into the latest gossip?"

Slamming the magazine shut, Talia flashes a toothy smile, "Since when are you? Why is this even up here?" standing up, she throws it off to the side.

"I ask Harls that every day, now please...," holding his hand out towards the exit to the room, Bruce guides Talia and the blonde towards it.

"An' I always say that a gal needs her hobbies" spoke the blonde in a grinning smile, "Ya don't see me judging you for your hobbies, do ya? Like I dunno, dressing like an animal." Harleen along with Talia leave Bruce on his lonesome.

Returning to his desk, moments pass, turning into minutes and then extend further. Though the sun was still high in the sky, Bruce felt like hours upon hours passing, drowning in his thoughts, "He's right...," he aims his vision down at the picture of his parents on his desk and brings his hands together and resting them against his forehead, "I need to get it together."

"I believe that just might be the smartest thing that you've ever said," turning around, Bruce sees Nyssa al Ghul sat on his desk with the picture of his parents in her palms, "Looks like you have your the stern face of your father, yet the tenderness in your eyes like your mother..."

"Nyssa" came as Bruce's only response to the woman's presence.

Putting the framed photo down with a slowed turn towards Bruce, Nyssa gives a taunting smirk, "The one and only," sliding off the desk, she stands straight, "There's been a complication with our plan."

"Calling it *Our plan* is kinda a stretch, considering that you won't tell me anything substantial," dismissed Bruce, hands in his lap, "As much as I love our chats, I'm in the middle of something important here, so just say your scheduled cryptic message and leave."

"I'll be quick then, notice the sudden heatwave in Gotham?," Asking Bruce, the woman watches his facial features tirelessly, "Good. What if I told you it's not just nature? There's something else causing it, Alwatwat. And it's getting closer by the day."

"And what exactly is that?," running his hand through his hair in a laboriously long motion, "Going to need more to work on than that."

"Maybe you wouldn't, if you actually looked into it, rather than wasting your time with those Arkham escapees? Vandal planned to have them distract you and it's working, Alwatwat," suggested the woman, knowing well that Bruce would not heed her warning, "I don't know what you think those madmen are capable of, but it'll be nothing compared to what shall happen if Savage succeeds."

"I'll stop him. I'll make sure that I do, but ignoring those crazies is out of the question...I know what they're capable of..." removing himself from the desk and from Nyssa, Bruce journeys over to the large overseeing bookcase and finds himself staring at the chessboard, "I've seen what happens when the knight isn't on board."

Finished in her business here, the oldest daughter of the Demon hands Bruce a folded piece of paper, "Then ask yourself this, Alwatwat...Are you truly a knight, or a pawn? Our future is all ridding on the answer." Lifting her hood back over her head, Nyssa expends one more look over the man, "You were always soft, but never this gullible. You cannot even see when the people closest to you are using you, playing with you..." Unfolding the paper, Bruce sees something falls out.

Catching the falling object in his palm, Bruce finds himself holding a coin. Upon further inspection, he sees that the item was double-sided with one side having dried blood over it. Pressing his thumb to push the coin up, he traps it between his index and middle finger, "This is Harvey's coin. How the hell did you get your hands on it?"

Nyssa was already long gone by the time Bruce looks back at the room.

Elsewhere

- Across the Gotham City -

Buttoning up his dark-blue shirt, tying his tie and throwing on his grey jacket, Harvey Dent dresses. Running a comb through his hair in long strokes and fitting his cufflinks, Dent leaves the view of his reflection from the mirror. He sets his watch and grabs his briefcase.

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- Upper West Side -

Barbara Kean's Apartment

Harvey Dent sits inside the living room, sitting at the same table as another, "Thank you for answering my call, I know that it couldn't have been easy, knowing of the risk if Waller catches wind of this." At his front sat Barbara Kean.

"I'm tired of her pushing around my family. Anything you want to know, I'll sing to the heavens. If you can take her down, then do it" replied Barbara with a tired look in her eyes, like she has gone through thousands of sleepless nights, "If my whole world burns, at least she'll burn along with it."

"I heard about your daughter and Jim...I'm sorry. They're both strong, they'll pull through" supported the man as he opens his briefcase, "The fear of losing a child is already a parent's worst nightmare, can't imagine what the thought of losing James could be doing to you, too"

"Nightmares are meant to stop when you open your eyes, but...they're still here, all around me...like they're just here to taunt me..." Barbara's eyes look sickened from lack of sleep, exhausted both mentally and physically, beyond her limit, "Some days...I just don't know what to do."

"I know the feeling" speaking under his breath, Harvey gives a subtle nod, "Has James seemed to be hiding something? Either from being afraid or just so he didn't hurt you?"

"Jim already had that issue, the last few months only made it worse - Yeah, he hides things from me, from Lee...I got a feeling that he was even hiding things from his criminal-buddy. He tried to hide it from us all, but we all knew...we knew deep down that Waller was using Lee and I as bargaining chips, letting us remain free if he fell in line."

"Using you as leverage? Hmm...of course, she's using Lee's criminal history against James, same with you, too?" resifting his position as he arches forward, "It all makes sense now. I should've seen it sooner, if I did...then maybe, just maybe...something could have been done sooner, but of course, Jim kept it a secret...and now look where we all are."

Stricken by a new-found nervousness that brought life back to her glassy eyes, Barbara Kean moves backwards to create more room between herself and Harvey, "What are you saying?"

"What am I'm saying?," beneath table and Barbara's eyes, Harvey clenches his fist tightly, drawing blood, "Waller is only in the position that she is because of Jim. He used his power to subvert our justice system to let Lee and you walk free, a mockery of the system that I've fought my whole life to fix," over time, Dent's voice becomes more grizzled, eyes sharpen into daggers and his teeth grit, "Letting you go free is exactly the ammo that Waller needed, it was everything that she could have wanted, and Jim just gave it to her, disregarding any consequences from his actions..."

Tracing his fingers along the left side of his face, Harvey's mind is thrown back to the pain that he felt, and the torment. The metallic taste that flooded his mouth, his aching sides and the humiliation of the blood over his face gluing him to the ground while they laughed for what felt like an eternity. His hand quivers along the rest of the journey of his face, "They could've killed me, but Jim stood there, being held by the leverage of his own mistakes...this is all his doing, he twisted the law to benefit him...at the cost of everyone else, and he hides it..."

Barbara Kean holds her hands out on the table and leans towards Harvey, "I think you should leave."

"AND YOU SHOULD BE ROTTING IN A CELL!," screamed Harvey gruffly while he slams his fist on the table, enough to scare Barbara, the woman flings herself back. Upon hearing his outburst, Harvey recoils with an apologetic look. Covering his mouth, he removes himself from the table, "I-I...I don't know what got over me...I'm sorry...I-I...didn't mean t-to..."

"Get out...NOW!" throwing her arm out, she instructs Harvey to leave with aggression in her voice, "Get the hell out!"

"Right..."

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- Outside -

Walking out of the apartment complex, Harvey looks down when he hears the ring of his phone. He pulls it out from inside his jacket, answering the call. He waits a second before speaking, "Harvey Dent, who am I speaking to?"

"Hi, Harv, It's me"

Harvey Dent recognizes the voice of his friend, shifting his lips into a smile, "Bruce? Is everything okay?"

"Not really, can you meet me at my penthouse, I need to talk to you about something"

"Uh...," checking his watch, Dent looks back up towards the skyscrapers of the city, "Sounds serious. I can be there in about an hour., I've some business to take care of first."

Later.

Bruce's Penthouse

Located inside the living room of the apartment, Bruce and Harvey sit on the luxurious black furniture, resting their feet on the grey-glossed wooden flooring. The city view from the windows is immaculate, showing the long stretches of their home, Gotham. Descending upon the city, dusk is nearly there which brought a soft redden sky and clouds, made more beautiful by the lights of the buildings. But the peaceful state of the city wouldn't last, as night was soon to fall and with it came Gotham's true colours.

"H-how did you get this, Bruce? I searched everywhere for it...I thought that I had lost it...," Harvey Dent holds his coin in hand, feeling like he was reuniting with a lost loved one. The meaning of the reconnection was enough to nearly bring him to tears as he holds a sombre smile, "This is...thank you, Bruce..."

Leaning back in the couch, Bruce sits with his legs crossed as he tracks Harvey, "We're still having stuff moved between the Manner and here, I guess that must have ended up in one of the boxes. I suppose that you wouldn't know why half of it is covered in blood, Harv?"

Twitching his eyes at the other man's inquiry, Harvey looked to be offended by what he might be implying, "I...? No. Of course not, it was spotless when I last held it...I remember it."

Holding his hands up, Bruce figuratively waves a white flag, "Okay. But, Harv...when did you say it went missing again, and why didn't you tell me about you losing your father's coin?"

"If you lost one of your father's prized possessions, would you be so quick to admit it? The thought of admitting that I lost it was humiliating, like openly announcing to the world that I can't even watch over a gift from my family," reverting to his old tricks, Harvey twirls the coin between his fingers in a slick motion, showing that he wasn't out of practice, "The blood's going to be a problem. I have to be careful when removing it to avoid damaging the face of the coin."

"There is something else that I wan- Needed to talk to you about, this time the subject is yours truly," Bruce rubs his eyes, also showing to be having a hard time to admit his troubles towards his friend, "The company's board are kinda pissed at me."

"Oh, really?" straightening his posture to show his concern, Harvey looks surprised at the Bruce spoke, hearing doubt suddenly plague his voice, showing all the struggle of his inner thoughts of the situation at hand. With a kind gaze, Harvey shows his support for the man within a single look, "What happened?"

Holding his hands together, Bruce speaks under the shield of his palms, "They're don't think that I can run my own family's company."

"Well, obviously they're wrong, Bruce. I know you, you can handle anything"

Still keeping his mouth covered, the billionaire lifts his eyes to meet Harvey, "They're right, Harv. Recently Wayne Enterprise hasn't been on the top of my priority list. I've getting side-tracked over and over, not even seeing what was happening to my company, and now...I could be the cause of thousands of people to lose their jobs"

Harvey leans over and taps his palms together, Oh... How could this even be possible, Bruce? Wayne Enterprise is one of the largest corporations in the world."

"Death by a thousand cuts, Harv... first was Checkmate's command over the city, my public image and announcing to the world a multi-million dollar railroad system, without even checking with my company, and then so much more...," admitted the dark-haired man within a slew of drawn-together breaths, "I thought that Wayne Enterprise was the one thing in my life that I could let be, but I ended up ignoring it all together, not even thinking of what result that my actions could have..."

"I don't even know what to say...," Harvey curls his fingers and breathes in, "I want to be your friend here, Bruce, I really do. However, how could you let this happen? All this time...? What have you been doing? All of the times that you went missing? The times when you just vanish? I always thought it was to do with running your company, but now you're telling me...all that was a lie..."

"Harv..."

"I have to ask you, Bruce... where were you that night?" Asked Harvey with violent expels of breath.

"What night?"

"You know the one...THE NIGHT WHEN I WAS SPAWLED OUT ON THE FLOOR, BLEEDING OUT BEHIND IRON BARS!" Jolting upward, Harvey lets out his frustration with a screech, "WELL? WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU, BRUCE? You obviously weren't at your company, so...WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU WHEN WE NEEDED YOU!? WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU!?"

"Woah, calm down" defensively standing, Bruce feels the ire of the man through a simple look, "Harv. You just need to take a-"

Grasping his coin with a snarl, Dent is drowned in his vexation, "DON'T YOU DARE TELL ME WHAT I NEED, BRUCE! JUST WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING THAT IS SO IMPORTANT THAT YOU FEEL THE NEED TO IGNORE YOUR FRIENDS! Huh? WHAT IS IT? WHAT MADE YOU HIDEAWAY WHILE I WAS BEDRIDDEN after being beaten to a BLOODY PULP?!"

"Please for the love of...please just calm down, Harv!" Bruce begged for Harvey to settle down, trying to keep himself as docile as he could be, "What I told you was true, I was busy. I couldn't have been for you, trust me...I wanted to be by your side. I did, I honestly did, but I just couldn't...you just have to believe me."

Shaking his head in disbelief, Harvey throws his right hand on his hip while he bares his coin with his left, "Oh what crap, Bruce... *Just believe you*?," throwing out a chuckle, Dent forms a fist around the coin, "JUST BELIEVE YOU? YOU JUST LIED TO ME FOR MONTHS...and you expect me to take you at your word? Not anymore, I can forgive you for not being there, but acting like you wanted to be...? No, no, no...that is where I draw the line..."

"I'm sorry, what else can I say? I'm sorry, Harv," reaching towards the other man, Bruce watches Dent stop out of his range and begin to glare at him, "Your acting weird, Harv. It could be the trauma re-emerging, let me call you a doctor to check you, then we can continue this...please?"

"Oh that's so you, Bruce...always the first to bring up someone's mistakes, but always so quick to dismiss any fault of yours," Harvey begins to fiddle with his coin, "Blaming it on me not being right? That's low...even for you, but I should've known...you're, all the same, the lies, the false faces,...backstabbing whenever it benefits you..."

"That's not true, and you know it! I funded your mayoral campaign, remember? Why would I even do that if I didn't give a damn about you or what you stand for?"

Reacting with a look of disgust, Harvey comes close towards the dark-haired man, "Why does any billionaire pay a politician? Maybe you were planning on collecting on the debt," yanking Bruce by the collar. Harvey growls, "You have so many lies that you were caught between them... that's not a sign of a person who would be above doing that," releasing the man's shirt, Dent quickly leaves.

Left bewildered by the scene that unfolded before him, Bruce stands in silence. Looking back to the windows, he sees that night has nearly fallen over the city, "Looks like it's just you and me...old friend..." directing towards Gotham itself, Bruce's eyes take on a whole new look of determination.

Elsewhere

- Wayne Enterprise Tower -

Returned form Bludhaven, Selina joins Harleen in the lobby of the building as they walk beside each other, "So how was your trip?," asked Harleen with a smile. Selena shrugs at the question, knowing that Harley wouldn't stop pestering her until she answered, she decided to just give in.

"Boring compared to this city last night, seriously...I leave for like five minutes and Bruce let's Scarecrow run a mock, I bet he wished he had me to help him, can't imagine that Crane made it easy," Looking at her side, she sees the blonde wear a wide smirk, "What's so funny?"

"Well I dunno, Cat...I think he was happy with the help that he got, well that's what he told me when we pummelled scary-face together," Harleen snaps her arms into karate poses with a gleeful grin, "It was like the best thing ever! - Oh...by the way, how good are ya with needles?"

"I *dunno, Harls...how good are you with punches to the face? If you'd like we can compare notes," Selina heads outside and is tailed by Harleen, "It's night time, and you know what the means... I'm gonna see if I can run into Bruce."

"Ah sweet, let's go," Harley chirps as she rubs her nose, "I'm sure that B will apricate our company! Since Foxy is busy with that family of his, I need to have someone to annoy."

With a hiss, Selina made her displeasure known, "Not happening. I need to be alone with him... there are things that I need to talk to him about. He wouldn't apricate talking about Gordon with your *enlightening commentary, Harls."

Bearing a more frail look, Harley dropped her head and crossed her arms, "W-wait, but I'm part of the team...Bruce said so himself...he trusts me, don't ya?"

"To mess up, of course," the dark-haired woman zips up her leather jacket while keeping her eyes on the blonde, retaining her grimace look, "I'm a good judge of character, Harls. No, I'm better than that, I know when I can't trust a person, and you've always been one of those, and now...somehow, this bad feeling that I got about you is becoming worse than before. I've never been wrong about this, and this won't be an exception," her emerald eyes clash against Harleen's blue, "Act as sweet as you want, I'm the one person that you can't fool..."

Keeping her front, Harleen remains sombre against Selina's words, "Oh, I get it...you're jealous of me, am I right? Because I was the one there for Bruce when it counted the most." Unwilling to respond to the other woman's claim, Selina removed her eyes off the blonde completely, walking off to her destination.

- Across the City -

"For a long time, I've thought of Gotham as two cities in one. The city that can be saved and the city beyond salvation, separated by day and night" Batman grapples across the skyline, watching over the streets as he journeys through the air, "Separated by Bruce Wayne and The Batman, each home in their element. The billionaire playboy philanthropist and The Dark Knight, the man and the beast," continuing his thoughts, Batman stops on top of a gargoyle, "Living as two people, yet never truly allowing myself to be alive."

Looking to the outreaches of Gotham, Batman narrows his eyes, becoming more entranced by his thoughts, "For both Bruce Wayne and Batman to co-exist, neither can truly thrive. The mere existence of one means that the other suffers, that's what I've learned this day."

Leaping off the gargoyle, Batman begins to freefall, "Clark always made it look easy, switching between roles like that. Man of Tomorrow one minute, and a bumbling reporter the next, but then there's me," spreading out his cape, the dark knight glides along between buildings, "I can save so many people as The Batman, but because of my mistakes, Bruce Wayne could end up hurting so many more, for once I do not have an answer."

Shooting out his grapple launcher, he swings across the Gothcorp building, "*World's greatest detective, right? And I couldn't even find a way to run my own company. For once, it's not Penguin, Riddler, Bane nor Scarecrow, it's none of my villains that have caused turbulence in the city..." keeping his momentum, the vigilante jumps over the next rooftop, "Today, Bruce Wayne was the villain. This is my mess and I need to fix it, somehow, someway...I need to make this right, otherwise, a lot of people will go hungry, go homeless maybe...and the streets of this city shouldn't be for anyone..."

"So then we're back to where I started, which Gotham is worth fighting for? The one where Bruce Wayne can be a hero or the one where Batman is the guardian because if I've learned anything today, it's that both can't be heroes, not without destroying each other" during his most intimate of thoughts, Batman finds himself nearing the edge of the city, entering its most dangerous parts. Having no tall buildings to rely on for grappling, the dark knight rolls onto one of the smaller building's rooftops.

"What am I going to do with Harvey? He now knows that I was lying to him about the reasons why I couldn't be there during his recovery," jumping across to the nearest rooftop, the vigilante rolls to decrease the impact, "Harvey was already smart enough to figure out that the Ski trip cover was a lie, but he figured it was a lie meant for the press. This time, he knows that what I personally told him was a lie, all because I can't even keep up with my responsibilities as Bruce Wayne..."

"Wait, Harvey trusts Batman," lurking in the shadows, Batman holds his arms to his chest as he thinks, "If I can get him to listen to me as Batman, maybe just... - No...what are you thinking? Lying to him is what got you into this mess, lying to him more won't fix it, not even close..." during his perplexing, he fails to notice the plant-life on the roof slowly stir, strangely reacting his presence, like watchdogs lurking over their prey, "I'll ask Harleen, she knows Harv better than anyone. Maybe she can think of a way to get him to listen..."

"I'll call Harleen first thing in the morning, hopefully, Harv would have calmed down by then, it can't be good for his mental state," diving off the ledge with grace towards the next structure, he manually directs the landing of his grapple launcher to the taller building, "Lucius should be back by then, maybe we can form a plan to save my company, too. But I'm not one for trusting in miracles."

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- Meanwhile -

" - Ring-around-the-rosies" hums a gentle voice, delicate like a flower while vines steadily sliver up the arm of the person. Continuing the tune with the same soft voice, vines crawl through fluorescent red hair, "A pocket full full of posies," smooth lips curve into a small smile, "A tissue, a tissue,...they'll all fall down."

Tending to the decrepit garden, Poison Ivy watches the plant-life crawl up her forearm, taking over her shoulder and then her neck. With pale lime skin that would normally look sickly, she wears it with beauty made from confidence and her posture, standing tall. Dressed poised with a sports bra made from leaves, along with tight-fitting green tights and boots. Looking like a true seductress, her curves are easy to spot and alluring to any man.

Sauntering towards the next table of plants, Ivy holds her palm towards the green, directing them to rise at her beckoning, "My babies...so gorgeous. Mommy's so proud of you," walking between two of the plantations, she flickers her eyes when one of the plants behind her rises, "Oh...can it be? He's troubled, you say? I suppose a new pet won't hurt...things do get ever so dreadfully lonely around her...," the vines crawl up her cheek and through her hair, "What's that darlings? He's coming our way and he doesn't even know it?"

"We wouldn't want to be a bad host, do we?"

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"It's times like these that make me wish Alfred was here, he would know what to say. Love him or hate him for it, he usually knew what he was talking about, I need to locate him when I have the chance, hell, I even miss his world-famous *I told you so's, that's how you know that I'm desperate for advice," jumping off his latest swing of the grapple launcher, he glides the rest of the way down, "Oh, wait...Selina. I forgot that she's coming back tonight, heck she might even be back... all of this must be getting to my head more than I thought, I should check in on her about Jim...maybe it'll be the first piece of good news this day, or maybe...another case of bad news, no...Jim's stronger than that, I shou- AGH!"

Torpedoing into him was a large overgrown vine with enough force to knock the wind out him and then some. Distracted by his turmoil, Batman fails to see the threat at hand as he's falling. Going to grab his grapple launcher, he's suddenly restricted by several thinner vines that ensnare his arms, "Oh no, IVY! H-How did she manage to- AGHK!" further vines wrap around him, forming into some sort of cocoon that squeezes him tight enough to draw the sound of crunching from his body.

Flinging him over onto the rooftop, the plant life crawl after him and trap him, wrapping his arms and legs to inhibit all mobility options. Like it has its own form of sentience, roots come around the Dark Knight's neck and cowl, tightening against the man's struggle, "I-Impossible! This...How is this even happening?"

"Or a hello would do, darling" a flirtatious voice springs into his ears, with the force of the vines, Batman is forced to look up to address the speaker. Waltzing towards him was Poison Ivy who has a lecherous grin pointed towards her captive, swaying her hips with each soft step, "I hope my babies aren't being too mean to you, I wouldn't want them hurting you, as I need you fit as a fiddle" lowering to her knees, the crimson-haired enchantress reaches towards the man's cowl, "I hear you're quite the troublemaker, always making a mess...like a bad boy"

Touching her knuckles against Batman's chin, vines from her had made their way onto the man, "This...? You were never able to command plants to this scale..what did you do to yourself?"

"Command?" Ivy whispers back and bites her lip, holding onto the vigilante's face, "No, darling...I don't command them, I listen to them and they listen to me. I'm good at that, listening... such a skill is not as common as one would desire, and I know about desires," coming in close, Poison Ivy stops when their lips were nearly touching, "I can listen to you, I can make you feel better. You're troubled deeply tonight by something, but you're out alone, don't you have anyone special...I can be that someone, darling, I can be your everything...I can make all your troubles vanish in an instant."

"You're going back to Arkham, Ivy...I'll make sure you do..."

"Your mind is muddled, honey...we can all see it in your eyes, you're unsure of yourself...I can take away that feeling, you'll only have to worry about serving your goddess...you'll never concern yourself with the troubles again," stretching her grin wider, Ivy caresses the man's face, whispering in his ear, "Give into me, you know you want to...I see the way you stare at me, such desire...I can give you the ecstasy that you desperately need...it takes one little kiss."

"N-Not interested," replied Batman as he tries to fight against the vines in a futile struggle.

"Give it time, pet...once I work my magic, you'll never want to leave my side...your every thought shall be about pleasing me, and I know you won't disappoint," with a single lick of her lips, she comes in and presses her lips against Batman's into a deep kiss. Using her vines to hold the man's head in place while she worked her charm, Bruce was helpless to fight. Parting away from Batman, Ivy leaves a trail of green-tinted saliva connect between their mouths before it breaks.

She bites the vigilante's bottom lip, moving into another quick kiss. less deep for good measure." See, didn't I say you'll be so much happier with me? I made you a promise, I meant it. Now...your only thought for the end of days will about me, a wish for many men," shimmering her eyes, Ivy sees her captive's eyes flash bright green, "Now pet, let's have some fun..."