First of all, thank you to everyone who has made it this far. Thank you for returning to finish this story with me. It took a long time to get to this point. This is a 24-page monster, so grab a drink and some snacks! I hope you enjoy this final chapter.
This chapter is dedicated to EZnf98, because you asked if it would be continued. So thank you for the kick in the pants to finish this story.
Part Six – The Final Act
She woke up in darkness, surrounded by earth. It was cool and damp, pressed in tight against every inch of her body. That did not frighten her. Instead, she felt refreshed. She dug and pushed her way upwards, feeling very much like a new plant pushing its way towards the sun. Several times she had to stop to rest from the effort of trying to dig free of the heavy earth encompassing her. She had no idea how long it took her to push through the dirt. In the darkness of the earth, she had no sense of time by which to measure her efforts. Yet, finally after much toil, her fingers broke through the topsoil and out into open air. Sunlight spilled in a small ray across her face. She shivered with delight before shoving her way forcefully upwards and breaking all the way through onto the ground above. She dragged herself completely free of the hole she'd dug out before laying down to rest.
The sunlight felt delicious on her skin. Warm and soothing like an old comforting friend. The air was cold and crisp. The wind had a biting chill to it. None of that bothered her. She was happy to feel the warmth of the sun. A smile played across her lips as grass tickled her cheeks. She felt so very alive and new as the sensations of the world around her assaulted her senses. It felt like she had been sleeping in darkness for a long time.
She raised her hands up towards the sun then froze. Her hands were tinted a pale green. She sat up with a jerk and ripped up her sleeves. Her entire arms were green! She yanked up her shirt to see that her stomach was the same color. Every inch of skin she saw was the same shade of green. She did not feel ill. In fact, she felt stronger and better than she ever had in her life. She wondered if that had happened while she had been sleeping. She was certain she hadn't been green when she fell asleep. That was the only thing she could be certain of though.
Her memories seemed to be vague. She had no memory of how she had fallen asleep. The last thing she could remember clearly was breaking out of Arkham Asylum again. That seemed like a long time ago. Or at least, it felt that way. She couldn't be entirely sure. She slowly pushed herself to her feet.
She was in the middle of a garden filled with the rare roses she remembered from her first act of terror on Harvey Dent and Gotham. She smiled to see them so lovingly tended. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a marker. She turned her head to see a gravestone with ivy curled around it. Her pet ivy. She reached out to touch it. In less than a second, it had unwound from the stone. It crawled like snake up her hand, around her arm, and settled about her shoulders. A smile cracked her dry lips.
A glanced down at the stone brought a look of shock to her face. Her name was on that stone! Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy with her birthday and a death date etched into the stone.
She had died!?
She couldn't remember anything that had happened that would have caused her death. There had been no sign of injuries on her when she'd look earlier. She took a stumbling step, turning around to take in the rest of her surroundings. A large manor house loomed behind her. She did not recognize it either. She was on the edge of a hill high enough of over the city of Gotham that she could see the skyline off to her right even over the high brick privacy fence that surrounded whatever property she was on.
Wherever she was, she knew she did not belong. She stumbled, getting used to walking again, as she made her way down the hill.
She couldn't stay here.
When she got to the great stone wall, she stopped.
"How do I get out?" She murmured to herself.
To her surprise, the ivy unwound from her shoulders. It crawled and stretched up the wall before winding around her waist. Gently it started to haul her up the wall. She helped it along by digging her toes and fingers into the brick to pull herself up. Her arms and legs were weak, but the ivy continued to help her until she reached the top. It swarmed up to the top before helping her down the other side. When she was safely back on the ground with the ivy once again draped over her shoulder, she gave it a pet.
Her ivy seemed to have become even more in tuned to her somehow. She could feel that was different. Not just the color of her skin. Something inside her had deeply changed. Beneath her bare feet, now that she was still, she could feel a thrum from the ground. She closed her eyes to focus on it. The grass beneath her feet had a thrum to it. Abruptly, she realized she could feel its life force. That's what that feeling was, like a tiny buzz all over the bottoms of her feet where the grass was touching her. Beyond that, she can feel the life from the trees roots that are reaching out under the ground.
The whole botanical world seems to have become an energy source she could now feel. She opened her eyes to see that even the trees seemed to have leaned towards her a little. Her powers had grown. There was a kind of magic force that she could see now connecting all the greenery around her. It was like a presence reaching out to her mind travelling up to her brain through her connect with the ground through her bare feet.
It was exhilarating.
She began to walk. She reveled in the feel of the grass beneath her toes, alive and singing to her. Her step did not harm it. She walked with no real purpose. She only knew that she needed to get back to Gotham. There was a huge source of "green" energy in the center of the city that was calling her. She had no other thought but to reach it.
So, she walked.
Six months before….
"Bring William to Gotham where he will be safe." Bruce argued.
Dick looked at him askance. "Safe? You call this city safe? Look what it has done to all of us in this family! No!"
"Then what do you plan to do with him?"
Dick had never seen his stepfather look so cold and unreachable. Dick had hit a nerve and he knew it. He just couldn't bring William here. There was too much sorrow and pain in this city, especially in this house. It was no place for a small child to grow up. He and Tim had been older, already jaded, and they were a part of the hurt that seemed to live in these walls. Dick never wanted William to know the kind of pain he, Bruce, and Tim had known. William deserved to be innocent and have a childhood. Dick would ensure that he did.
"He will stay with his Aunt in Florida. I'll visit him as often as I can, but I will not drag him into this life. Not unless he asks. And I will still do my best to prevent it." Dick answered, firmly.
"So, you want him to grow up in a lie?" Bruce's scowl somehow seemed to grow darker.
Dick shook his head. "How is that a lie? He will be with his family! He'll have his cousins to grow up alongside like siblings. Patty will love him like her own! He'll be loved. He deserves that! I will not bring him here to have his childhood destroyed by anger and sadness when he's innocent!"
Bruce's eyes widened for a moment in surprise before his face went carefully blank.
"I can't stay in Gotham anymore either." Dick said softly.
Tim shot to his feet. "No!"
"It's too painful. There are too many memories. I can't stay. There are other cities worse than Gotham that need help." Dick crossed his arms over his chest.
"What cities?" Bruce grated out between clenched teeth.
"Bludhaven." Dick refused to flinch under the fierce glare of his stepfather's blue gaze. "I have a friend there who offered me a job in the police department. I'm going there to weed out the corruption from within."
Tim shook his head. "Bludhaven is a death den!"
"They need a hero. I intend to give them one." Dick answered calmly.
Bruce stared at his stepson for a long, silent moment. "If that's what you want."
Dick's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You're letting me go?"
"You would go anyway." Bruce remarked darkly. "I does not mean that I like the idea."
"I love Gotham. You know that. And if you ever need help, I'll always come back. "Dick reminded his stepfather.
"Do what you want," Bruce intoned before turning away and walking out of the room.
Dick sighed and his shoulders dropped as he let the tension drain out of his frame. "Well… that when better than I expected."
"Am I ever gonna get to meet William?" Tim asked, sadly.
"Next time I go, you can come with me." Dick promised.
Tim immediately perked up. "You swear?"
"I swear."
"Why Bludhaven?" Tim inquired.
"Because it's close enough to Gotham that I can still come over whenever I want. And that city's crime is beginning to leak into our streets here. Their drug cartel needs to be taken out before it spreads any further. My friend said the situation is hopeless without outside help." Dick explained. "He sounded pretty desperate when he offered me the job a few months ago. I turned him down then, but after everything…"
Tim sighed. "I get it. Just…be careful."
"Sure thing, Timmy," Dick reached over to ruffle the boy's hair.
Tim scowled at him. "Quit it!"
"See yah around, Tim." Dick smiled sadly, before turning to leave. He didn't know if he was doing the right thing, he just knew he couldn't stay in Gotham any longer.
Present
Dick's eyes snapped open and he sat up in bed, staring out the window blindly at the glaring mid-morning sun. She was alive. He could feel like a phantom throbbing in the back of his mind. He didn't know how he knew. There was no denying it though. He could sense her, faintly, in the direction of Gotham.
He scrambled out of bed, already reaching for a pair of discarded jeans. There was no thought in his mind other than he had to find her. Abruptly, he stopped. The throbbing sensation was gone.
He collapsed on to his bed.
He hadn't imagined it. The sensation had woken him out of deep sleep. She was alive! She was in Gotham. His first instinct was to rush back home to search for her. He stared back out the window again, absently, as he thought. She could be anywhere in that city. He knew, intimately, how easy it was to disappear into the underbelly of that city.
Gotham.
He had to go back.
Tim would be excited to see him. Bruce would pretend to be indifferent. It was nearly Christmas after all. It was a good excuse to come home for the holidays. He had some leave saved up from the Bludhaven police department. He was a "rookie" cop, and he hated to throw his family name around. However, there were more important things than upsetting the power structure within the police ranks.
It would take him a little time to get his affairs in order. He snatched up his communicator and called Bruce.
"What?" Bruce sounded grumpy. He had probably only been asleep for a few hours.
"She's alive," Dick stated, shoving a foot into a leg of his jeans. He yanked up his pants quickly. He could hear the rustle of sheets.
Bruce sounded much more awake when he spoke again. "How could you know that?"
"I felt her. You have to check the flower garden." Dick buttoned his jeans, before grabbing the first clean t-shirt he could find.
Bruce sighed. "Dick."
"Just check, Bruce. I know what I felt. She's alive." He shoved his feet into his boots sans socks. "I am putting in leave. I will be there in a few days. Call me when you confirm she's missing." He hung up the phone, shoving it in his pocket and snatching up his wallet. He was out the door in record time.
/
"You were right, Dick," Bruce's voice sounded resigned when Dick picked up the phone an hour later.
Dick sat abruptly at the seat in his desk cubicle. To feel it and then hear it confirmed made it reality. She was alive! "I knew it."
"I do not understand how." Bruce snarled. "She was dead!" He could not get rid of the image of the hole in his flower bed just big enough for a body to crawl out. It was eerie and horrifying.
"Yes, she was."
"She must have escaped only a few hours ago. The soil is still damp where she dug her way out." Bruce described what he found to his stepson.
"I have to find her." Dick stated with determination.
Bruce grunted in agreement. "I want to know why she didn't come back to the mansion."
Dick pinched the bridge of his nose. "I don't know. It doesn't really matter. She's out there and I need to know what happened."
"I'll start looking."
"I will be home in a few days. I have to get my affairs in order here." Dick told his stepfather.
"There's no need for you to be here. I will find her."
Dick growled at that. "And do what with her after that? You are not throwing her back in Arkham. We have to find out what happened. She deserves a chance to explain. I am not losing her again!"
"Fine." Bruce bit out. "I will see you in a few days."
Dick signed in relief, his shoulders losing their tension. "Thank you."
"I make no promises once she has a chance to explain." The phone abruptly hung up.
Dick shook his head, setting his phone aside with grumble. His stepfather was stubborn to a fault. He would just have to find Ivy before Bruce did.
/
Poison Ivy was surprised by how long it took her to track down Harley. It seemed like every time she got close to the clowness', she would disappear. Ivy had come close enough to see Harley across a back alley. The clowness had looked terrified of her. Poison Ivy could not understand why her best friend was determined to hide from her.
She finally cornered Harley at the run-down Gotham Hotel that was known to be run by a landlord who turned a blind eye to shadier long-term tenants. Harley had screamed when she opened the door to find Poison Ivy standing in the doorway. The clowness attempted to slam the door shut. Ivy's vines snapped forward prying the door back open so powerfully that it slammed back against the wall. Ivy stepped over the threshold; brows drawn in confusion as Harley shrunk away from her.
"Harley, why do you keep running from me?" Hurt and confusion evident in her voice as well as expression.
The clowness paused, eyes wide in shock. "You tried to kill me!"
Ivy stopped up short. She stared at her friend in shock across the length of the shabby living room. "When? I don't remember ever hurting you?"
"Well I do! Your vines poisoned me! I nearly died in the hospital!" Harley shrieked. "Get away from me!"
"Harley, I would never hurt you. You are my dearest friend. My partner." Ivy was distraught at her friend's rejection. She tried to step closer but paused at Harley's panicked face.
The clowness stared at her former friend in disbelief. Something wasn't right. Ivy's behavior wasn't adding up at all. Why was she even trying to find Harley to begin with? It had to be a trick. "Where's Nightwing? Why don't you go crawling back to him!"
Ivy's confusion only grew. "Why would I do that?"
There was a deafening silence as Harley studied the other villainess. Ivy was different. Her skin was the palest green, her eyes were a faded emerald, and even her red hair had deepened in color. Her lips were stained a black shade that Harley could not tell if it was natural or lipstick. Her old partner looked startling different from the last time they had squared off. She looked like she was recovering from being ill. Ivy was still beautiful, but in an edgier, more dangerous way.
"When's the last time you remember us working together?" Harley asked suspiciously.
Ivy smiled fondly. "When you and I were the queens of crime in Gotham! We ran this town. Do you remember?"
"I remember." The clowness answered. "You don't remember anything else?"
"Well we had that hilarious mock trial with Batman! But of course, that went sour. It was fun while it lasted." The older woman chuckled. "Why are you asking me all of this, Harley? I know you remember all the fun we had together."
Harley nodded. "Yeah…yeah. And you came back to me!" She smiled hopefully, still leery. But she loved Ivy. The older villainess came up with the best plans. They always had such fun. If she had forgotten Nightwing, maybe they could put all of this behind them. Maybe they could be together again like before.
"Of course, Harl." Ivy stepped forward, carefully watching for Harley's acceptance. "Can we pick up where we left off?"
Tears welled in Harley's eyes. She so hated to be alone. Joker still refused to talk to her. Without either, Ivy or Joker, she was on her own. She had never been a strong enough person to be on her own. She hated it!
She rushed forward in relief and threw her arms around Ivy. "Yeah! I'm so happy you're back and you want me!" She gripped the other woman tight. She didn't have to be alone anymore. So, what if Ivy hurt her. Joker was always hurting her. But it was always out of love. Loving someone always hurt. She knew that best of all.
Ivy drew back with a grin. "I'm back, Harl."
Harley squealed with glee.
/
If Dick were a lesser man, he would have been frustrated to the point of crying. It had taken 2 weeks to arrange time off to get back to Gotham for as long as he was able. He had to wait for some of the other officers who were on leave to return. He had to beg for others to trade shifts, days off, and leave days with other cops. He was about ready to walk out of the precinct and never come back. The commissioner finally seemed to realize how desperate he was when Dick threatened to do just that. In the time it took him to get leave granted, Poison Ivy resurfaced. She had shown back up with Harley Quinn, taken Bruce hostage, and ran up his credit cards in a Christmas shopping spree that would remain legendary in Gotham for years to come. By the time, Dick got back to Gotham, Ivy had disappeared again without a trace after breaking out of the Asylum in record time.
He got back to Gotham on Christmas eve. While it was cold, it was not cold enough to snow. It was one of the first Christmas he celebrated with his family that there was no snow on the ground. Bruce had the good sense not to bring up the real reason he was back in Gotham. He was angry. Clearly his credit cards had been a pain in the ass. He had never trusted Ivy to begin with, and this only reconfirmed his suspicions. Still there was something about the situation that happened with Ivy that had bothered him. She had been to carefree. Bruce chose to not discuss it with Dick. It was only because an argument would resolve nothing between he and Dick. Tim tried to bring up Ivy's return, but Dick simply shook his head. The boy let it go. If it was one thing the Wayne family was good at, it was dancing around a subject none of them wanted to talk about with each other.
He stayed in Gotham for a month. He hunted every previously known hideout of Ivy and Harley. He was not surprised to come up empty. No amount of digging through his information network turned up anything. At last, he had no more leave time. He was forced to retreat to Bludhaven.
Months went by, with only an occasion sensation to remind Dick that Ivy was still out there somewhere. He was suspicious when Bruce called him back to Gotham to have a talk. He was taken aback as much as Barbara and Tim when Bruce announced his engagement to Susan. The whole thing felt off. Bruce would never give up Batman over some woman. The three of them had promised to keep an eye on Bruce. However, Dick could not get to stay in Gotham. He was called back to Bludhaven for an emergency; a crack in gun smuggling ring that Dick had been working to break up. He had been ecstatic to take down the biggest smuggling ring the city had ever seen. He was shocked beyond belief when Bruce called to tell him the whole marriage had been a scheme by Poison Ivy.
He was back in Gotham within the hour, but Poison Ivy was gone. Bruce said she went down with the cruise ship. They all knew that meant she would resurface again. She was not so easy to kill. He flown the Batwing over the water where the ship had sunk for hours with nothing in sight. When he returned to the Cave, Batman was waiting for him.
Dick swallowed the anxiety that had lodged firmly in his throat. He hated confrontations with his stepfather. He loved Bruce. He hated fighting with him.
"She wasn't the same." Was the first thing Batman said when Dick stepped up to him.
The younger vigilante blinked, the only proof of his surprise at that statement. "What?"
"The Poison Ivy I fought today was the same as when I first met her. She did not react to me as anything other than Batman. She did not react to Bruce Wayne at all," Batman frowned.
"She doesn't remember." The shock of it made him want to throw up. Everything they had been. Gone. No wonder she wasn't trying to reach out or find him.
Batman nodded. "That appears to be the case."
Dick stared down at the floor. Disbelief and heartache were a physical weight in his chest. For a moment, it felt hard to breathe.
"Dick," Batman said, firmly. The young man glanced up. Batman pulled back the cowl. Bruce's eyes were understanding. "I'm sorry."
"For what?" Dick asked. He wasn't sure he could hang on to this emotional roller coaster if took one more dramatic twist.
Bruce's eyes darted to the side as he furrowed his brow. His discomfort couldn't be clearer. He pressed on. "Susan made me realize I was wrong about your relationship with Ivy. Both of you loved each other. Susan did not love me. And I…" He turned away to head towards the computer bank. "Love seems to cause people to make unwise decisions."
"It can." Dick admitted, following him. "It can also help you make the right decisions. I can't give up on her, Bruce."
"And if she never remembers?" Bruce glanced back.
The young man smiled knowingly. "I'll help her remember."
Bruce stopped. "What if she does not want you?"
"I have to try. We were meant to be together. I know it. She will know it." Dick said, firmly.
His stepfather nodded, unable to argue with Dick's resolve. He had been just as deaf to Dick, Tim, and Barbara's concerns when he had married Susan and given up the cowl. If Dick was determined to continue his hunt for Ivy, he had no further say in the matter.
/
Poison Ivy was frustrated. None of her schemes were working. While she had been thwarted by Batman in the past before, something was wrong. It was as if she were playing a role. She was angry at this hole in her heart that could not seem to be filled. She had Harley with her most of the time. It didn't help. Her feelings for Harley were different too. She didn't feel the attachment and closeness she felt with the other woman. Everything just felt off and wrong. The more she tried to prove it otherwise, the worse things went.
She was getting increasingly short tempered trying to figure out what it was she was craving. Livewire had been a fun addition to the squad for the short time that had lasted. It hadn't completed let her forget about the feeling of something missing. Her irritation with herself was being taken out on Harley with increasing frequency. To the point, that the clowness had not even wanted to be a part of her last plan despite its genius. The perfect partners, the perfect marriages, and the heist of a lifetime. That plan had failed but it felt like it was because she was grasping for something she just couldn't find. It would have failed even if Harley had helped her. Because she was missing someone…her perfect partner.
It was like an itch she couldn't reach. She was missing someone.
But who?
/
It had been a hasty plan to rob the jewelry show happening at the Gotham Convention hall. Security had been tight even in the evening after the show as over. Ivy and Harley were desperate though. They were outta cash. They had waited until Batman was clearly out of town on a Justice League mission. Dealing with Robin and Batgirl should have been simple. They had not been expecting Nightwing.
They had nearly made it out. Robin was laying stunned on the floor. Batgirl was torn between not wanting to leave him unprotected and chasing after them. They were blocked from the exit by Nightwing. Ivy stopped up short, eyes wide.
Nightwing stepped forward, expression openly hopeful. "Ivy."
Poison Ivy felt something resonate in her chest at intimate familiarity of the sound her name on the vigilante's lips. Her grip on the jewel-filled sack slackened. She stared at Nightwing. She took in the fall of his sweaty bangs across the edge of his mask and the strong curve of his jaw. Somehow, she could remember what the feel of his skin felt like on her fingertips. She knew the scent of his sweat and the tang of its taste on her tongue. She shivered. How did she know these little secret details?
"No!" Harley screamed in frustration, seeing her partner hesitate. She swung her oversized rubber hammer in a wild arch at the vigilante.
Nightwing took the full brunt of the hit, to distracted to get out of way in time. He was sent flying sideways. A pained grunt was knocked out of him as he slammed down on to his side. Harley grabbed Ivy by the arm, yanking her hard, as she raced for the exit. The older villainess snapped out of the weird revery she'd been lost in. She sprinted after Harley. She was all too eager to get out of there and away from her conflicting emotions
Nightwing scrambled to his feet, chest heaving. "William!" He yelled after her retreating back.
She stopped abruptly as if she'd been struck by a stun gun. Ahead of her Harley spun around to see what had held up her partner. Horror washed over her painted expression. "No, Ivy! Don't listen! C'mon, we gotta go!" She ran back to tug on her partner's arm desperately.
"William," Nightwing said their son's name again.
Ivy spun around to stare at him, eyes wide and expression stricken. That name coiled around her mind and sprouted. Memories suddenly flooded in. Happy moments of her holding a beautiful black haired, blue eyed baby boy. The smiles, the baby giggles, and the unconditional love that she held for him. Her baby. Her eyes flooded with tears as Nightwing took a step closer. Their baby. All the memories with him came flooding back like a storm surge.
"Bird," she gasped.
"Yes," he answered breathlessly with a hopeful smile.
Harley shook her head and yanked on Ivy's arm. "Ivy, please, it's a trick. Don't listen!"
Sirens wailed in the distance, drawing steadily nearer. Ivy shook off the clowness. "Go." She shoved the bag of jewels into the clowness' hands.
"But…," Her eyes darted between the door and her best friend.
"Get out of here, Harl," Ivy snapped.
The clowness took a step back with a choked cry, then spun around and raced away. The exit door slammed shut in her wake. Despite Harley's retreat, the vigilante moved no closer to Ivy. The sirens were growing louder now.
"Is William alright?" Ivy asked anxiously. She felt an overwhelming, choking sorrow at having forgotten her own son.
Nightwing nodded. "Yes, he's doing great. He lives with your sister. I didn't want him anywhere near Gotham. He deserves better."
She swiped at the tear that dared to fall free. "He does."
"So, do you, Ivy," Nightwing said fiercely. "You are so much more than this."
"I think I am destined to do this always. Fate seems to want me dance this way forever." Ivy whispered.
Nightwing swallowed. "I don't want to fight you."
"I don't know what else to do. I hate being like this."
"Leave all of this. Come with me. We can go be a family," Desperation and longing filled his voice.
"You still want me?" her voice wavered.
"Nightwing, what are you doing!?" Batgirl protested from across the convention hall. She was too far away to hear any of the conversation. She'd be damned though if she lost her friend to that witch again. Robin was slowly pushing himself to his feet. She held the boy steady. She glared at Nightwing, willing him to capture Ivy and end all of it.
Cop cars screeched to a halt outside the building. Ivy took a step back and glanced at the door behind her.
"I love you," Nightwing answered simply. "Find me when you make up your mind."
Her eyes widened in shock. She spun away to race out the exit door before he changed his mind on letting her go. She sprinted down the back alley, away from the screaming sirens and flashing lights of the police cruisers. Distantly, she heard the shouts and slamming of doors as the cops stormed in the building. No matter how fast she ran though, she could not get away from her own racing thoughts. She choked back a sob as she disappeared into the dark, twisted alleys of Gotham.
/
Ivy didn't follow Harley back to their dingy apartment. She turned south, keeping to the shadows. She found herself at Robinson Park. It was one of the few green spaces Gotham had developed after the ridicule of plowing up the fields were the endangered roses once bloomed. She trailed her fingers along tree trunks, feeling the pulse of life beneath the bark. The wind murmured through the trees leaves. It whispered secrets through the grass only she could hear. The plant life was prospering in this park to her joy.
She worked towards the thickest part of the park where the trees grew close. She sat against a moss-covered tree. Her fingers twined through the leaves of Carolina creeper that was crawling across the ground.
Her mind was spinning with a thousand thoughts. She struggled to believe that Nightwing was willing to leave it all for her. Even when she had been in Florida, he had always returned to Gotham. They were entrenched in this city. Tied to its rotting heartbeat. Could he really leave his vigilante life?
Memories of William rose in her mind. She reminisced about the first time she'd held him in the hospital. He was her baby. The second greatest love of her life. He was safe with her sister. He was too young to miss her…or did he. He deserved better than her as a mother.
The Carolina creeper curled around her fingers without her bidding to squeeze her fingers. Her eyes widened, darting down to stare at the plant. It seemed like it was trying to reassure her. The entire forest seemed to be pushing its energy towards her as if trying to heal her much like a tree would focus on a broken branch.
She didn't know what to do. Her heart wanted desperately to be with her son and the love of her life. Fear of slipping back into Poison Ivy would be a constant haunt in the back of her mind. It had been before when she lived in Florida. That part of her was always lurking; waiting to take over. Hatred of this city burned in her chest. She wanted to watch it burn to the ground. She had tried to destroy it and the people more than once.
More than anything, she loved Nightwing/Dick Grayson and her son had saved her soul. The need to be a better person for William had driven her before. She refused to let him near this city. She could not bear to be separated from either of them. Her guilt and self-hatred warred with her love and need to be with her family.
She dis-entangled herself from the vine and got to her feet. All she knew was that she desperately needed to see Dick. She could not stay away from him. Not now that she had remembered all that had been between them. Their history was screwed up, but he had come for her in the end. He still wanted her despite it all. He still loved her.
Her attention turned inward, latching on to her awareness of her lover. She had not understood why she had felt fractured when she had awoken in the soil. Now that her memories were returned, she understood. She could distinguish Dick and William as separate yet still a part of her within her personal awareness. It was like roots connecting them all together. She felt incomplete though because of her distance from them.
She latched onto Dick's distinct feel within her awareness and began to follow it.
/
Dick was napping on the couch, re-runs of Friends playing in the background on TV. It was late afternoon. Little else was on TV. All his tinkering with his motorcycle, cleaning his gear, and his business meeting with the Japanese company he was partnering with were finished for the day. He had little else to do until it was time to go on patrol for the night. It was times like these that he wished he still lived at the mansion. He got lonely in this massive warehouse.
A pulse of awareness throbbed in his chest with enough intensity to startle him awake. He sat up with a gasp as the pulse hit him again a moment later. His hand flew to his chest, pressing against his heart. He knew this feeling but couldn't dare to hope what it meant. A third pulse had him scrambling to his feet. There was no resisting the call of it in his blood, any more than he could stop breathing.
He didn't bother with the stairs to the bottom floor of the warehouse. He jumped over the railing, landing easily, and sprinting towards the side door. His palm slapped against the reader that released the automated door lock. The lock was barely opened before he was ripping the door open.
A beautiful woman stood on the other side of the door. Her eyes glittered like emeralds in the waning afternoon light. The sun rays caught her red hair making it look like rippling fire. She had not bothered to change out of her signature outfit. He would know the curves of her body anywhere. The flare of her hips, the heavy slope of her breasts, and her trim waist were all imprinted into his memory. She was unmistakable. Completely unforgettable. His throat felt tight with the intensity of emotion coursing through him at the sight of her. Excitement, desire, anxiety, joy, and above all, hope.
"Ivy," he breathed.
She surged forward, with deadly fluidity. He didn't fight or resist as her hands connected his chest. He let himself be driven backward. He barely paid attention as the door slammed shut in their wake. He was too focused on the ferocious glare of her emerald green eyes.
"How could it take you so long to find me!" She snarled. She had been able to follow her awareness to him with ease. Why couldn't he find her like she could find him? Uncertainty and anger had grown within her as she travelled towards him. Had he truly tried to find her?
Her right hand found his throat, gripping tight enough so that she could feel his pulse beneath her fingertips. "From the moment I awoke, there was pieces of my soul missing. I had no name for it. I couldn't find what was missing. I kept searching. Nothing helped. Not power, money, or Harley. I was bitter and angry. I knew whatever was missing was the answer to my happiness. And I needed it. But you weren't there. I didn't even remember it was you…"
He closed his eyes, swallowing hard, against the force of her anger and confusion. "I felt you when you woke up. By the time I came back you were gone. I'm sorry it took me so long."
"If you felt me, why didn't you find me?" She glared at him accusingly.
"It was like a bad connection. I can feel vaguely where you are. I knew you were in Gotham all this time, but I couldn't follow it the way you found me," he answered sincerely. "And you an expert at hiding in plain sight."
She let go of him and stepped back. "I don't know if we can be together."
Fear spiked through him. "Why not?"
"Look at what happened to us. This city has poisoned me. It seems determined to rot me from the inside out. Gotham will destroy us both," she sighed. The anger had fallen away to be replaced with anguish.
"I would leave it all, Ivy." Dick said fiercely. "Without hesitation. If it meant being with you."
Ivy shook her head in denial. She squeezed her hands into fists and trying to hide the tremble in her hands. "I could not ask you do that."
Dick reached out tentatively to brush his fingers along the curve of her cheek. "You don't have to ask. Ivy, I would go to hell for you. I have been hunting every day since I realized you were alive to find you." He stepped closer, framing her face in his big hands. "When you were dead, I felt dead. Part of my soul was buried with you. I don't ever want to live without you again."
Tears shimmered in Ivy's eyes. She was unable to resist leaning her cheek against his warm palm. "I don't want to live without you either. I couldn't remember you, but I knew something was missing. It drove me nearly insane."
Dick gazed imploringly at her. "Ivy, I love you. Completely. Do you love me?"
"With all that I am," she uttered.
"We're meant to be together," Dick stated firmly. "I believe that. Do you?"
"Yes," she whispered, reaching up to grasp his hands.
"Then stay with me, please," he begged, expression vulnerable with hope.
She hesitated. She could not see herself leaving him again now that she'd found him. She would not live without him. After a moment, she pulled him forward until her lips were an inch from his mouth. "Yes." She promised.
Dick surged forward to kiss her desperately like he had been wanting to since she walked through the door. She buried her fingers in his hair, kissing him back just as ferociously. It felt like coming home, she thought, as he slid his tongue into her mouth. He moaned as the taste of her exploded across his senses. Her taste and scent had always been startling unique. He didn't resist as she pressed him backwards.
They worked their way up the stairs to his loft. Clothes were shed along the way, left like discarded leaves upon the steps. By the time, they made it to his bedroom their hands were gripping and sliding over bare bodies. Dick let himself be shoved down onto his unmade bed. He sucked in a sharp breath as she climbed astride him. Another breath later and she was sinking down onto his cock with pleased moan. Fuck, she was so wet. Her scent coiled around him. He felt punch drunk as she became to work her hips, grinding against him.
"Oh, fuck," he moaned when she braced her hands on her chest and began to ride him in earnest.
Months.
It had been months since he had seen her, felt her, or been inside her. The pain and grief of believing he would never know this kind of love making with his soul's partner ever again was indescribable. He had barely allowed himself to believe it. The feel of her around his cock, and the slide of her skin across his heated body were as close to heaven as believed he could ever be. He reached up to grip her hips and hold her tight. He had lost her once. He was never going to lose her again.
He slipped his right hand down to rub his thumb in circles over her clit. He knew just the right amount of pressure to make her go wild. She threw her head back, shimmering red hair flying around her, and her heavy breasts bounced with each flex of her hips. Her eyes opened, bright emerald in the lamp light. She held his gaze as she fucked down on him. She was a siren. His desire was so strong he could barely breathe from the force of it. He felt her starting to still and worked his thumb harder, faster until she came in a glorious cry.
She collapsed forward onto his chest. He let her catch her breath for a few moments before abruptly rolling her onto her back. She smirked up at him as he planted his hands on either side of her head. He circled his hips slowly, keeping himself buried deep inside her. She moaned with each grinding thrust of his cock.
Abruptly, he pulled out of her. She growled in annoyance then blinked in surprise when he slid down her body to bury his face in her womanhood. She gasped at the first full swipe of his tongue up the length of her. He groaned as the taste of her burst across his tongue. She tasted so sweet and smelled faintly floral. He had needed to taste her again to memorize it. He would never take for granted again the unique flavor of Ivy. He worked her gently with his tongue until she was writhing in frustrated lust.
She grabbed him by the hair, pulling insistently. He sat back on his heels before grabbing her by the hips and pulling her onto his lap. She gasped sharply as he buried himself back inside her. She was splayed out below him, spread wide, to his appreciative gaze.
"You are so damn beautiful," he breathed reverently.
She smiled at him. "Pretty bird," she praised, petting his thighs. "I want you to come."
"Anything for you," he swore.
He began to thrust into her with deep, sharp snaps of his hips. She couldn't contain her nearly continuous whimpers as his cock pounded against her sweet spot with devastating accuracy. The overwhelming pleasure built with startling rapidity. He was not far behind. His thighs began to jitter as the need to come gripped him with sudden ferocity. He grit his teeth as he held it off until he felt her beginning to still again. Another handful of deep, hard snaps of his hips had them both coming. They cried out nearly in unison as their orgasms exploded along their nerves. Dick's fingers dug into Ivy's thighs as his hips shuttered through the last aftershocks as he came.
He leaned over to kiss Ivy's panting mouth. Her lips were red and swollen from her biting them to muffle her cries. She slipped her arms around his shoulders to hold him close as he kissed her.
"I love you," He breathed against her lips.
"I love you," She whispered earnestly in return. "Kiss me again."
He did just that.
Several kisses later, he pulled out of her and rolled onto his back. She curled up beside him. He gathered her to him, tucking her head under his chin. He caressed his palm over the dip of her waist and the curve of her hip; up and down soothingly.
"Where will we go?" She inquired, twining her fingers through his free hand, and laying their hands on his lower belly.
"To Lakeland. Your sister has custody of Will. We can easily fit in just like you did before." Dick responded.
She raised her head up to look him in the eyes. "You seem to have put some thought into this."
Dick nodded. "I was planning on leaving Gotham…"
Ivy sat up abruptly. "What? When?"
"Right before Harley captured me. I told you, I would leave it all to be with you. I wanted too." He whispered.
She closed her eyes and swallowed hard. They had lost so much time. They could have already been together. She shook her head. It did no good to dwell on what ifs.
"Lakeland needs police officers." Dick stated in an offhand manner.
Ivy bit her lip. "I promised Patricia I would never return to Gotham. How can I face her again?"
Dick took her hand in his once more. "Because she understands. They want you to come back, Ivy. They miss you. They told me that."
The villainess shook her head in disbelief. "It can't be that simple. To just walk back into that life like none of these happened. To forget."
"We can't forget." He squeezed her fingers. "Gotham shaped who we are, and it brought us together."
"It tore us apart."
"It keeps bringing us back each other too. I don't want to forget," he sat up and pulled her into his arms. "I just want us to be together." He pressed his lips to hers. "I want to marry you. I want us, and William, to be a family. I want the house with the picket fence with a garden in the back. I want our happily ever after with all the struggles in between."
She gasped back a sob before kissing him hard. "I want that too," she declared. "I want happily ever after."
"It's yours, Ivy." He swore with a joyous smile. He guided her down on to her back before covering her body with his. "I'm yours."
"Forever?" She gasped, as he slid inside her.
"For always," he vowed before making love to her once more so tenderly that she couldn't hold back the tears that slipped down her cheeks.
/
Ivy pushed open the door to the shabby apartment she and Harley shared. Before she left Gotham for good, she had to set things right with Harley. The clowness deserved that much after taking her back. She also did not want any further incidents to occur between her and Harley over Nightwing. When this was over Ivy was leaving this city for the last time without a backward glance.
A squealing bundle of blond joy bounded at Ivy as soon as she shut the door. She caught Harley by her upper arms before she could make impact with her. Harley looked so relieved to see her. Ivy was surprised to feel a twinge of guilt. Harley was her oldest friend in Gotham. She was loyal and funny.
"You came back!" Harley bounced up and down on her toes. She slowly came to a stop as she got a good look at Ivy's face. Apprehension replaced her excitement in half a second. "Where have you been, Ivy?"
Ivy sighed, sliding her hands down the other woman's arms to clasp her hands. "Harley, I never apologized for everything I did to you. You are my friend. I never should have let things get so far out of hand. For that I am sorry."
The clowness looked truly frightened now. "You remembered."
"Yes, I remembered," Ivy acknowledged.
"You're going back to Him, aren't you?" Harley accused her, snatching her hands away.
Ivy did not bother to deny it. "Yes."
"But you can't leave me! Mr. J's already left me. I don't want to be alone!" Harley cried anxiously. "I can't be alone," she whimpered, wrapping her arms around herself.
The red head couldn't ignore the stab of guilt this time. "Harley, you need to start living for you. Are you even happy being like this?"
"I'm happy when I'm with you! We have fun, Ivy!" Harley perked up.
"We did have fun. But were you really happy? I wasn't."
Harley's smile slipped back off her face. "I don't like to think about it."
"I think it's about time that you did," Ivy remarked.
"He's making you act like this!" Harley scowled. "I should have killed him!"
Ivy's eyes took on a steely glint. "I love him, Harley. You love the Joker despite everything I have ever said against him. And I have tried to harm him more than once. I think we can call it even at this point."
The clowness sighed, dropping her arms. "So, what's gonna happen?"
"I am leaving Gotham. I am never coming back. I cannot stay in this wretched city any longer," Ivy explained bluntly.
"And what about me?" Harley whispered.
"You are going to figure out what makes you happy, Harl. You don't need me," Ivy smiled encouragingly.
Harley flung herself at her friend. This time Ivy let the other woman hug her. "I'll miss you."
"I will miss you too, Harl," she hugged the clowness back.
"I'm really sorry for what I did to Nightwing. Tell him that. I was really angry especially about Mr. J. I was angry you left me too. It felt like it was all his fault," Harley gripped Ivy hard, sniffling against the older woman's shoulder.
Ivy petted Harley's hair. "I know. I'll tell him." She gently pushed the clowness back. "Don't try to find me, ok? Let's part as friends and keep it that way."
"Ok. Bye, Ivy." Tears clung to Harley's lashes.
"Goodbye, Harley," Ivy stepped back and grasped the door handle.
She smiled one last time at the clowness, who smiled wobbly back through her tears. Ivy left before Harley could say anything more. The door shut on the final chapter of Gotham in Ivy's book. She left the apartment building with a deep sense of relief and closure.
/
"I'm resigning," Dick laid his resignation letter on the desk of his supervisor.
Sgt. Redhorn smirked at him. "Couldn't take the heat around here, huh? I knew you wouldn't last."
Dick ignored the dig. "Yup, guess you're right." He turned to leave his now former supervisor's cubicle. "The rot goes to deep around here."
Redhorn's fist came down on the top of his desk with a bang. "Don't forget to turn in your gun. And don't ever show your face back in my city again."
"I don't plan too," Dick smirked over his shoulder. He waved merrily as he strolled out.
He turned in his gun with a smile. When he'd left Gotham after his fight with Bruce, he had been bitter and angry. When he left Bludhaven, he felt free and excited for the future. He would not miss this God forsaken city.
/
Dick descended the stairs into the dark depths of the Bat Cave. He had a backpack slung over his shoulder. It only held one thing, but nothing had ever weighed heavier in the moment. He could see Bruce tapping away at the giant console of his computer bank. Tim was perched not far away on the desk. He had one leg up on the edge and arms slung loosely around his upraised leg.
Bruce swiveled around in his chair to regard his oldest adoptive son with a dark look. "I heard you quit the Bludhaven Police force."
Dick nodded slowly. "You heard right."
"Barbara told me what happened between you and Poison Ivy," Bruce steepled his fingers, hiding his frown behind his fingers.
"She remembered me."
"You know this for certain?"
Dick unslung the backpack from his shoulder. "She's waiting for me back at the Loft."
Tim's eyes went wide, and his leg fell off the desk. "You're leaving!" He jumped down from the desk to storm up to Dick. "You can't leave!"
Dick smiled sadly, reaching out to ruffle the kid's hair. "You don't need me, Timmy. You are a great Robin."
"Explain," Bruce's deep, angry voice cut in.
"Ivy and I are going to Lakeland, Florida. Our son is there. We are not coming back here. This city…we can't stay here anymore, Bruce. It's done enough harm to the both of us," Dick unzipped the backpack. He gently pulled out his Nightwing costume. He walked over to his stepfather. "I can't keep being a vigilante."
"You'd turn your back on Gotham for her," it was not a question, but a cold statement. "I don't believe people can change. Not for good. This will not last."
Dick rubbed his thumb over his Nightwing mask. "I know you feel that way. But I am going to take my chance at happily ever after. I love her, Bruce."
He held out his costume to Bruce. The older man's face remained carefully blank as he took the folded clothe out of his stepson's hands. Dick knew that was hurting Bruce. Almost, if not more, than the first time Dick had thrown down his mask and walked away. This time was different. He was not leaving out of bitter anger. He was taking the chance at love, and to have a family he never dared to dream he could have.
"You are always welcome in my house," Bruce finally spoke after several silent seconds. "You are not welcome in the Batcave. When you walk out of here, you leave Nightwing behind in Gotham."
Dick swallowed hard but nodded after a moment. "I understand. Thank you, Bruce. For everything over the years."
Bruce nodded back.
Dick turned around and swept Tim up into a hug before the boy could protest. To his surprise, Tim didn't fight it. He returned Dick's hug. His fingers dug into his shirt and hung on. "Thanks, Tim, for being there for me. It meant more than you know. You're always welcome to come visit and stay as long as you want."
"Bye, Dick," Tim muttered against his shirt.
"See yah, Timmy," Dick stepped back and scruffed the boy's hair one more time. "See you around, Bruce."
Bruce had already turned away. Dick didn't let it bother him. He took the stairs back up into the mansion. At the top, he hesitated before swinging the clock shut. It held a finality as it slid closed. That chapter of his life was over. It had been a major part of his life.
He was ready to go forward.
He stuck his hands in his pockets and strode out of the living room, not looking back.
/
When Dick and Ivy left Gotham, there was no one to see them off. They were alright with that. They drove over the bridge one last time that connected downtown Gotham to the surrounding suburbs across the river. Neither one looked in the rearview or side mirrors. They kept their eyes fixed forward. Ivy reached over to lace hers fingers through Dick's as they left the outskirts of Gotham. He looked over, catching her eye and grinned with all the joy, excitement and love he felt in that moment. She grinned back and squeezed his fingers.
They were free.
They believed in their happily ever after and they were going to find it together.
The End
Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of you who liked, followed, reviewed, and came back to this story. I appreciate you all so much!