Begin Again

Warmth smoldered out of the pale white cup, the churning brown liquid inside breathed out, soaking into one's nostrils. Taking a long drink, Chelsea cradled the cup in her hands. She sat on the barstool across from Wally who was preparing pancakes on the stovetop. She watched him work, an affectionate smile on her face. Dressed in a large white undershirt that came midway down her thigh, it was obviously Wally's, her hair was messy with bed head. It was comforting to stay at his place the previous night.

He had remembered how she took her coffee.

When she same out of the bathroom from changing back into the dress from the night before she felt the sinking feeling in her stomach. She needed to go home and get ready for class in a few hours, "You sure you don't want to have breakfast before you leave?" Wally offered.

"I wish I could," she admitted, "but I have class at noon and I drove here." Typically she would have just flew to Central City but it had been raining last night and she was so eager to get out of Wayne Manor she hadn't changed out of her clothes. She just wanted to drive and get away from Gotham. Now that hastiness was backfiring on her.

"Do you have a Watch Tower shift?" he asked.

"Late shift… tonight." she confirmed.

"Maybe we can grab dinner in the cafeteria then." he nodded, removing the final pancake from the skillet and placing it on top of the large stack of flapjacks he had on a plate.

"Alright," it was nice to know she would get to see him again later today, "I unfortunately need to get going."

He turned to her and gave her a hug, "If you need anything…"

"-I know, Wal." she hugged him back and started for the door. Grasping the handle she paused, "Thank you for the coffee." she flashed him a grin over her shoulder. He knew that was code for thank you for everything.

It was long drive from Central City to Gotham. Upon her return she saw a billboard for Wayne Enterprises and felt her stomach start to spin. She wondered what would happen to Wayne Designs should Bruce decide to relieve her of her duties. Not that she would blame him. That's when it really started to sink in that her and Bruce weren't a couple anymore. It wasn't like the public knew of them, but he was a major part of every aspect of her life.

When she arrived at her apartment, her eyes fell on the nearby art piece she had been working on. A picture of Batman standing on top of a building, stepping forward with lightning crashing behind him. She approached it and stared into the piece. Her fingertips delicately reached for the bat symbol on his chest and she felt herself cracking. Her breath got caught in her nose. What if he never wished to see her again?

She showered off yesterday's grief and changed into some fresh clothes. When she walked past the painting that was half finished once again she paused and flipped the piece over. As if that would keep him from her mind, "Go to school." she told herself.

Concentrating on class was challenging. Her drawing teacher was short and pompous. He loved to listen to himself speak. This was her third semester of having this professor and with each day she became more eager for graduation so she wouldn't have to see him again. Thoughts of the night before created a loud buzzing in her head that was impossible to ignore.

She had some time between class and her shift at the Watch Tower. Her apartment was a short walk from campus and she figured the crisp autumn air would do her some good. The sun was already starting to set, as it always did in the early evening at the end of the year. She almost felt herself wanting to scramble to her apartment, in the event Batman had to stop a crime nearby.

Is this how it was going to be now?

"Just ignore your problems, Chelsea!" she thought to herself, "That will make them go away." her sarcasm was even more cruel inside her head.

That's when she heard it. A powerful blast shattered the glass double doors to a bank nearby. Her heart rattled. In that moment, her body told her to run the other way. It was a sensation she had never felt before.

No.

It couldn't be like this. She still had a job to do. She bolted toward the chaos and smoke that poured out of the building. There were people still inside as the robbers were making their escape through the alleyway. She decided to get all of the pedestrians to safety, helping them get out before the smoke inhalation took effect, "Who did this?" she asked one of the bank tellers.

The man's eyes shifted back to the building, "there's still someone inside. Inside the vault. He was locked in by accident. You must help him." he pleaded.

She nodded, "Thank you for telling me." sirens started to grow closer to the situation.

"Forgive me…" the man murmured lowering his head with guilt watching her disappear back into the bank.

She made her way to the large vault and used her light to heat the locking mechanism. When it melted she grabbed the handle and pulled the door open. It was heavy and in the sweltering heat of the building it made it feel all the heavier. When she got inside she began looking around, "Is anyone here?" she called out, "I'm here to help you. You're safe now." Suddenly, something hard banged against the back of her head. Consciousness fled from her all at once.

"Imbecile!" roared a voice.

"I didn't know what to do, sir." another voice pleaded, "When it wasn't the bat, I was all out of options!"

Chelsea's eyes scrunched in pain. It was very apparent that she had taken a hit to the back of her head. Her eyes started to flutter open. She heard a metallic flicking sound. As her eyes focused and the double vision started to fade, she saw the man who was responsible for the explosion at the bank: Two-Face.

She remembered hearing about Harvey Dent as a teenager. His story was tragic and she took pity on what was once a politician who genuinely wanted to change Gotham for the better. Now he was just part of the chaos, "Hey boss, she's awake."

Chelsea gulped. She had never seen Harvey face to face to face before. She felt herself sink down in the chair she was tied to. Looking over her shoulder to see that she was tied up with chains wrapped so tight it left her wrists immobilized against each other, her bones nearly grinding into one another. Clearly the robber awaiting her in the safe noticed she wasn't some ordinary human because she melted the lock on the vault. It was starting to make sense in her head. The explosion was just to draw attention. The teller was told to lead someone into the vault for ransom purposes.

Boy, was she lucky.

"I've seen you before." Two-Face growled lowly, gazing into her eyes.

Even in fear, she still felt pity. Not many of Batman's rogue gallery made her skin crawl, but Harvey was a coin flip away from blowing one's head off at a moment's notice. He could have done some much good in the world had he just gotten the help he needed.

"What should we do with her boss?" wondered one of his thugs.

"Are you questioning me, slime?" Harvey barked.

"No, boss! I-" whimpered his henchman with fright.

Two-Face flipped his coin in his hand incessantly, "Than quit your yapping." he turned back to the girl, "He'll come for you." he murmured, to Chelsea who was practically welded down to the chair.

That's when it hit her. He was right. Batman would come to save her. But she really didn't want this to be their first encounter after the split. She needed to get out of here, but she also needed to get the police here. If she knew Bruce, which she did… he had already visited the bank. He would have noticed the melting of the lock mechanism. He would have heard about the eyewitnesses mentioning a girl with unique powers coming to their aid after the explosion. That would lead him to track her com-link. He was already on his way.

She balled her hands into fists despite the tension and pain and ignited her hands to start to melt the metal. Two-Face immediately pulled out a gun from inside his jacket and pulled the hammer back, "Don't move." he instructed to her. His attention turned to the coin as it flipped mid air and was coming down on his palm for a landing.

Her eyes fixated on the barrel of the gun and immediately went up, knowing what would come next. From the ceiling descended Batman falling onto Harvey and causing the coin to spiral out of his hand onto the floor. The trigger was pulled on the gun, but the bullet hit a nearby pipe, causing steam to be released into the room. Chelsea stood up and broke free from the entanglement and grabbed the chair to break over a nearby thug's head. She kicked the next thug as he neared Batman, trying to sneak up on him while he wrestled with Two-Face. She picked him up and tossed him with ease into the next henchman. As Harvey was brought to the ground, he reached for his coin when Chelsea's foot stepped onto it.

He clawed at her foot with his hand out of desperation to get back his security blanket. She knew it would only fuel his manic compulsive behavior, but she lifted her foot, allowing him to have it back. When he looked up at her, she looked sad, "Don't give me that look…" he grumbled, slipping out of consciousness.

Batman grappled to the roof of the building and Chelsea quickly followed behind. She was hesitant, gingerly planting her feet on the rooftop. The rotating lights of red and blue pulled her attention to the streets momentarily. He was facing away from her, his cape gently fluttering in the breeze. It was early evening and his night had only just begun. No matter how many times she had seen him like this, it always seem to amaze her how strong and powerful his presence was.

He loved his city.

She licked her lips, watching the cops drag away the thugs from before she opened her mouth to breath a, "Thank you."

He looked over his shoulder slightly. He wanted so badly to talk to her. He just wasn't ready yet. The timing wasn't right either.

Time never seemed to be in his favor.

She was surprised to not feel tension or hostility in the air, "Please be safe." she cooed into the crisp autumn air.

He looked back out over the horizon of the city. All of the bright city lights keeping the place illuminated, despite the darkness, "You too." he said simply, before leaping off of the building and grappling to the next. She watched him fade into the darkness.

She stopped off at her apartment before heading to the Watch Tower. She changed her clothes and threw on a hooded jacket when she turned her eyes to the half-finished Batman piece on her easel. Grabbing it, she flipped it back forward and a subtle smile presented itself on her face. She then headed right back out the door as quickly as she had appeared, "J'onn," she pressed in on her com-link, "I'm ready to come up." a moment passed and she vanished, reappearing at the Watch Tower.

There was so much hustle and bustle at all points of the day here. A hero's day was never truly finished. She took a deep breath and smiled to herself. She took solace in knowing she'd probably see Wally at some point during her shift.

It was to be a busy night. She was assigned in a group with Black Canary and Green Arrow to find a group of missing people in Star City. Then there was a stream of robberies the Question had been following that he theorized was connected to a line of recalled peanut butter. While most brushed him off when he went on one of his conspiracy theories, Chelsea was willing to lend an ear. She figured someday he may be onto something important. Plus, that quantity of peanut butter was very, very important. Supergirl wanted someone to train with, so of course she volunteered. No one else wanted to spar with Superman's cousin. When she finally got a moment to breathe she realized she still had to work out at the gym for the day. There was no greater supervillain than leg day. Her shift ran to 3 in the morning her time. And she was busy every second of it. So much for having dinner with Wally. She had hoped he hadn't been waiting for her.

She knew how that felt.

When J'onn beamed her back down to Gotham, she texted Wally.

Hey, Wally. Sorry about tonight.

There was a pause.

How are you doing?

I'm fine. I hope I didn't wake you.

Suddenly a burst of kinetic energy appeared before her. The speedster with his usual beaming grin said, "Sorry, I'm late." She shook her head and started laughing, "And no, you didn't." he winked.

She roughed up his ginger hair. He stood there in a red hoodie, jeans, and a pair of red converse, "Considering the time, I'd say you're early."

He draped his arm around her shoulders and started down the street, "You owe me breakfast."

"I think I know a place." Chelsea led the way to a breakfast diner nearby.

The waitress expected a slow evening. What she did not expect was to be distracted by a girl with silky strawberry blonde hair accompanied by a tall boy with bright red hair. She watched the two lean toward each other, anticipating the other's next tale and the roar of laughter that came from their booth. Watching their interactions was something genuinely precious. The diner could be full of people, but she guessed they wouldn't know the difference. That all they could see when they were together, was each other.

Chelsea paid for the meal and left a generous tip, waving to the waitress as they exited the restaurant. They had been sitting there talking for so long that the sun was starting to rise up over the horizon, just barely kissing both the sky and the ground simultaneously, "Thank you for coming out tonight Wally." she told him, staring at the rising sun, "I haven't had that much fun… in a long time." her eyes were in a far off place, trying to recall the last time she felt so at peace.

He contemplated something for a moment before kneeling down in front of her, "Hop on." he said, showing off his usual grin.

She raised an eyebrow, her tone skeptical, "Can't remember the last piggyback ride I've gotten." she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, and he hoisted her up, holding her legs securely.

When she breathed in, he bolted. He didn't go his full speed, just fast enough to show her the world as he did; a kaleidoscope of color, a rush of scenery and beauty, pure freedom with each step. He wanted her to feel freedom the only way he knew it. He took her around the world, across the seas and through forests and deserts. She leaned her head back, letting the wind whip her hair violently, caressing her face with tranquility.

When they returned to Gotham, he stopped at the front of her apartment building. Her feet touched the ground and he turned to her. She smirked, fixing her hair that had been tossed every which way during their adventure, "I'll have to show you my view sometime." she told him, pointing to the sky.

"I'd like that." he said tilting his head, shoving his hands in his pockets.

She wrapped her arms around him and rested her head against his chest, "I missed you so much." she admitted again, letting go after a few moments. The last six months felt like centuries. It was safe to say that after all the time they had spent together before then, she had grown dependant on his company and once his smile, his humor, and his laughter wasn't a part of her everyday routine anymore, it felt like he was a whole universe away.

"I'm sorry, Chels." he told her, casting his gaze to the ground and kicking his foot gently, "It was selfish of me to distance myself… I just…" he sighed, clearly disappointed in his own actions, "It won't happen again." he tried to make light of the guilt he had been clearly carrying for a long time, "You're stuck with me for the long run."

"Did you just make a pun?" she asked sarcastically, tugging on one of the strings of his hoodie.

He ran his fingers through his thick ginger hair and showed off his teeth, "When you stop laughing, I'll stop making them." he kissed her on the forehead, "I missed you too." he reminded her.

Author's Notes: Chelsea and Wally reuniting is so much fun. I've always loved their friendship and love for each other. Up next Chelsea will have a talk with Bruce without the cape and cowl for the first time after the split.