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Pygmalion
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Chapter Eight
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"Chaos is the score upon which reality is written." ― Henry Miller
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This is bad!
This is very bad!
How do we get rid of these guys?
Harley knew that she had been in worse situations, but at that moment in time she could not think of one.
The blonde had a grand total of three parties to worry about. Two of them could not talk, and one was potentially bleeding out entirely. On top of all that, four skin-tight clad masked vigilantes just arrived via literally crashing through the ceiling.
That was why, in that very moment, Harley tried desperately to prevent herself from panicking.
Too bad the voices in her head did not heed this.
They were currently each experiencing their own individual meltdowns.
While the one voice jumped up and down in a small fit, another sat curled up in the corner rocking back and forth. Another took up the whole space by running around like a headless chicken and screaming, and one more just collapsed after bursting into tears.
At least, those were the noisiest ones of the bunch.
For half an instant, Harley's thoughts radiated towards how voices moved inside her head, but those notions were completely forgotten; she had other things to worry about.
The sinking feeling inside the blonde's gut intensified as soon as her brain recognized the eminent threat upon her present sanctuary. Not only had the most notorious vigilante in all of Gotham—and maybe the entire word, if Harley remembered correctly—just crashed his looming black cloaked self through the ceiling.
The stories about him told no lies.
Dark and menacing, shadows seemed to surround him just because of his mere presence. He barely needed to move to display the awesome power he had over any situation. His main weapon was fear, and he did a terrific job in terrifying his opponent.
And the Batman was even nice enough to bring his … little ankle-biters.
All three of them.
Three, really?
Isn't that a little obsessive?
How many henchmen do we have?
Henchmen and ankle-biters are completely different!
The three shadows looming around the caped crusader loomed around him menacingly despite the diverse colors adorning their uniforms. As soon as the figures landed in the greenhouse, they sprang into action. The colorful sprite remained towards the rafters as he circled around the room, while the other two each took a different direction to follow and analyze. Finally, the man attraction of their troop took the center area of the space to cover.
The fact that a tremendous number of self-animated plants attacking them only seemed derailed them for a handful of seconds.
Yeah, we're in trouble …
"Harley!" the teenager beside her hissed in a whisper.
The blonde snapped from her daze. Tearing her eyes away from the caped crusader and his group as they fought with the greenery, she looked back to the girl in her arms. Thankfully, this little troupe of vigilantes decided to move in all directions but theirs.
How did we forget about Leni?
Still huddled over on her side, the younger girl clenched her teeth in pain between her pauses to speak.
"Harley," she repeated in an exhale, suppressing a groan as she attempted to remove weight from her injured side. Despite her pain, the younger girl gave Harley a direct glare before her next demand. "Where's Damian?"
Oh shit!
She does have a point!
Harley glanced back in the direction of the fortified loft hovering in the distance.
The very person that Harley had been watching for nearly the past week was still upstairs. Despite his mother remaining so adamant about his mere existence kept secret, the baby in question now lay in danger of being discovered. Harley looked from the group of masked vigilantes to where she had left Helena's younger brother. The small cocoon of branches, vines and iron floated securely in the corner. However, this little nest hovered only about a dozen yards away from the masked intruders.
They were close, too close.
Without another word, Harley climbed to her feet and carefully yet quickly pulled the younger girl up with her. Throwing Helena's arm over her shoulder, Harley practically hugged the girl to steady her figure.
Harley had so many questions, but there was absolutely no time for them.
Less talking, more moving.
If Leni says to move, we move!
Answers would come soon.
However, as soon as Harley brought Huntress onto her feet, the blonde strained when the teenager's weight gave way. Helena's feet fell from under her; she clung to the table she had been lying upon only moments before as she returned to the floor. Harley bit her lip at the delay, but realized there was nothing for her to do about it; setting aside the pain, the lack of blood was bound to make Helena too dizzy to stand.
Letting out exasperated gasps and panting deeply, it took Huntress several moments before she could speak. "Ow," was the only thing that escaped her lips.
To examine her properly, Harley released the dark-haired girl and knelt beside her. Helena only threw her head back slightly as Harley's fingers met Helena's side. Huntress seethed in pain, clenching her teeth as she grasped the table like a lifeline.
Harley felt her eyes widen as she took in the steady increase of the red stain on the girl's uniform. "Leni, this is bad!" she exclaimed.
She might be bleeding internally!
We can't move her!
A sudden panic set in on her mind. What could she do? Helena might die if Harley moved her, but leaving her there was not an option. But Damian was still upstairs! She needed to get to him! Him and—oh shit, Flora.
How could she have forgotten about her?
And Ivy? What about her?
And Freeze …
Wait … where is Ivy?
Harley's eyes darted around the greenhouse towards the direction she had left Ivy. She saw nothing, and heard nothing but the shrieks of the plants that were battling the Batman and his little gang of sidekicks.
Ivy … was not attacking those invading her home.
Where was she?
Part of Harley realized that she should have been concerned about Ivy's location and lack of response, but the other part of her realized there were three others that needed her help. Two of them lacked the ability to even walk.
Well, three right now …
The teenager winced as she held onto her side, teeth clenched to hold back her seething. Helena sat up straighter, leaning her neck back to stretch it.
She looked back to the blonde and smiled, but it was almost sarcastically. "Are we having fun yet?"
"Leni!" Harley hissed as she attempted to pick her up. What they needed in that instant was to get out of there, and lounging around was not part of the plan. "What are you doing?"
Helena let out another groan as she pulled out her crossbow from underneath her, looking more relieved that it no longer dug into her thigh than anything.
What the hell …?
"Attempting to prevent myself from bleeding out," she answered stoically, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Moving won't help much."
Harley blinked at the girl with wide eyes. She seriously considered slapping the teenager upside the head.
"Harley," Helena then breathed. "Look, I need you to turn on the gates."
"But won't that trap us in here?"
"Just do it!"
Harley bit her lip, but then nodded in confirmation to the order.
Making sure to keep her head down, the blonde kept to her knees as she pulled herself over to the other side of the room. She was just so thankful this was the laboratory she chose. Once she found the wall she wanted, she pulled a lever hidden behind a vine only for both metal and leaves to start moving out of the way. Revealed on the other side was a very ancient-looking mechanized control panel that consisted of a series of levers and knobs.
Okay … which one was it again?
We really, should have paid more attention to those instructions!
Try the left—no, no, your other left!
What are we even doing?!
Harley's eyes finally landed on the biggest lever on the console. With one swift tug, she felt the metal slide into place. The gears beneath the console whined and moaned as electricity whizzed through the cables. Harley felt the ground beneath her vibrate as something else besides the plants came to life.
Metal screeched against metal as the series of terrifyingly pointy rows of teeth emerged from the ceiling. What was once elaborate wrought-iron fixtures lining the ceiling turned into heavy metal doors, sinking into the floors. The entire greenhouse became encased in almost a giant birdcage-like structure.
Turning back around, Harley noticed Huntress slumped over on the floor. With an "eep!", Harley sprang into action to get back to her side. She ran right up to the girl and wrapped her arms around her again, squeezing her tightly. Although it was a hug, it was more to analyze the girl's health than anything.
Feeling the small movements of her chest gave her so much relief.
Good, she's not dead!
Now all we gotta do is find a vehicle!
'Vehicle'?
Something with wheels and a motor—I ain't picky about specifics!
"Aunt Harley, I don't mean to be rude, but could you get off me?" muttered the voice of the teenager in arms.
With a wince, Harley sprang back away from the girl. Maybe her grip was a just a little too tight.
However, the blonde could not contain her look of concern. "Harley," Helena finally breathed quietly. "Calm down."
Harley's jaw dropped.
Is she crazy!?
She realized the girl before her lacked a great deal of blood to the brain, but that was no reason for such a lackluster response. Wasn't she worried at all?
"Calm down?!" the older female snapped. "What do you mean calm down, we—?!"
"Harley!" The teenager forced Harley to face her by taking the blonde's shoulder. "They're here for me."
Came here for her?
Damn, girl, what the hell did you do?
We left her a week ago! How the hell did she get all this done so fast?
Coming from someone who banged a guy she just met for five days straight …?
That was negotiation, and we are getting off the subject here!
Helena paused to turn her head away, spitting blood from her mouth to clear her throat. Once she looked Harley in the eye again, she inhaled. Harley heard wheezing from the girl's mouth, and it hurt Harley to just sit there waiting for a response. Huntress needed serious medical attention, but that did not seem to be an option with their limited resources.
Huntress became serious before speaking. "I don't have much time to explain, but I need you to trust me and stop freaking out right now."
Harley looked at the girl in front of her, trying to deal with the multitude of emotions flooding her body. This was the little girl that Harley used to patch up after she scraped her knee. She was the giant crybaby who became upset when a spider was killed in front of her, and the worry-wort who feared she would be left alone when Cat was gone weeks at a time.
When did Leni grow up?
Although Harley felt enormous pride, she also felt fear too.
So, what are we gonna do?
Just leave Leni here—by herself!?
What are we gonna do?
We can't do that!
She's dead if we move her.
What are we gonna do?
Yeah, she's injured, right? They call themselves the good guys—maybe they won't hurt her.
Oh man … why did she have to give me such a decision?
What are we gonna do!?
It took only seconds for Harley to make up her mind.
"What do you need from me?" the blonde asked seriously.
Before Helena could get out a word, Harley felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. Without even looking, she knew another presence entered the space. The feeling that someone was looking at her overwhelmed her senses, and the blonde reacted without thinking.
Instinctively, the urge to protect came over her and she took out both of her pistols. It took a matter of seconds for her to cock them as she turned around swiftly. As soon as she was ready, she prepared to fire.
However, she did not have the opportunity.
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"Don't stick your head in a wolf's mouth." – Yiddish Saying
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Earlier ...
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Ring!
Ring!
Ri—!
Click.
"Hello!"
Groan.
"Hey … Aunt Harley … uh …"
Pause.
"Leni, is that you? Where are you, I thought you were coming over?"
Pause.
Sharp inhale.
"I was—ah!—I am …"
Low hiss.
"Uh … Leni, are you okay? You sound like you're in pain."
Pause.
Thump.
"Leni …?"
"Still here! Ugh … Still here …"
Longer pause.
Sharp inhale.
"It's … gonna take me a little longer to get over there … ah! Uh!—probably later tonight … ah …!"
Deep huff.
"Um … are you in a fight? You sound outta breath …"
Grunt.
Thump.
Pause.
Chuckle.
"That's one way of putting it …"
"So why are you calling me in the middle of it … don't you have your hands full?"
Pause.
Laugh.
"Not my hands …"
"Huh?"
"I'll explain late—er! Ugh! Damnit all to hell! You spawn of the—ugh!—devil ..."
Moan.
Laugh.
"Leni? Are you sure you're okay? You're … laughing."
Groan.
"Ah!—and that's bad?"
"No … but weird. You are fighting, right?"
Pause.
Huff.
"Let's just say … ugh! … I took your advice …"
Longer pause.
"About … ?"
Groan.
"Remember our last conversation?"
"Of course."
"Well, I did …. one of the things you suggested—ah! Worked a little ... too well … ugh!"
"Wait, what did I suggest?"
"Harley, I totally … huff … need to apologize … for any critici—SM! … with how you handled you-know-who …"
"Uh …"
"I might … be longer than expected … Ah!"
Crackle.
Thump.
"Leni?"
Shuffle.
Faint muttering.
Deep laughter.
Click.
"Okay … that must be some hell of a fight …"
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"Flatter me, and I may not believe you. Criticize me, and I may not like you. Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. Encourage me, and I will not forget you. Love me and I may be forced to love you." ― William Arthur Ward
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Back to present ...
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The shot rang out and echoed through the space, the dense foliage around them absorbing the loud noise.
Huh?
Wait, what just happened?
Did we fire off a shot?
Don't think so …
Thump.
Harley jumped at the noise, looking away from her own gun that was still fully loaded. The thing was not even smoking either. Her attention drew to the black-clad figure that collapsed to the floor in front of her.
Oh no …
How did they get in here?
Harley instantly recognized the uniform of the foot soldiers she encountered several days before hand. Before Harley's hand could even squeeze the trigger, the ninja twitched. Blood materialized immediately around its throat, and began to drip out of the hole that emerged with it. The sound Harley heard was of this masked assailant then falling to the ground.
Once the ninja fell, another figure appeared who had been standing behind it.
This newcomer … was not who she was expecting.
This one's new …
The first thing Harley noticed was his height.
He was tall, more than herself, but not freakishly so. Evenly proportioned and broad-shouldered, the bullet from his smoking automatic pistol fired off into the ninja almost too quickly. After shooting off the rounds, his hand lowered to his side to return the weapon to the holster on his waist. Harley noticed the sparkling glint of silver at the newcomer's wrist.
What an interesting outfit …
Wonder who does his tailoring …
The leather motorcycle vest fit to his overly muscular torso like a glove, the black of the fabric around the base of the hem faded up into a deep blood red as it traveled closer to his shoulders. What Harley found unique intriguing about his jacket was how short it was cut around his torso, revealing snippets of his skin underneath.
The wide lapel of the collar framed the contours of his bare shoulders underneath. His pale skin was decorated with a strangely beautiful array of tribal symbol tattoos. They stretched all over his chest and neck, clutching him like twisted claws.
Harley could not identify the material that formed his pants, but they could have been mistaken for regular black denim if it was not for the fact that they appeared bullet-proof. Held on with a series of straps and chains, his studded boots looked heavy enough to kill with a single blow.
The fingerless gloves around his hands were in tatters, and Harley noticed the blood red and black rosary that was elegantly tied tightly around his right wrist. The beads appeared to be locked in placed with a small yet thick chain—hence the sparkling from earlier. His bare arms were covered from the elbows down to his palms with long strips of ripped black fabric wrapped like bandages.
The most distinctive thing about his ensemble was the startling drastic contrast of the bright red fabric surrounding his head and covering his face. The hood came down over his face to where his nose would have been, if it wasn't for the fact that there was something impeding Harley from seeing his face.
Who the hell is this guy …?
It looked like a motorcycle helmet, but one that was custom made to form to his face. The opaque red material was completely solid.
It was then that Harley noticed something important in his other hand … or arm.
Damian …
The baby sat contently in the young man's arm, suckling his pacifier quietly as he looked forward. If he was any older, Harley would have called his expression bored. He seemed to hold no fear towards this newcomer.
In regards to the newcomer, the hooded individual used his newly freed hand to lower the bright red cloth and press a button on the ostentatious helmet. The accessory folded back and away from his face, completely compressing into a shape much smaller than before. It turned into a metallic headband that encircled his forehead like an ancient crown.
Underneath this helmet, red face paint was smeared roughly around the span of his eyes to somewhat hide his appearance. The angular jaw of his face led Harley to the conclusion of his youth. He looked younger than Helena, but still very maturely formed for such an age.
As he came up to Harley, he smiled genuinely, but she could not help but feel there was a mischievous glimmer behind that smile. Harley saw a pair of gleaming red eyes merrily looking at her, only seeming to accent his already too perfect of a face.
The number of scars blanketing his facial features only seemed to improve his appearance. the ring in the side of his bottom lip was accented by the one in his eyebrow, and the silver crosses dangling from his ears. Jet black hair hung lazily in his eyes, a dramatic white streak highlighting his bangs. As he closed in on her, Harley could smell the distinct scent of tobacco radiating from his form. The tobacco was laced with a mix of cherries and chocolate.
He smirked at Harley before his red eyes turned on Huntress.
"This is your aunt?" he chuckled, his voice deep and smoky. Despite the roughness, his voice held a strangely hypnotic smoothness as well.
Helena winced as she rolled her eyes at his comment. "You have a point?"
Harley blinked.
Huh?
Isn't she scared, at… all?
Before Harley could open her mouth to get a word in, this stranger swiftly took a hold of Harley's hand, completely disregarding the guns in her grasp as he raised it to his lips to kiss the back. His grip was steady yet firm.
Harley restrained the blush.
Um ….
"Charmed," he introduced himself.
Without pausing, the hooded newcomer simply deposited little Damian in Harley's arms.
Harley knew her mouth gaped like a goldfish.
Who was this?
Harley took the baby, finding refusal not an option.
This newcomer then nodded his head to Harley, reminding her of a gentleman tipping his hat. Harley's attention drew to the streak of white in his hair. She found it odd. He was much too young to be going gray. Was it intentional? He looked around Helena's age. However, his blood red eyes revealed the soul of an old man. She noticed the bits of white in his eyebrows, especially where a chunk of hair refused to grow around a scar.
However, Harley quickly forgot about his appearance when he came up to the teenager sitting on the floor. He passed the blonde gracefully, swiftly changing the direction of his attention. Although his movements were quick, they also seemed very much relaxed at the same time.
With a swift yet gentle movement, he then knelt to one knee before the girl on the ground.
Silently, he gathered up Helena in his arms. His grip was tight around her as he brought her to a stand, and Harley noted the placement of his hands; while his one wrapped around her waist, the other rested rather high on Helena's thigh.
Hey there buddy!
Where are touching our little Leni!?
Huntress herself winced from movement. However, her expression was more out of annoyance than pain. Rolling her eyes, the newcomer's hand came up to pull her chin up to force her to look him in the eye. He pushed his body up against her own, almost crushing her against the table standing behind her as his shoulders lined up with her own.
"She looks nothing like you, Hellfire," he teased, using the back of his finger to caress the line of her jaw. Helena instantly pulled away from him, but remained limited by her injury and his hold on her.
Hellfire?
Who the hell is ... Hellfire?
Helena's brow wrinkled as she let out an exaggerated huff. "Did I said she was biologically related to me?"
The newcomer attempted to touch his forehead to hers, only Helena turned her head away with a snarl. Instead of looking annoyed himself, Harley noticed his eyes glisten with delight at her response. His grin increased as he chuckled and used the tip of his nose to nuzzle her cheek.
"She's as attractive as you though," he nearly growled into her ear.
Helena let out a distinctive noise of dissatisfaction, rolling her eyes again. Oddly enough, Helena squirmed a bit, but did not pull away. If she wanted, the teenager could have easily killed or disabled the young man holding her.
But, she left him be.
Uh …
Harley still tried to wrap her head around the situation around her. She looked down to the bloody corpse on the floor, and then to the baby in her arms. She glanced over to the shrieking plants around them. Despite all the chaos surrounding them, Harley felt like she was in the center of a tear in the fabrics of reality.
The voices in her head were not calm.
What the hell is going on?
What happened?
Weren't we just gonna go … do something?
And who is this smooth-talker with his grubby mitts all over Leni!?
Turning back to the couple in front of her, she noticed she probably should have been paying a little bit more attention.
Because, they she missed how this guy ducked his head down towards Helena's own and press his mouth to hers. Kiss was much too soft of a word to describe what this young man was doing to Helena's mouth.
Harley's mouth hit the proverbial floor.
Didn't she say she had no time or guys?
Yeah, that was a week ago!
Her words were, 'Guys are jerks most of the time.'
Well, she obviously doesn't think that about this one …
That was it!
Harley decided to put her foot down.
Literally.
"Oi!" Harley yelled abruptly, the pair in front of her continuing to practically devour each other's mouths. She stomped her foot on the ground, mindful of the baby in her arms.
They … ignored her.
"Hey!" Harley exclaimed, becoming annoyed herself.
Finally, after a few more seconds, the two came up for air—however it was not to respond to Harley. This stranger holding Helena proceeded without a pause to reach down to her neck and start nibbling on it, perfectly content to continue with an audience beholding the spectacle.
Helena, the only one looking remotely embarrassed, glanced at Harley from her position. Her arms had come up to grip his shoulders, but only to steady herself.
"Hey Harley," she finally said. Through her embarrassment, she did not pull away. "This is awkward."
"Ya think!" Harley snapped, gesturing to the newest individual in front of them. "Who the hell is that?"
Helena winced a smile. "That's an … interesting story," she responded, biting her lip.
Harley's free hand went to her hip. "No … really?" she drawled sarcastically as she made sure Damian was secure in her other arm. "I'd love to hear this one—and who the hell do you think you are ignoring me, buddy?!"
The focus of her question chuckled against skin. He was kissing Helena's neck now, and from the sounds emerging from the pair, suckling as well. "I like her," he grumbled into Helena's ear.
Helena rolled her eyes, arm moving to the table to hold herself up. She let him proceed, looking back to the blonde. "Harley … this idiot is, uh …"
"You can tell her," he cut in subtly.
"… okay yeah, this is Jason," Helena introduced and gestured to him with her free hand. He did not stop his ministrations, but did lift his hand from Helena's thigh to wave at Harley. "And for lack of a better term, he's what you might call my fiancé."
Harley felt her eyes widen.
"WHAT!?"
Well, that does explains a lot …
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(Author's Note:
He, he, he ... you all might want to reread the second part of this chapter ...*wink*
Now.
Onto business.
Please, please ... please! Be gentle with me.
Yes, I know ... no Mr. J. I really, really need to apologize. During my last update, when I wrote that he would be in this chapter, I was not lying ... however, things just got in the way. I ... kinda changed my mind. I'm extremely sorry.
The little devil of creativity came and bit me in the behind, so that is one of the reasons for my delay with this chapter. On that note, yes, it is late ... I hope not too much though. This chapter is much shorter than my previous ones, but that is because I'm giving you the condensed version. I wanted to give you something, even if it is not much. Many of you are foaming at the mouth for more, and I felt I should give you guys a little piece even if it is not a lot.
Reason for delay? Well, I have many.
To make it brief, I will give you a short list; school, work, change in weather, family, friends, minor spells of illness, and my stupid country (Don't even get me started ... For all of you who don't know, my parents decided to have me born in the USA. Enough said. Period.)
Anyway, enough with that ... on to the real reason for my note.
Now, more about my delay for this chapter.
I planned for Huntress to be doing one thing "behind the scenes", and then something changed my mind. Her actions influence what she would be doing in this scene, so I rewrote it ... a lot.
I had a huge dilemma with what to do next (caught between a rock and a hard place), because there are going to be so many players and pieces in this story. I know, I'm shooting myself in the proverbial foot by complicating matters, but it's something I enjoy. Needless to say, I got a little too wrapped up with my subplots, and I realized that I need to be focusing on Harley.
Harley, Harley, Harley.
This is her story after all.
Once again, thank you for reading my story. Again, I'm sorry about no Mr. J. He will be coming back soon and sticking around for quite a while, if that's any comfort.)
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