Two days have passed since the incident. Bruce's condition worsened sometime during the second day. That is when Adrienn panicked and called Lucius, who was busy with trying to assemble an antidote. Adrienn was a mess. She was crying and could barely speak one comprehendible word when she phoned Lucius. Alfred had to snatch the phone out of her hand and explain the situation. Lucius then doubled his efforts and managed to get them an antidote. He brought his research materials with him, just in case things would take a turn for the worst once again.
Adrienn straightened, realizing the Bruce wasn't shivering anymore. Her panic began to resurface as she quickly checked his pulse. It was stable. A small smile appeared on her lips as she tossed her legs over the edge of the bed and ran to the other side. Bruce was coming around, finally after two days.
"Bruce?" She whispered quietly, gently shaking his hand. He opened his eyes, squinting a bit at the sun light that was streaming in from the windows above. "How do you feel? Does anything hurt?!" She asked frantically scanning his body. Bruce managed a small smile and tried to sit up. "No!" Adrienn pushed him down and sat down on the edge of the bed. "You are not getting out of bed yet!" She said her voice still quiet but it was already a couple of pitches higher.
"Adri, I am fine…" Bruce insisted. The small girl pushed him down again and gave him an evil glare.
"Please don't ever do that again!" She insisted, her expression in sheer panic. Bruce couldn't help a small smile as the young brunette continued to scold him. This was one of the reasons he decided to let her in on his secret. Adrienn was tough but she worried and had a human perspective with everything. Bruce knew that even with Adrienn asking him to stop doing that, she knew and completely understood that he couldn't. He needed to do this, and no matter how much she got scared she will always be there for him.
"Adrienn…" Bruce smiled, taking his hand up to cup her cheek. "I've missed you."
She stopped her scolding and leaned forward to hug the billionaire playboy. Adrienn inhaled his sweet scent and closed her eyes, trying to treasure this moment forever. She felt his strong arms run down her back, causing small goose bumps to appear on her skin. Bruce's hand suddenly stopped and he froze.
"What's wrong?" Adrienn asked, pulling back from him and looking at him with a confused expression. She tilted her head at Bruce's shocked face. He really looked like he just seen a ghost.
"Um… Why are you in your underwear?" Bruce asked, looking away at the ceiling and finding something very interesting there to examine.
"Shit." Adrienn cursed, realizing her appearance. Maybe it would've been a better idea to pull on the night gown before she woke him. "Well you were cold and the best way to heat up is body heat…" Adrienn shrugged, leaning over Bruce's body to grab the night gown that was carelessly tossed to the foot of the bed. She pulled it over her frame and Bruce finally deemed it safe to look at her again. "Billionaire playboy is embarrassed?" Adrienn teased, poking his biceps slightly.
"Adri… you know I am not like that." Bruce narrowed his eyes at the petite girl. "Plus it isn't fair anymore…" he couldn't finish as Alfred and Lucius walked in. Alfred had a glass of water, with a vitamin supplement placed next to it and a big mug of coffee for Adrienn.
"Mr Fox." She greeted with a smile, grabbing the mug gratefully from Alfred. Sleep wasn't something that Alfred and Adrienn experienced in these days. Alfred switched all his tea breaks to coffee breaks. He had muttered something about the biscuits not tasting that good with the coffee.
"How long was I out?" Bruce asked, running a hand over his face.
"Two days. It is your birthday party today." Alfred said, dropping the little tablet into the water and stirring the liquid. He handed him the cup once the tablet was fizzing. "Talking about the birthday. Miss I called the saloon for you. There was an opening at 3."
"That early?!" Adrienn grumbled, setting her coffee mug down, "Well it is better than nothing…" She noted to no one in particular as she spotted her chapped manicure. A fixing up was definitely in need. She looked back up at Bruce, who had a very thoughtful look on his face. That man clearly doesn't give much rest for himself. Adrienn smiled down at her determined friend. He really was an amazing man.
"I've felt these effects before, but this was so much more potent." Bruce said after swallowing a big gulp from the cup Alfred had given him. "It was some kind of hallucinogen, weaponized, in aerosol form."
"You have been hanging out in the wrong clubs Mr Wayne." Lucius smiled softly. Bruce gave me a skeptical look about the clubs but smiled at Lucius.
"I'll get that." Adrienn smiled hearing the doorbell ring. Bruce gave her a small smile, watching her leave the room.
Adrienn was happy the Bruce was up and running once again. This whole poisoning deal was very, dramatic and scary to say the least. Adrienn shivered just at the mere thought. She could only imagine what was going through Bruce's head. He had muttered a lot about his parents shooting and bats. Those were the things Bruce was really afraid of.
"Alfred I need to…" Rachel's voice could be heard as soon as Adrienn opened the door. Adrienn's heart dropped to the pits of her stomach as she saw the tall brunette standing in front of her. Her mood lightened however, once she registered Rachel's expression. "Adri?" Rachel spat, clearly shocked at the sight of the small brunette. The whole scene was priceless. "I thought you were meeting Jake at the Asylum."
"What?" Adrienn asked, all smugness that was evident in her posture was now gone.
"Jake Crane." Rachel began, "He told me that he left you a message. Guess it is good I passed by. I am here to talk to Bruce." Rachel bustled through the door and into the house like she owned the place. Adrienn was still a bit dumbfounded as to why Jake would want to meet at the Arkham Asylum. It was his brother's main work area but still… "Where is Bruce?"
"He is in the bedroom… I'll go get him for you." Adrienn said, completely skipping the hello how are you phase of their conversation. It wasn't like Rachel killed herself to get to that point either.
"Why should you go to his bedroom?" Rachel asked, cocking her hips to the left. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked down at Adrienn with a snobby expression. Adrienn was done at this point. All she really wanted to do was to smash her head in.
"Adri…" Bruce called from the stairs, a smile on his lips. He trotted down and walked up to Adrienn swiftly. She turned looking up at Bruce who had his hand on her hips.
"Bruce…. um Rachel wants to talk to you?" Adrienn studied his face. His reaction didn't change at her name. He looked a bit… disappointed really.
"Rachel, er- sorry I didn't see you there." Bruce smiled, walking closer to her to give her a friendly hug. Adrienn gave Bruce an apologetic look.
"I need to leave. You know to talk to Jake about everything…" Adrienn had a small smile on her lips. Bruce nodded kissing her temple softly before letting her go.
Adrienn shivered at his touch as she walked up the stairs. Her fingers traced her temple and she let out a soft sigh. Every fiber in her body was telling her to turn around and examine Rachel's expression. The urge to do a victory dance in front of her was also very high but she resisted. She met Alfred at the top of the stairs. He gave her a small smile,
"You spoke with him?" He asked, beaming with joy as well. Alfred was almost as excited as Adrienn was.
"Not yet, no. Rachel was at the door." Adrienn shrugged. Alfred's smile froze of his face as he heard her name. He really looked like a man that wanted to inflict damage on that woman if she intervened one more time. Adrienn chuckled at her friend's behavior and slightly patted him on the arm, hoping that would be enough to calm him down.
"Where are you heading to Miss?" Alfred asked, turning to watch Adrienn go back to her room.
"Heading to Arkham Asylum. Apparently Jake wants a meeting there." Adrienn shrugged giving a small smile towards Alfred.
"Stay safe."Alfred mumbled, watching Adrienn go into the room she used.
Adrienn pulled on a semi formal outfit which consisted of a pair of skin tight black jeans and a white blouse. As for makeup she applied a light dusting, knowing that that will be good for the day. She stepped into her black boots and made her way downstairs where her car was waiting. She stashed a gun in the glove box and had her purse at the ready.
It only took her a couple of minutes to get to the Narrows. Her driving wasn't the safest, having been taught by Bruce mainly when she was younger. The mere thought of Bruce Wayne made a smile form on her lips. She stepped out into the chilly air and pulled the jacket closer to her frame as she hurried up the steps and into the Asylum.
This situation was already weird, but when she saw the interior of the place more goose bumps appeared on her skin. Adrienn walked over to the receptionist, a plump lady, and told her why she was there. Strangely, at the sound of Rachel's name she quickly got up and ushered her down a long dingy looking corridor. Adrienn tried her very best not to scream, turn around and run out of the building. So far she was holding up all right though.
"Adrienn Mercer…" A smooth voice echoed from behind her. She raised an eyebrow and turned around to see who her company was, "A pleasure to finally meet the woman who has my brother, head over heels in love…"
"Jonathan." Adrienn nodded out of respect and shook his hand quickly. There was something of about him. He seemed too calm and a little bit looney. Adrienn was theorizing about his work getting to him when the man spoke again.
"I believe the young Miss Dawes sent you?"
"Yeah… how did you know?" Adrienn asked, crossing her arms over her chest. This situation was getting worse by the second in her eyes.
"Well… I scheduled a meeting with Miss Dawes, but then my brother kindly suggested that you can instead of her… apparently the two of you have some discussing to do…?" Jonathan said, not blinking or breaking eye contact with Adrienn once. She stopped her urge to shiver and nodded her head.
"Yes. That seems to make sense. I believe I have to look at some files then for Miss Dawes as well?" Adrienn already knew what the game was going to go out for. She would have to do Rachel's job… once again. This time she didn't mind too much since she had some relationship problems to solve with Jake anyway. Well by solve she meant end.
"Well I will give you some flies, just to get you up to date with things." Jonathan explained. His smooth voice was freaking Adrienn out on many levels. She took a deep breath and followed him down the corridors. She tried to keep her mind set on the task and not think about all the nurses and the patients behind the doors. "Here." Adrienn took the files that were handed to her and opened them, scanning her eyes over them quickly. The situation was strange to her eyes…
"Well common sense. Falcone has no history of any mental illness in his family. It is a little strange that you put him here." Adrienn closed the file and looked up at Jonathan. "Wouldn't you think that it was just a way to get out of prison? I mean it is Falcone we are talking about."
"What do you mean?"
"Falcone practically owns this town. He can do whatever he wants… I mean he has the money." Adrienn followed him further down a corridor. Her heels clicking on the marble floor was the only noise in the hallway… it added another level to the fear factor. They reached a door at the very end and Adrienn decided to peek in.
She saw the man, tied up. There were several bruises decorating his face. His eyes were cold and not focused. Adrienn frowned. His expression reminded her exactly of Bruce's. They were just distant and not human. Falcone was muttering something about a scarecrow.
"Scarecrow?" Adrienn asked, turning back to face Jonathan. He was looking at her with a calm expression and a sly smile on his lips. It was rather scary.
"Patients suffering delusional episodes often focus their paranoia on an external tormentor usually one conforming to Jungian archtypes. In this case…. Scaercrow." Jonathan explained calmly. Adrienn crossed her arms over her chest, debating whether she should tell him that she recognized these symptoms. In the end her hatred towards what had happened with Bruce and the fact that there might be a link between these two cases she decided to go ahead with it.
"I have seen symptoms similar to these not long ago…" Adrienn began, walking down the corridor towards the window, "Is he drugged Mr. Crane?"
"Psychopharmacology is my primary field. Didn't Miss Dawes fill you in?" Jonathan had a slight teasing tone in his voice, "I am a strong advocate. Outside, he was a giant as you noticed yourself. In here only the mind can grant you power."
"I figure Miss Dawes will want her own psychiatric analysis to have full access to Falcone. At all times. That will include blood work as well, just to rule out the minor things like drugs and things. I trust you understand…" Adrienn said, turning and heading towards the elevator. She has had enough of this. "And tell your brother to have some respect for me and at least show his face?"
"But I am right here babe…" A sinister voice sounded as the elevator dinged. Adrienn looked up and all color drained from her face…
-Well… I got internet. Sorry I disappeared. I had results come out and it wasn't too good :/ But ey at least I didn't fail. Plus I spent a night at the hospital again :/ Should be all good now. Firstly, I got a 100 reviews thank you! And nearly a 100 followers, or favorites not sure which :) I am stoked.
As for reviews, I am gonna try and reply from where I left of lol :P So these are just replies, you can skip it if you want :) I hope I got everyone! :)
*jesterjoker : Join the world of 9gag /gag/2349208 that is the meme I was talking about. Be warned… this site is addicting… well it used to be. Now it is pretty much full of reposts… But is still cool. Rachel deserves to get owned… but more. I AM WAITING FOR SUGGESTIONS ON THAT EVERYONE!
*kari10 : well I didn't get one out :/ Sorryyy! But I was quite busy. Thank you for reviewing! Really means a lot, hope you like the story so far! I may try and get one out tonight.
*1234 : I remember reading the reviews once and I was like OMG… REVIEWS! A lot of reviews! Thank you so much firstly for reviewing! As you can obviously tell… I used the cactus idea. Hope it is okay! And your vote has been counted with the Rachel situation. Aww don't worry Jake will get what he deserves. And I can assure you that you will have a point in life just wait wait and wait for it. And I apologize for not being able to update more frequently. Things should get back to track I hope… And my neighbors are evil people… I swear… whenever I leave the house they watch me like hawks… o.o like that.
*Adalheidis Svanhilda : Firstly, you are a freaking amazing artist. Like seriously, everyone go look at her picture. It is pure awesome. AWESOME! Hehe, thank you for commenting! Hope you liked the chapter! :)
*CatsGoMoo : Hope you had a good vacation! Hehe lol sorry for not being able to post as much these past couple of days. Been busy, hope you liked the chapter though! It was time for him to open his eyes hehe :)Batwoman will be explained, not going to give anything away! :D Just wait and read! Thank you for reviewing! And about grammar issiues, lol I try to find them and everything and I have a friend reading through it but I usually type things up in the night and I think you have also noticed my internet connection is VERY stable (note sarcasm) I try my best with correcting everything, sorry if there is some bad ones xD THANK YOU FOR REVIEWING!
*maisaLin : Aww thank you for reviewing. Those columns help a lot with life decisions, even if it sounds gay xD They are life savers. Rachel deserved it and lol I wish I could warm up Bruce like that xD Heheh
*Camille : Yes it is just the beginning, I am planning to take this on to the other movies :) Hope it will work out. Sorry for the sudden disappearance in updated but meh… I explained. Thank you very much for reviewing and reading, I hope you like the chapter.
*LittleNK: Alfred I wish there were people like him.
*twiggy31 : Lol we are happy to have more members. I completely understand your opinion and I agree with you. They'll kiss soon! :)
*Daisygirl95 : Lool they should get like shirts saying Matchmaker Alfred and Jealous Bruce. Ha! I would laugh. Thank you for reviewing!
*Zugra913 : Aww, thank you for reviewing! I try to update quickly. Oh and Assassin's Creed on your pic? Bah! I love you if it is! I might go to the gamescon in Köln, where I am staying at the moment and then I can play AC3! mwah!
*xxyangxx2006: Lol .) she was confused poor thing. Lol thank you for reviewing! Hope you enjoyed the latest installment! :)
*stupidsteff666: yeap I know what you mean! :) Thanks for the review!
*devi no kaze : thank you for reviewing! I need to send you the message again I guess… sorry my internet is shit lol I'll try to update quickly again !
*666AnimeFan666 : Thank you for reviewing and reading! I will try and update quickly! :)
*RebornRose1992 : Aww thank you! Reviews mean a lot! I am happy you like it so far! Hope you liked the new chappy.
*bruceisyummy : I would like to thank you for showing me the best thing on earth… at first I was like wtf is that? I am very good with technology… note sarcasm. Lol yeah that site has gotten me through a shit load. EVERYONE CHECK IT OUT! I love you so much for showing me. Thank you, hope you like my story :)
*Nausicaa of Spirits : Hehee I know right? Thank you for reviewing! I really hope you liked the chapter and the story so far!
*Guest (1) : Aww thank you! Heheh :) Hope you liked it so far!
*Guest (2): Aww thank you! I will try to post quickly xD
*22Crissy : Hugh Jackman. Yummy. Just had to sorry lol Thank you for reviewing and reading, I hope you liked my story so far, there is more to come! You are also welcome to the darkside! :)
*Blueberrytoast : I love your name! Hhahaha I want toast now, anyway thank you for commenting and reading! Really means a lot! Hope you liked the chapter! :)