The Rose and Her Thorns
Arkham Asylum: Cell of Edward Nygma
Eddie sat in his cell, staring at the grey concrete of the walls and counting the seconds until nine o' clock. At ten seconds till, the riddling maniac stood, nonchalantly walking over to the security lock on his door. They had one on the inside of the cell just for shrinks who came into the cell with the patients. The door would be locked behind the psychiatrist as he conducted his session with the patient, and when it was time to leave, he would simply use a key card to exit the small concrete room.
A wicked grin crossed Nygma's face as he slid the credit-card shaped key into the lock, the mechanism whirring and opening his cell door effortlessly. There was a sucker born every minute, and a whole lot of them seemed to end up as guards for Arkham. And people wondered why it was so easy to escape the psychiatric facility?
Whistling, Edward made his way down the empty prison corridor, knowing full well that the guards weren't watching the security cameras. Tonight was poker night, and every inmate knew that poker night signalled a blind eye where the cameras were concerned. Grinning, the red haired genius found himself in front of Harley's cell. The bubbly harlequin was returning his grin ten-fold. It actually looked like a few of her cheek muscles were tearing.
"Hiya Harley! Fancy a stroll?"
"Wayta' go Riddles!"
Edward effortlessly slid the card into Harley's cell lock and the three inch thick glass door opened. Soon, he found himself engulfed in a bear hug that could only be dished out by the harlequin known as Harley Quinn.
"Come on Eddie! Let's get Red and split."
Ah yes! Ivy was the one supplying the residence! Turning smoothly on his heel, Eddie followed Harley down towards where Ivy's cell was. The blond was doing cartwheels in the midst of her excitement, muscles bunching and knotting in her frame as she gracefully pinwheeled around in cycles.
Hand, hand; foot, foot;
Hand, hand; foot, foot;
They managed to reach Ivy's cell without a hitch, although painfully aware that their luck could turn at any moment. Eddie elegantly offered Ivy a hand as she exited, not surprised when she rejected the gesture and decided to walk beside the forever bubbly Harley. Well...walk wasn't the right word for what Ivy was doing. It was more like flowing. Each step was precise and smooth, flowing into the next one as she moved. Perfectly smooth jade feet never made a sound as they touched the hard concrete beneath them. Without himself knowing, Eddie had fallen into a kind of drunken stupor, just watching Ivy walk.
Of course, Ivy tended to have that effect on people. The woman that was currently the subject of Eddie's drooling suddenly looked back, calling softly, "Are coming Nygma? Or are you just going to stand there and look at my ass all day?"
Shaking his head, the poor man blushed sheepishly and rushed to catch up with the two women, who were by now two-thirds of the way to the inmate property lockup. Two guards had decided to stand watch that night, but it didn't really matter. Two kisses from Ivy and they were out like lights, snoring softly on the rough floor.
Eddie snorted. Some men were so weak minded. Thankfully, he was not one of those men. He had intelligence. He had common sense. He had...the most horrible urge to kiss Ivy. Shaking his head violently again, Nygma threw off the affects of the pharamones that Ivy had secreted whilst kissing the guards and ran off to find his suit and cane. It didn't take long. I mean, how long was it supposed to take to find acid green and purple clothes with question marks on them with a gold and green cane? Not very.
Ivy simply stood near the back, waiting for Nygma to finish. On the outside, Ivy seemed perfectly cool and collected. The woman who was perfectly at ease in every situation. On the inside, though, she was nervous. Where was that girl with their ride?
Soon, Eddie strode up to her, his bowler hat perched atop his head. Ivy couldn't help but notice how it was the exact same shade as her's, albiet shorter and somewhat coarser. But it was the same vibrant shade of red. A grin rose on the Riddler's features as he stood next to her.
"So, where's Harleyquins?"
"She went to get us a ride. She should be here by now. I wonder where..."
The wall was then busted through by a large armored inmate transport vehicle, Harley sitting in the driver's seat. She waved at Nygma and Ivy, beckoning them to hurry up and join her. "Come on Eddie! Red! Let's blow this heap a' rock!"
Shrugging, the two leapt into the armored vehicle without a second thought. Why look a gift horse in the mouth, even when it was a giant rolling death trap in the hands of Harley Quinn?
They pulled out of Arkham Asylum, sirens suddenly blaring behind them. The guards must have found the open cells. It was too late though. Three of the most dangerous villains in Gotham were now on the loose...and were headed for home.
Ivy's Hideout: Nine o' clock p.m
Sunni sat on the couch, Snow and Steel curled up at her feet, and Miles sleeping in her lap. They had just finished dinner and they're baths, taking the time afterwards to indulge in a little cartoon time. With these many plants in a house as well as the wolves, there wasn't much time for relaxation. Well, for her anyways. That's all the boys did nowadays. Jaylon spent his time floating around the ceilings, trying to gain control of his powers. Camden definetely had control of his powers now, because half of the time Sunni couldn't find the stinker. Eli and Gabe practiced they're powers in the greenhouse, racing to see which one could sustain his power the longest. Gabe usually won, as copying yourself took a lot less energy than running at super-sonic speeds.
Snow yawned at her feet, the young wolf stretching luxuriously on the floor. Sunni, can I take the boys and go to bed? I'm tired.
Sure thing, Snowy. Let me just make sure no one's outside before you pass out on me.
With that, Sunni carefully got up off of the couch, picking her way through the boys that were sprawled on the floor and watching T.V. She went into the greenhouse, where Mel sat, grumbling loudly in his own plant greeting. Sunni smiled at the giant Venus Flytrap and stroked one of the vines that sprouted from his base. Once he got over trying to eat you, Mel was actually a pretty cool plant.
Fang, however, wasn't in a cool mood. He was staring out one of the greenhouse windows, growling with his hackles raised. This immediately set alarm bells off with Sunni as she crouched beside him and peered out of the window herself.
What is it Fang?
A growl escaped the scarred muzzle of the wolf, deep in his throat and almost rising to a snarl. Intruders on the property. One male and two female. They're heading for the house.
Growling of her own started to grow in Sunni's chest as her eyes glowed with that threatening amber fire. Running faster and more gracefully than your average fourteen year old, Sunni made her way back into the house. The short sprint did nothing to calm her. In fact it did quite the opposite. Wild energy pulsed through the blood in Sunni's veins as she entered the living room.
"Boys get up! There are people headin' for the house and they aren't friendly!"
Eli sprang up, grabbing Jaylon and Camden by the hands. "What do you want us to do?"
"Run to the greenhouse and hide in the foliage. I don't want to hear a single noise from in that building, you got that?"
Eli nodded, dragging his baby brothers off at supersonic speed. Gabe scrambled to his feet, multiplying himself as he went and grabbing Jasper, Howard, and Hayden. Each of the clones ran for the kitchen, following the original Gabe as he went into the greenhouse. Snowy and Steel were now in action, the white and iron-gray wolves preparing themselves to fight to the end.
Snow spoke in Sunni's mind, her bright eyes rimmed with white as she bared her teeth. I'm ready to fight for the pack! Let's hope they don't have a pack of their own!
Steel's calm voice spoke now; rich, deep, and smooth like molasses. I don't wish for you to fight little one. You could get hurt.
But Steel! I'm ready for this! We're pack and pack sticks together, no matter the costs!
Sunni intervened, kneeling down to place the sleeping Miles on Snow's back. Steel's right Snow. I don't want you getting hurt. But I'm going to give you a very special job. I want you to protect the little ones. Take Miles and find the others and stick with them. They're pack too, and right now they need you to be their protector. Can I trust you?
Yes ma'me!
Good. Now get going ya' crazy pup!
With that, Snow strode off, carefully balancing the sleeping one year old on her back as she went. Sunni watched her go before starting back into action by the sound of the doorknob rattling.
Steel, come with me and hide in the kitchen. We're going to set a little trap for our...uninvited guests.
A coughing wheeze that Sunni recognized as wolf laughter escaped Steel as the grey wolf followed her into the kitchen. What fun. Traps are my kinda gig!
Ivy, Harley, and Riddler;
Ivy sat, kicking her legs in anticipation as they reached the intersection leading to her home. Ah home! A word that makes any person want to scream with joy. Eddie sat beside her, quietly making small talk with Harley. For once, the bubbly blond was calm, turning onto the road that was Ivy's driveway.
A frown creased the harlequin's brow as she looked at the house she knew was Red's. The lights were on. Red would never leave the lights on while she was gone. She was much to concious of the planet around her for that.
"Uh, Red? I think someone's beat us to the house."
"What?"
Ivy leapt forward, clutching to the dashboard of the armored vehicle. Harl was right. The lights were on and she could see people in the living room through the curtains. Her light green skin flushed darker with anger. How dare some idiot invade her home! Her babies were probably in there, being abused by idiotic druggies!
Eddie noticed her sudden shade change and placed a hand on her shoulder. She relaxed slightly, leaning back in her seat as Harley parked the car on the curb. "Don't worry Ivy. We'll kick whoever's in there out and get on with our lives."
Harley spoke up now, her cheerful and optimistic attitude contagious despite the circumstances she found herself in. "Yeah Red! We'll put the whoop on em'!"
The green villainess' anger didn't fade though, and as soon as Eddie opened the door, she was out of the car and at the front door. Rattling the knob, Ivy found it locked. Cursing under her breath, she grabbed the spare key from behind a thermometer attached to the wall, jamming it roughly into the lock. Eddie and Harley had caught up to her at this point and were now exchanging nervous glances. Pain; it was the one word that could describe what those poor intruders would feel once Red gotta' hold of em'.
Ivy threw open the door, surprised to find that the living room was deserted. The T.V. was onto some cartoon and blankets littered the floor and sofa, but no one was there. Her plants responded to her presence, lightly brushing their loving mother with leaves and vines before withdrawing to their normal positions. Edward shifted nervously behind Ivy. Something wasn't right here.
"Ivy, be careful. This could be a trap."
"A low life punk isn't going to get away from me Eddie. Watch and take notes. Mother Nature's envoy is about to get vicious!"
Harley winced. She'd know that tone of voice anywhere. Someone was in big trouble when Red caught em'. No way were they going to come out unscathed. The blond followed Eddie and Ivy towards the kitchen door, a ball of unease quickly forming a boulder of panic in her stomach. Something was way wrong here!
Sure enough, as soon as that kitchen door flew open, they were met by a flurry of teeth, fur, and snarling. The trio quickly backed up, Edward getting ripped into by a iron-gray dog. Snarling, with its eyes glowing a bright amber, the thing latched onto the Riddler's arm and wouldn't let go. Everytime he tried to fight it, the beast would simply bite down harder and shake his head, causing more damage and pain to the man he was holding. From behind the wolf came a girl.
She couldn't have been more than fourteen, but she radiated power like a generator. Tall, with a muscular, athletic build, the girl was smiling viciously. Canines sprouted from her gums that were at least two inches long and her hair, which reached her waist, was a midnight black. What really unnerved the adults were her eyes; they were amber, with a wild fire that burned out of it and exploded into you, drawing you into their fury and power until you couldn't break the deadly trance you were in.
The girl laughed. It was rough, deepening at the edges until it became a growl at the very end. "I should've known this was a bad place to relocate. Why I never connected the plants with you, Poison Ivy I'll never know. What surprises me is that you've got roomates. Harley I can understand, but why Riddler? I mean the man walks around in a gay suit with a pimp cane telling riddles."
Nygma spoke from his position on the floor. "Hey! My suit is not gay and I don't carry a pimp cane! ...And would you kindly pull your dog off of me! He's ripping vital parts of my forearm!"
The girl never spoke a word, but the dog release Nygma anyways, returning to his mistress' side and drawing itself up in a very dignified manner.
Harley spoke first, her childish blond pigtails and blue eyes making her look like a frightened little girl instead of an insane criminal that was wanted in twelve states. "Who are you?"
"I'm Sunni Anne Amyx and this is my packmate Steel."