The Rose and Her Thorns

The boys that had previously been standing in a straight line stared at their sister, knowing exactly which story she was about to tell. Sunni looked over at them, eyes understanding, but still carrying that feral amber glow.

"Boys, you don't have to stay and listen. It's getting late anyways. Why don't you go onto bed?"

Eli nodded, his gelled hair not moving from it's rock hard position. The twins carefully lifted Howard and Miles off of the floor, watching closely as Sunni placed a sleepy Hayden on Fang's back. The silent children took off down the long hallway, vines actually parting before them. Ivy narrowed her eyes at Sunni. What kinds of mutation were they speaking about here?

Harley spoke first, making it seem as if she had read Ivy's mind. "So how did you get your powers?"

Eddie leaned back into the couch, watching the whole scene curiously. He noted Sunni's stiffening posture as she sank into an armchair next to the couch, his perceptive mind also noticing the brightening of her irises. "I take it this is a sensitive subject."

A sigh and a slight smile responded to his question. "Yeah. My brothers and I got our powers from some experimental technology our father came up with after Mom died. Let's just say it wasn't the most pleasant experience."

Ivy grimaced. "That being code for it hurt like hell?"

"Basically."

Suddenly, Sunni stiffened and stared at a spot directly behind Eddie's head. "Camden, go to bed now!"

The five year old appeared to pop out of thin air, pouting so fiercely that Ivy thought that his lower lip might fall off. "But Sissy! I wanna tell em!"

"No 'buts' mister! Bed...NOW!"

With that, the little boy shuffled back down the hall, where an obviously irritated Fang stood. He thumped Camden on the butt, making the little five year old move all the faster to where his brothers slept.

Harley cocked her head curiously. "Those boys treat ya more like a mom than a sister."

Sunni made a face, cocking an eyebrow and widening her eyes slightly. "Mom was more interested in seeing how long our dad would tolerate her presence than what her children were doing. I had to step in and be the mom after Jaylon was born. It was likewise with Dad most of the time. Sometimes he'd read us stories and play with us. When he did that he was the coolest dad ever, but that was once in a blue moon."

Ivy detected the note of sadness that crept into Sunni's voice as she continued with the story. "Mom was the one that the one that kept Dad's insanity in check. When she died in the car crasj, Dad snapped."

Harley gasped. "Oh you poor thing!"

Oblivious, Sunni continued, her eyes misting over and showing that she was in another place. "Mom died the day after we adopted Howard. She was coming home from the grocery store and was broad-sided by a semi. The paramedics said she died instantly. Dad didn't come out of his room for a week after that, and when he did he wasn't the same. Dad was...distant. He would disappear for days at a time into the lab and left me to take care of the boys on my own."

Eddie was silent. He knew what it felt like to be neglected and abused. It was scarring to say the least. No wonder this girl was on edge all the time. What said next made Eddie's blood freeze.

"Then the experiments started."

The stunned man could feel Ivy stiffen next to him. She had first-hand experience when it came to being experimented on, and it had made her crazy.

"It was a week after Mom died and Dad asked Eli if he could come down to the lab with him. I didn't think anything of it at the time. I just thought that Dad was finally moving on and healing. But when Eli came back he was...buzzing. He was moving so fast and he couldn't stop. He was crying and crying...and Dad dragged Gabe down to the lab just fifteen minutes later."

"When he came back, Gabe kept multiplying himself. First there was two, then four, then ten. He finally managed to get all his clones to disappear, but the damage was done. My brothers were mutants and there was nothing I could do to help them. As the weeks passed, Dad took Jaylon and Camden down. When Jaylon came back, he came back flying and I found out that Camden was invisible when he gave me a hug without me being able to see him."

"I yelled. I screamed. I threatened. Nothing worked to change Dad's mind. He went on to Jasper. The poor kid busted through a wall trying to get to me. Then came Hayden; spitting fire the entire time he was crying. Singed my eyebrows and charred my hair, but I didn't care. That was the last straw. I told Dad that if he tried anything with Howard or me, I was calling the police. That stopped him for about three weeks, but then he went at it again."

"Dad didn't make it easy on me. I figured out what he was doing when I went through the house and checked on the boys at five in the morning. Howard was gone and I was furious. By the time I got down there, it was too late. Dad had already started the process and there was nothing I could do to stop him. I tried to talk to him; make him see reason. But again, nothing worked. Howard came out and smacked the table and made it regenerate and turn back into a living piece of wood. Dad was exstatic, but I was fuming. I told him that I was calling the police.

"That was the worst thing I could do. Dad snapped and slammed me onto the table. He mutated me too, and turned me into...well you know. I was so angry and I was so hurt. As soon as that dome came up, I killed him. I killed my Daddy."

By now, Sunni was sobbing, tears running down her face as she drew her knees towards her chest. Harley was crying too, rushing over and enveloping the teenager into a hug. Eddie looked over at Ivy, who was stiff as a board. Tears welled in her eyes as she listened, making her remember the horrible ordeal she had to go through with Jason Woodrue. Eddie turned to her whispering, "Ivy, you okay?"

She didn't respond. The plant villainess started muttering to herself. "It's happening again. How could this happen again?"

"Come here Ivy."

With that, Eddie pulled her into a gentle hug. It was akward for him. Edward Nygma wasn't the one to go to for comfort or hugs, but Ivy really looked like she needed it just then. The green woman didn't even protest like she normally did when Harley hugged her. Ivy simply sat there, staring forward with tears in her eyes.

Harley turned to Ivy, her high pitched voice thick with tears. "Red, can they stay here? Please?"

That seemed to snap Ivy out of it and she sat up, blushing a deep forest green color. She turned to Eddie and muttered, "Thanks Nygma. I needed that."

Eddie shrugged, looking the other way. "No problem."

Turning to Harley, who still held onto Sunni, Ivy added, "Of course they can stay, Harl. I'm not about to kick them out on the street when they didn't do anything."

Harley flashed one of her trademark split-her-face grins and looked down at Sunni, who had actually cried herself to sleep. "So where are we all going to sleep?"

Frowning, Ivy stood and pulled Nygma up with her. "The couch unfolds into a futon, so Nygma could either sleep in here or make a couple of the toddlers come out here and take a guest bedroom. Either way, one of us is going to have to sleep on the floor."

Harley lifted the girl with surprising ease and placed her back down on the armchair she had been sitting in. "Let's go see where the kids are sleeping so we can shift them and see where we can sleep."

"Good idea, Harleen."

With that, the three adults crept back down the halls. They checked in Harley's room first, where they found the babies and Jasper sleeping. The babies were each sleeping on their own little palettes on the floor, covered by blankets and surrounded by pillows. Jasper slept on the bed, a small and tattered stuffed monkey tucked gently in his arms. Snowy slept next to him, curled up against the little boy's back.

Harley nearly let out a squeal of adoration and Eddie smiled at the sight of the snoring little boys. He had to admit, they were all abosolutely melt-your-heart adorable. Ivy simply leaned on the doorframe, watching them sleep for a moment. Just the barest hint of a smile tugged at the corner of her lips, but she managed to convince Harley and Eddie to follow her and see where the other boys were at.

In the next guest bedroom, Jaylon and Camden shared the bed, the younger brother cuddling up to his older counterpart in an attempt to find some form of protection. Fang was curled up at their feet, seemingly asleep, but alert all the same. As soon as Harley stepped into the room, Fang's head shot up and he growled; a warning not to try anything funny with the boys. Harley spoke softly, her tone of voice soothing and calm. "I'm not gonna hurt 'em. I'm just gonna check on em."

The large black wolf calmed down, eyeing Harley as she tiptoed up to Jaylon and Camden. She shifted Camden slightly, placing the little boy in a more comfortable position. Looking back on her friends, Harley smiled and whispered, "Go on guys. I'll sleep here tonight."

"Goodnight Harl."

"Night Red."

With that, Eddie and Ivy went into the master bedroom, walking through the maze of flowers and vines that criss-crossed the floor. Edward nearly stepped on one, but caught himself before he did. Ivy was sure to strangle him if she deemed his actions plant-abusive. They found the twins sprawled on the bed, Steel sleeping in between them. Eli's spikey hair was finally starting to droop, sagging as he tossed and turned in his sleep. Gabe was snuggled close to Steel, holding onto the large iron-grey wolf like a teddy bear.

Ivy and Eddie approached the bed, deciding what to do with the boys. Ivy finally came up with a solution, ordering her babies to create a bed next to the actual bed. Carefully, Eddie lifted Eli off of the bed. Why he had volunteered to do so was beyond him, as Edward Nygma wasn't exactly a weight lifter. Oh so gently, he eased the sleeping nine year old onto the bed of flowers and vines. Content, Ivy lifted Gabe and moved him into the new bed.

Now came the hard part. How were they going to move a sleeping 120 pound wolf without getting shredded? Turns out they didn't have to. Steel awoke, his amber eyes glaring sharply at the villains on either side of his bed. They didn't hear what he muttered in his head as the large wolf bounded off of the bed and leapt into the bed with his human companions.

"Well that was easier than expected."

"You can say that again Nygma."

Eddie turned, retracing his steps through the maze of vines. Ivy's voice floated on the air behind him. "Where are you going?"

"You take the bed. I'll sleep on the futon."

"Well, that's courteous for you Edward."

"I'd normally take the bed, but it's your house and I don't want to end up dead."

With that, Eddie stepped back into the hallway, going down towards the living room where Sunni was currently sleeping on the couch. He smiled as he observed Harley sleeping with Camden, Jaylon, and Fang. The bed was overfilled, but its occupants didn't care. Looking at the clown clock on the nightstand, Nygma realized that it was almost midnight. He shuffled off towards the living room, grabbing a blanket from the floor and flopping down on the couch. He was too tired to care about pulling out the futon. His arm throbbed horribly and he had just had the most reeling experience of his life.

Needless to say, Edward Nygma fell asleep as soon as his head hit the couch pillows.