The Rose and Her Thorns

Harley and Sunni stepped outside, the crisp and cold December air causing goosebumps to ripple up their flesh. The older woman shivered, even as Snow pressed her warm furry body up against her legs.

"We chose to wear t-shirts why?"

Sunni laughed, leading the way to the shed were she and the boys had hidden their cars. "Because we're crazy?"

Thoughtful, Harley pressed a finger to her chin and tilted her head, brows furrowing together as she thought it over. "You know what? I do believe that you're correct."

Throwing open the shed door, Sunni laughed and responded, "I'm always correct Harley, just like Ivy is."

The harlequin wasn't paying attention to what the fourteen year old was saying, though, as she was lost in the sight of the three cars. Sunni pulled the tarp off of the Jaguar, revealing the bright purple paint job. The chrome rims shone in the light, throwing off spokes of light that nearly blinded you once you were caught in them. Harley could see the black leather on the inside of the vehicle, absorbing all light and throwing everything into shadow.

"How...?"

Sunni shrugged, opening the door and throwing the keys at Harley. "This is one of Dad's old cars. We swiped three of them from the old mansion, but I couldn't drive the Mustang's stick and neither could Eli or Gabe."

Shaking her head, Harley took the keys from Sunni and slid into the driver's seat. Sunni hopped into the passenger side, followed closely by Snow, who perched herself in the back seat of the car. Firing up the engine, the harlequin roared out of the drive and towards the upper side of Gotham.

"So let me get this straight. You and the twins managed to get back to your old house, swipe three cars, drive them back here, cover them up, and get back in the house before Red and I got home? That just don't seem right!"

Laughing and pulling some dark sunglasses out of the glove compartment, Sunni said, "We're super-powered adolescents that were mutated by our own father. We survived all on our own for one week without destroying Ivy's home and I can speak to wolves. Harl, are you really that surprised that we managed to jack three sports cars?"

Harley opened her mouth to speak, but quickly shut it and concentrated on speeding towards the mall. Smirking, Sunni muttered, "I thought so."

It didn't take long for them to reach the mall, not with Harley Quinn driving an almost brand-new Jaguar. They caught several eyes as they passed several pimps and their posse cars, laughing at the stunned expressions on their faces. Soon they were outside Bergduff's, parking the Jaguar and locking it for for good measure.

Snow bounded out of the back, handing her leash to Sunni with a gentle mouth. Here ya go Sunni!

Thanks Snow.

Harley got a sly look in her eyes before she bolted for the door, calling over her shoulder, "Race ya to the shoe department!"

Taking off with Snow, Sunni shouted, "Hey no fair! You gotta head start!"

Chasing after Harley was the easy part. Getting ahead of her was going to be harder.

Back at Ivy's House

Eddie sat on the couch, an arm wrapped around Camden's shoulders while he watched the NCIS marathon. They had calmed down shortly after Sunni and Harley, lapsing into a silence that made the Riddler slightly worried. It was too calm. Just like the calm before the storm.

Despite his fears that the world as he knew it was about to explode, Eddie remained relaxed. At least the Joker was still in Arkham instead of out on the streets and possibly showing up on the doorstep. As soon as that thought passed through his mind, Eddie's world exploded.

A news flash popped up, a very haggard and worn anchor woman staring at the camera before her. "Breaking News; there has been a mass breakout from Arkham Asylum. Just thirty minutes ago, five highly dangerous convicts busted out, injuring over twenty guards and killing several more. The list of names will be scrolled across your screen and we will keep you updated."

At this, Edward sat bolt upright, staring intently at the names that scrolled across the plasma. What he saw nearly made him pass out with fear. First came the mugshot of Harvey Two-Face, the scarred half of his face leering at the cameraman. Camden jumped at the sight, ducking behind Eddie and burying his face. Then came Killer Croc, his mutated face growling and that inhuman tongue lolling out of his mouth. That made Edward queasy. Croc was known to eat anyone that he came across.

Jaylon now jumped up, backing away from the television and literally flew to curl up next to the twins. Eli was glaring at the names as as they scrolled across the screen, as if the poisonous stare could somehow transport the inmates back to Arkham. Gabe was doing the same thing, only his eyes had gotten that slightly silver tinge they did whenever he was about to multiply himself.

Scarecrow, Victor Zsasz, and finally the Joker scrolled across the screen, chilling Eddie to the bone. Zsasz was bad enough on his own, but combined with Joker, Two-Face, and Killer Croc it was almost apocalyptic in proportions. The babies were now whimpering, hiding their faces as the horrible image of Killer Croc once again ran across the screen. The twins looked like their faces were going to explode and the wolves were even growling at the screen, hackles raised and eyes glowing eerily.

Standing, Eddie turned to the boys. "It's gonna be okay boys. Why don't you go into the kitchen and I'll get Ivy from the kitchen?"

Eli looked at each other and nodded. The punk of the two stood, grabbing Jaylon's hand and gently leading him towards the kitchen door. Camden had long since turned invisible, sneaking off to hide somewhere that the others hadn't searched yet. Gabe merely shrugged, muttering that he wasn't about to waste his life trying to find the boy. Eddie glared at the nine year old, but didn't stop him as he strode into the kitchen with the others. The older man ran a hand through his auburn hair, turning back to the toddlers that were whimpering in the playpen.

Lifting Hayden and Miles, Eddie quickly went into the kitchen, depositing the babies into their highchairs and telling Eli to watch them. Striding through the door, he quickly found himself in the warm and humid air of the greenhouse. The scent of all the flowers hit him like a truck, but it hardly did anything to stop the normally meek Riddler. Sifting through the various smells that assaulted his nostrils, Edward caught the very scent that he had caught that morning; jasmine and orchids.

Grimly, he followed the smell, finding Ivy around towards the back, stroking one of Mel's vines and laughing at the antics of Howard as he squirmed in her arms. Eddie was almost sorry that he had to disturb the perfect peace that the green goddess had achieved as of late. But the situation at hand was to much not to tell her.

A soft cough alerted her to his presence, and Ivy turned, her eyes sparkling. The sight nearly made Eddie's knees buckle, but he managed to stay on his feet. She was just so beautiful, and so happy now.

Curiousity crept into her features and her voice whispered over to his ears, soft and gentle. "What's wrong Edward?"

Sighing, he walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We need to talk."

"What is it?"

"There's been a breakout. Joker sprung Face, Scarecrow, Zsasz, and Croc and now they're on the loose."

Ivy blanched, cradeling Howard closer to her chest. "How...?"

Eddie stepped foreward, pulling Ivy into a gentle hug. "I don't know Ivy. I don't know."

Bergduff's Mall; Hot Topic.

Sunni pulled Harley away from the joke store, dragging her towards Hot Topic with help from Snow. The harlequin whined, her eyes sparkling childishly. "Aw come on Sun! I wanna look at the whoopied cushions!"

"No Harl! You promised that we could go to Hot Topic!"

Harley huffed, but ceased to fight against her younger counterpart. They entered the store, getting curious stares from the customers. Snow was wagging her tail, staring at the world around her happily. What'r they starin' at Sunni?

I think it's you Snow. Not many people have a white wolf as a pet.

Continuing into the store, Sunni found a Gir t-shirt that she really loved, along with some great studded belts that Harley loved. The harlequin said that she loved the colors, and the younger girl could really tell that she did. Eyes sparkling, Harley snagged a bright blue belt from the rack, the rhinestones glittering in the low light of Hot Topic.

"I want this one!"

Nodding, Sunni looked at the price tag, but nearly fell over as she did so. "Harley, do you know how much this thing costs?"

Harley nodded. "Yeah. Don't worry. I've got over six hundred bucks with me. That bank really padded my wallet."

The younger girl laughed, her eyes glinting happily. "Well in that case, get it. I want to grab some collars for the pack and some hair color too."

With that, the pair went off on a shopping spree of the ages. Sunni grabbed three black leather collars for the wolves, each one more intricately designed than the last. Fang's was a deep black, designs patterned into the leather and silver lacing the the ridges. Steel's was equally black, only his had bright silver skulls on it, the phrase, "What's your problem?" also outlined in silver. Snow's collar was different, approved by the small white wolf herself. It was a dark blue color, with lacy snowflakes of rhinestones all around. The buckle was the same color as the rest of the collar, making it the words in it very clear. Three solid black leashes were also bought, along with worn and "bloody" tags for the collars.

Sunni also bought bright acid green, purple, and deep red hair color for herself and Eli. They were rather bright colors, but they suited Sunni and her younger brother. Harley on the other hand bought seven Gir t-shirts, each one showing the adorable little robot with different quotes. Obviously Harley had been watching WAYYYYYY too much Invader Zim. Giggling and laughing with each other the entire time, Sunni and Harley went up to pay.

The goth cashier widened his eyes slightly at the sight of Snow, but managed to keep his cool. "That'll be $235.40."

Harley non-chalantly handed him the cash, grabbing her change and bouncing out of the store with Sunni. They quickly pulled the old collar off of Snow's neck, replacing it with the new one. The small wolf puffed her chest out proudly, wagging her tail and panting.

I like this Sunni!

Sunni chuckled and relayed the message to Harley, who's grin widened even further. She rubbed Snow behind the ears, saying, "You've got taste kid."

Thanks Harley!

"Snow says thanks Harl."

The older blond laughed again, pointing to a music store that was towards the back of the mall. "You wanna go ta Enrique's?"

Sunni's eyes lit up. "Would I! Enrique is like the coolest guy ever!"

"Well come on then!"

With that, they ran off through the crowd, dodging people as they tried to get out of the trio's way. Snow lead the way, her amber eyes bright and happy. It wasn't a long run to Enrique's, so they reached the music store fairly quickly. Before entering though, Sunni gave Snow a mental warning not to touch anything.

Enrique's very particular about his things Snowy. Don't touch anything.

Okey Dokey Sunni.

Smiling, Sunni lead her wolf and Harley into the dimly lit hard rock guitar store. You see, Enrique wasn't your normal music store owner. He only sold instruments, equipment, and music pertaining to hard rock and metal. Needless to say, he was one of Sunni's favorite people in the world.

The Spanish-American man sat behind the counter, smoking a Havana cigar. Shelves of the latest in all heavy metal and hard rock artists lined the walls behind him, the bright designs and dark themes on each one contrasting greatly with the uniquely cheerful man before them. Catching sight of Sunni and Harl, Enrique smiled, politely putting out his cigar.

"Hola Chica! I haven't seen you around here in a while senorita!"

"Hola Enrique! I've been busy lately. But I'm here now, so the past few weeks don't count. Have you met my friend Harley yet?"

Enrique turned his deep brown eyes to stare at Harley, the gaze sharp and intelligent despite his relaxed demeanor. "Do I know you chica?"

Harley shook her head, bright baby blue's looking totally innocent. "No. I've never met you before in my life."

Surprisingly, the statement was true. Enrique and Harley had never met before, but you could be damn sure that he'd seen her on T.V. before. Snow interupted the conversation, standing on her hind legs to get a better look at the store owner.

"Aidios meho! Where did you come from?"

Sunni laughed, explaining that Snow was her pet. Enrique looked at the happy little wolf before softening. Just make sure she doesn't touch any of my stuff. It'll be your head if she does, Sunni."

"I know Enrique. I just want the new Avenged Sevenfold cd."

Turning, the Hispanic man grabbed a dark blue cd, a very scared child in the foreground while a skull Grim Reaper stood in over her. "Nightmare?"

Sunni nodded. "That's the one."

Enrique scanned the small case, ringing her up. "That'll be $25.10."

Paying Enrique, Sunni took her new cd and smiled at him. "Thanks Enrique!"

"Anytime chica! Just don't go looking for trouble."

Harley and Sunni laughed as they exited the store, Snow trotting happily on their heels. "Like I'll ever conform to that statement."

The cheerful atmosphere of the mall suddenly darkened, a scream ringing out from the crowds at the North end of the mall. Through the squalling swarms of people emerged one of the scariest things Sunni had ever seen; it was Killer Croc. Why he was in the mall Sunni would never know, but she'd never forget the awful roar he let out. His bright yellow eyes scanned the swirling mob of people, obviously looking for someone.

Harley clutched Sunni's hand, steering her towards the exit. "Come on! We've gotta get outta' here!"

Croc let out another roar, a name forming amidst the animalistic rage. "HARLEY!"

Snow whimpered, running ahead of Sunni and Harley. Sunni he's scary!

I know Snow. Just keep running!

Unfortunately, Croc caught sight of Harley's characteristic pigtails just as they slipped out of the west exit. "HARLEY!"

The girls ran all the harder, the Jaguar only twenty feet away as Killer Croc crashed through the door. Saliva coated his maw, his muddy and powerful fists clenched into fists as the mutated man locked onto them. "HARLEY!"

Sunni panicked, swiping the keys from Harley, opening and unlocking the car, and slipping into the driver's seat in less than a second. "GET IN HARLEY!"

The harlequin didn't argue. She leapt into the passenger seat, Snow bounding into her lap as they car screamed out of the parking lot. Croc was fast, though, and he was soon on their heels, snapping at the truck of the sports car.

By now, Sunni was beyond furious, everything about her darkening as she clutched the steering wheel. She growled ferally, reminding Harley of the girl that she had first met at Ivy's; wild, dangerous, and not truly in control of what she did. Just as Harley thought this though, Sunni jerked the car to the right quickly, doing a complete 180 and ramming the front end into Croc's face. The giant rolled over the front of the car, thudding across the asphalt for a good 50 feet before coming to a halt.

Again, Sunni gased it, doing another 180 and speeding over Croc. She was going a good 170 through the city, making turns and passes that shouldn't have even been humanly possible. The fourteen year old did it anyways, reaching Ivy's greenhouse in a record ten minutes from uptown. They screamed into the driveway, skidding to a halt that made the tires squall and smoke rise from the concrete beneath them.

Only then did Sunni relax, revealing that she had clutched at the wheel hard enough to make a perfect impression of her hands. Looking over at Harley and Snow, she whispered, "You alright?"

Harley looked like she was about to either cry or hurl, so Sunni answered for her. "Your first ride with me was that bad huh?"

The harlequin nodded, opening the car door and bailing out. Snow followed quickly, her tail tucked between her legs as she followed Harley inside. Sunni sighed. This was SO going to come back and bite her in the butt.

Ivy's house thirty minutes previous...

Ivy sat with Eddie, curled up under his arm as they watched the news channels. The babies were taking a nap in Harley's room, Steel and Fang guarding them carefully. They had finally found Camden, curled up in a corner and crying. Those pictures had terrified him to say the least, so now he was curled safely in Ivy's arms, the green villainess gently stroking his hair as he buried his face in her chest.

Eddie kept a stony faced silence upheld, his arm wrapped protectively around Ivy. This was out of character for him, but it wasn't really bad. It meant that the pompous ass that was the Riddler was giving way to a more caring person. Another news flash popped up on the screen, the anchorman looking extremely disheveled and tired.

"This just in. Killer Croc has been seen terrorizing Bergduff's Mall. Hundreds were sent fleeing into the streets, but Croc was apparently only after one. He chased after a woman named Harley, a girl who was apparently her daughter and a white dog into the parking lot. They are seen here fleeing in a purple Jaguar, only to do a complete turn around and hit Croc head on. Killer Croc was apprehended afterwards, injured but alive. The Jaguar wasn't seen again."

Ivy put a hand to her mouth, trying not to cry as she heard the reporter. It was Harley and Sunni in that Jaguar. How could this happen? They were always so careful? Unable to fight the tears anymore, she placed her face in Eddie's shoulder, the man squeezing her even tighter. Jaylon's voice floated down from where he hovered behind them.

"Ivy, are Sunni and Harley goin' to be okay?"

Taking a deep breath, Ivy calmed herself and responded quietly, "I don't know sweetheart."

Just as she said that, the sound of squalling tires resounded from the driveway, a purple Jaguar screaming into small area behind the house and parking next to the Escalade. It sat there for a moment, but soon Harley came barreling out of it, Snow right on her heels.

Bursting through the doorway, Harley stood in the middle of the living room before whispering, "That was the scariest car ride of my life."