The Rose and Her Thorns
After another nerve wracking trip, Ivy reached the hospital, parking the Charger out front and running in. She was wearing a plain pair of jeans and a light green blouse, but even the Plain-Jane clothes couldn't truly hide her appearance from all the people in the hospital. Somehow she had forgotten about her green skin and tell-tale red hair, and hadn't bothered to disguise it. Now she was beginning to regret that particular decision.
The nurse that was sitting at the administration desk blanched, shaking as Ivy approached her. "Y-you're not here to hurt us are you?"
Rolling her eyes, Ivy huffed slightly and said, "I'm not going to kill you, so you can quit acting like I'm going to blow up at any moment."
"What're you here for?"
"I'm here to see Edward Nygma. What room is he in?"
Even though her hands were still shaking, the small woman tried to be professional and typed the famous Riddler's actual name in the database. "He in room 502."
Ivy nodded and took off for the elevators, ignoring the stares and heated whispers that resounded through the stale air. The antiseptic smell made her nauseous, but still she pressed further into the hospital, rising to the third floor. Edward had been moved from intensive care to a regular room, but the villainess was still nervous about seeing him.
He saved her life. Those bullets were intended to land squarely in the middle of her chest, but instead Eddie had taken them. Now he was lying in a hospital bed, probably out cold and high on a morphine drip. The sound of the brass hitting his body still resounded in her mind, making Ivy cringe slightly. The hallways seemed to blur together, forming a solid wall of white that was only penetrated by the stark black letters that were on the rooms.
500. 501. Finally, here was 502. Silently, she crept in the room, feet not making a sound on the polished tile. Tears threatened to spring to life once again as Ivy gazed on Eddie's sleeping form. Bandages were wrapped tightly around his chest, gauze pads clearly visible under the meshy bindings. An IV fed painkillers into his left arm and an nasal canula helped the injured man force oxygen into his lungs.
The sight was pitiful to say the least. This man had been awake, healthy, and strong not six hours ago; now he was lying unconscious in a hospital bed. Like the mythical elves of Middle Elves, Ivy crept closer to the bed. She pulled up a chair and sat on his right side, grasping his hand gently and stroking it with her thumb. The skin was warm, much to Ivy's pleasure, and soft to the touch. Eddie's face relaxed slightly as she rubbed his skin, perfectly smoothing over his cheekbones.
The hospital chair was hard-backed and uncomfortable, forcing Ivy to shift constantly in her quest to find the perfect resting position. She soon gave up, resorting to leaning forward and resting her head against the injured Riddler's arm. His breath was constant and soothing, lulling Ivy into a sleepy stupor. She tried to keep her eyes open. She really did. It was impossible though, the poor woman had been through a living nightmare. A good sleep was just what she needed.
Dawn~December 5th
In the next few hours, numerous doctors and nurses entered the room, checking on the progress of their patient and trying with all their might not to wake Ivy up. Pratitioners of medicine they may be, but they really didn't want to have to use that knowledge treating themselves. Sunlight was soon peeking through the plastic blinds, streaming into the room and landing on Eddie's face.
A grunt sounded in the small room. It didn't wake Ivy up, but it was enough to make her stir slightly. Eddie opened his eyes, squinting and trying to focus on his rather bland surroundings. He looked left. All he could see there was white and grey, nothing discernable through the funky psychadelic effect that his medication was having on him at that particular moment. The same thing could be said about what was directly in front of his face. Fuzzy images of bland grey's and whites assaulted the injured man's tender eyesight, making him squint before returning to his quest to find color.
Eddie was successful when he looked to his right. Bright red hair was there, cutting sharply through the bland colors that he had witnessed previously. The silky strands shone in the light like a copper penny, capturing the somewhat high man and not allowing him to look away. Through the carroty mass Eddie could see a face. It was a beautiful face, with flawless skin and delicately carved features. Wait.
The skin was green. Green skin. Where had he seen that before? Then it hit him. Ivy.
The previous night's events came back to him in a rush, shooting sharp spikes of pain into the Riddler's brain.
It was dark. Sunni and a lot of wolves were absolutely destroying the goons of Two-Face and Joker. Blood was everywhere, coating every surface that he could see with crimson. The liquid was sickeningly sweet smelling, nearly making him gag as he and Ivy were swept off to the side. For once Batman was on their side, actually protecting them as the horrible fight continued. Eli and Zsasz were duking it out, the boy kicking the crap out of the psychopathic killer.
There was shouting and screaming and howling all around him, so he tried to block it out. Ivy clung onto him silently. She was a brave woman, but right now her body was shaking hard. He held her close, hoping that she would find some comfort from the simple gesture. Sunni had cornered Joker on his dais, her voice growling out over the now silent air.
Fear; he could feel it pulsing through him and Ivy both. Sunni wasn't that sweet girl that they had taken care of any more. She was something else in this state, something that was much more powerful and deadly. That power now rang through the air as she ordered Harley to move. The harlequin wouldn't budge, though, and she simply sat on Joker's lap. Thankfully, her boyfriend took it upon himself to dispose of her, uncerimoniously dropping her to the floor.
The conversation that followed buzzed idly through his head as he watched. Something was up. He didn't know what, but Joker was planning something. It hit him as soon as the clown pulled out a pistol and aimed it at Ivy. He had a split second to react, but he moved anyways. He put himself in the path of the bullets, pushing Ivy backwards as three shots rang out.
Pain radiated through his chest, spreading like fire as the bullets crashed in his body. It was horrible. He fell backwards, gasping for breath and coughing up blood. He couldn't breathe. Ivy was holding him, stroking his hair and whispering that it was going to be alright. Something close to amusement flickered in his mind as he reached up and touched her face. He said something, but the horrible pounding in his ears drowned it out.
Then he was floating...floating...drifting.
A sudden shift from Ivy brought Edward back to the real world. His vision had cleared significantly, and he could now discern the look of agitation on her face. Gently, he reached out and touched her on the shoulder, trying to whisper her name. It came out as a bit of a hiss, but the word was recognizable all the same.
"Ivy."
The woman in question jolted awake, poison green eyes wide and darting around the room. They locked onto him, slighty scared and somewhat confused. Recognition then flashed in their depths and Ivy sighed, smiling with relief.
"Good. You're awake."
"I could say the same thing about you my dear."
Sitting up, Ivy stretched luxuriously. She yawned as she leaned forward, smiling at Eddie. "How are you doing?"
"I've been better. But I've been worse too."
"I see your brains are back. You were babbling nonsense at the factory."
Eddie tried to shrug, but he gasped as pain shot through his torso. Ivy stood, concern evident on her features. She started to call a nurse, but the gasping man stopped her. "No. I'm fine."
He patted the bed beside him as the sharp throbbing in his side faded, lifting an arm gingerly as Ivy sat beside him. Gently, she lay her head against his shoulder, reveling in the tingling sensation she felt as Edward wrapped an arm around her shoulders. The minutes rolled by in silence, but it wasn't at all awkward.
"Ed."
"What?"
"Why do you keep risking your butt for me?"
For a moment, there was another silence, Edward pondering the question. Then came Ivy's answer. "If I didn't keep risking my butt, then you probably wouldn't be sitting with me right now. I couldn't let that happen, now could I?"
Ivy's House; 8:30 a.m.
Sunni scrubbed herself frantically, her skin red and raw from the scalding water and friction. The water was a pinkish color from the blood coming off of her body. The sights and smells made her nauseous, but it was the memory of the previous night that made the tears spring up. She had killed all those men.
It made her feel like a complete monster.
From outside the door, Harley's voice floated into the bathroom. "Sunni, we're going to the hospital to see Riddles. You wanna come?"
The horrible moment of Eddie's injury flashed into the teen's mind. It nearly made her knees crumple up, but she managed to call out, "No. I think I'll stay here."
"Suit yourself."
:0000:
Harley padded away from the bathroom, worried about Sunni. She was so quiet. The boys had been quiet at first, but they had come back around after sleeping. Sunni, however, hadn't slept a wink. The new members of the pack were sitting in the living room with the boys, getting acquainted in their own personal way.
Ziva and Akin sat next to each other, wagging their tales as Jaylon and Camden rubbed their bellies. Thalia was with Fang and Steel as they lay on the couch with Eli and Gabe. Snow was playing with Jasper and the babies, obviously trying to show something to Dae and Lyall. The only wolf that wasn't associating with anybody was Drake. The dark wolf simply sat ridgidly in a corner, staring at the others with those crimson eyes of his.
A sharp whistle attracted the attention of everyone in the room. Once there was silence, Harley called out, "Alright boys! Let's load up and move out!"
That only word that can be used to describe what happened next is this; chaos. The complete and utter disarray that followed the mass of boys was mind-boggling, but the harlequin wouldn't have had it any other way. After about five minutes of squalling, yelling, and general wildness, they were ready to leave for the hospital.
Harley sighed as she leapt in the driver's seat. Boy, were these people going to get a surprise when they came. If she wasn't so childish herself, Harley would almost feel sorry for the hospital staff.