DISCLAIMER: Birds of Prey and its characters are the property of Miller/Tobin Productions, Warner Brothers and DC comics. No infringement intended.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks to: My big thanks to Nightstalker that always help me in the beta and giving me ideas. You are wonderful friend.
ARCHIVING: Only with the permission of the author.

Siren's Call
By Jaguarin

Part Five

The place was cold. It was unnatural; after all it was thirty meters underground. She sat inside an air conditioning duct working on a control panel. Some wires were connected to a small device in her hand. People would think she was a nerd working with cybernetic. She'd learned a few things from Barbara, but she preferred the physical action.

Security was high in this place. It had to be to hold criminals like The Joker, Clayface and now Harley Quinzel. The last time she had been here was to visit Clayface, not a pleasant memory. She had discovered he had killed her mother and that Barbara had hidden it from her.

It was one of the few times she'd been really angry at the redhead.

Her thoughts were cut short by the sound of a door opening. She looked through a grill below her and noticed a tall guard walking in the corridor below her, then exiting through an iron door. A light in her palm blinked. She got it. Finally. She had hacked the security camera inside Quinzel's cell. A plexiglas cell was in the middle of the room, inside of which was just a chair and a table with few books. The blonde sat in the chair with a book in her hands. She had her left leg crossed over her right. She had strange eyeglasses on her eyes to prevent her from hypnotizing anyone.

Helena taped four minutes and programmed the device to block the original image and loop her four minutes over and over. Helena took out another small box. It was a wonder, Barbara had invented it and worked on anything to find secret codes. She chose another cable in the control panel and connected it to the device. A series of fast numbers appeared on the screen until finally the code appeared. She had disabled the electronic alarms inside Quinzel's cell. She could now open the grill and get inside. She crawled to the cell and kicked the grill to open it.

The noise made Quinzel turn her head. The dark vigilant landed smoothly inside the room, glaring at the blonde on the other side of the plexiglas.

"Well, well," the blonde said, amused, closing her book, "look who's here, my lovely Helena Kyle."

How much did she hate this woman? Hard to say. She had never felt so much hate for anyone. She felt her eyes morphing to feral.

"I'm glad you have finally come to visit me. I'm feeling really alone here." Quinzel lowered her book and put it on the table. She smiled at the brunette.

Helena walked toward the cell with firm steps. "What is your game now, Quinzel?"

"Me?" The blonde put her right hand over her chest in a dramatic posture. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm not in the mood for your games."

"Why are you so aggressive? I miss our little sessions Helena, the time that we shared…"

The brunette fixed her eyes on Quinzel and asked coldly, "Did you hypnotize me?"

"Helena, please, how can you even ask that?"

"Did you hypnotize me?"

The blonde smiled and put her hands on her knee, "Do you want to talk? We can talk… don't worry, it's a free session."-

"I don't want a fucking session! I want the truth! You are messing with my mind!" The brunette clenched her teeth.

The blonde stood up and walked toward her slowly, moving her body like a cobra preparing to strike. She stopped in front of the glass and smiled at the brunette.

"What do you want to know?"

"Did you hypnotize me?"

"I did, yes, I remember it… and it was so annoying how Barbara Gordon broke the spell and destroyed our partnership. We were a great team."

"Harleen, you know what I'm talking about."

The mad woman laughed and turned her back to Helena, walking to the middle of the room. Blue eyes followed each movement, she was trying to play one of her twisted games again.

"About which part do you want to talk, Helena?" Harleen asked, suddenly. "The part where you climax when I fuck you or the part when you enjoy fucking me with your soft tongue?"

Helena felt a shiver down her back; how did she know…? The only way she could know was if she really was fucking with her mind.

The blonde turned and smirked. "Yes," she said in a soft voice, "I know all about your dreams and I know how much you enjoyed it… How you gave yourself to me…" Amused, Quinzel walked toward her again, "Oh, come on Helena, don't tell me you've forgotten my kisses, my fingers touching you… how you howled in pleasure when I took you on my desk that night?"

"Damn bitch…" Helena growled, hitting the glass of the cell. She was so angry that she didn't feel the pain when she hit it with her still injured hand.

The blonde laughed. The brunette stepped back, grumbling and clenching her fist. She tried to contain her anger. She knew she could break the glass, but that was what Quinzel wanted.

"You enjoy those dreams, Helena" Quinzel said. "You, climaxing in my arms. You, giving yourself to me…."

"I´ll never give myself to you!!" the dark woman shouted, stepping toward her.

Quinzel crouched in front of her and smiled. "Have you considered that maybe your dreams are not just nightmares?" She stood up slowly and turned her back to the brunette again. She stopped abruptly and turned her head back. "Have you considered that your nightmares are be so much are more than just a dream? That your 'nightmares,' as you call them, are, in reality, memories´?

Helena froze. Her mind tried to process those words. Her face turned pale. No. It couldn't be what she was saying.

"You gave yourself to me." The petite doctor turned and moved toward Helena.

"You are lying." The brunette clenched her teeth.

"You did it, Helena…" Harleen closed her eyes and with her hands she caressed slowly her own arms. "I can still feel you touching me… me touching you…. Our bodies moving in rhythm."

"Never."

"No? Well... Do you remember what happened during the hours that you were under my spell? You brought me the disks to disable the security system of the Clock Tower. And after that…" the mad doctor smirked "…we had a superb time fucking on my desk."

"You are a lying crazy bitch!" Annoyed, the brunette jumped against the cell and hit it using both fist. The glass trembled under the strength of the impact.

The alarm went off. A cage fell around Quinzel´s cell. It was an additional security system to prevent escape.

The blonde laughed again and looked at her mirthfully. "I am in your head every time you dream; I can awaken your deepest and darkness thoughts; your most intimate desires…"

Helena put her hands around the bars. "I'll kill you, I promise it…." She stepped back, the alarm had alerted all the security guards and they would be there soon.

"Not after what we shared, kitten. Can you remember Helena?" Quinzel whispered. "How you fucked me hard and rough?"

"You are sick…"

"You taste wonderful, Helena, I'd love to share another night with you, anytime you want… my wild cat."

"Fucking bitch!" The brunette turned and stormed toward the open grill.

Quinzel giggled in delight.

"You will be mine again, anytime I want, Huntress!!" she shouted. "You were mine, you gave yourself to me!! And you can't change it! You are mine!"

Helena closed the grill and crawled as far away as possible from the psychopath.

"You are mine!" she heard Quinzel's voice in her head. It was as if the woman was next to her. The words echoed in her head, hitting her brain over and over.

"It's too late to be awake." Dinah yawned, walking toward Barbara in her pajamas, she was thirsty and had wandered out of bed. She was surprised to find Barbara working at the Delphi.

"Helena started a big fight in a bar," The redhead said, focused on the computer screen.

"Helena? Was she drunk?" The teen stood behind her, peeking over her mentor's shoulder.

"No, something is wrong." The redhead pressed a button to zoom in the image.

"Wrong?"

"Look here." Barbara pointed at the image of the brunette, "She is sitting there watching the people dancing at the club."

"Yes, she looks fine."

"Now look," she forwarded the image and stopped it after a few seconds, "here, she is leaning back on the sofa and doesn't move… for almost five minutes."

"Five minutes? You must be wrong."

"No, look the time on the video screen. She seems to be lost, but I don't know where. Then, she stand up like she's surprised and that is when she starts the fight."

"She didn't attack anyone, she was breaking the mirrors. Where is she now?"

"No idea, she has her GPS off."

Dinah leaned in and watched the screen. "Five minutes without move? Was she sleeping or what?"

The redhead turned to look at the blonde. "That's it!"

"What's it?" Dinah asked, surprised.

Barbara pressed some buttons and zoomed in on the brunette's face. She observed it carefully. "Dinah look, she has her eyes half-opened, looking nowhere."

"Maybe she was drunk, Barbara, seriously."

"No, she couldn't have gotten drunk between the time I left her and here, just fifteen minutes and all she has is a glass of scotch."

The Delphi alarm sounded again. Barbara raised her head.

"Arkham."

"What?"

"It's Arkham." Barbara wheeled toward the next computer. She typed on the keyboard and checked the information appearing on the screen. The older woman felt her stomach lurch. "Quinzel's cell."

"Oh man." Dinah said, her face paling. "Did she escape?"

"No, seems as if someone tried to help her escape. Give me a minute. Check the police reports."

"Okay," the blonde said, typing at the keyboard.

Snow fell outside; white snow lakes hit the window softly.

Helena arrived at her place. She was so tired, she stood up in the middle of her room and closed her eyes, feeling her knees weak. She let herself fall to the floor.

"You are mine." Harleen's words drilled into her mind.

She grabbed her head in her hands and tried to control her body. It was shaking. The dream from the bar came to her mind. she could feel Quinzel's mouth on her breast.. biting, caressing, sucking her soul. And her hands touching her, making her tremble in pleasure and lust, forcing her to do what she didn't want.

Quinzel had asked the other to woman kiss her, touch her; and she couldn't refuse it. She could only obey, follow her voice. Then, she could see the other woman's head between her legs, moving in rhythm, arms around her thighs while her lips were tasting her…

Have you considered that your nightmares are be so much are more than just a dream? That your 'nightmares,' as you call them, are, in reality, memories´?

She must be lying. It was sick, so sick. She extended her hand and pulled the trashcan close to her bed. She put her head inside and threw up. After a few minutes, she sat with the basket next to her.

…Do you remember what happened during the hours that you were under my spell?

Scared.

She was scared.

Scared of the power the woman had and her control over her. Scared that everything she'd said was true…that she really had….

She was a damn puppet with her emotions being controlled by that bitch. Every time she closed her eyes, her dreams were about Quinzel fucking her, again, again and again…

She felt more contractions in her stomach and hurried to grab the basket again.

The young woman emptied her stomach, and waited a few seconds, trying to recover her breath.

"Fuck!" she growled angrily, feeling helpless.

The nightmares kept haunting her; she wanted them to stop. She hugged herself and curled up into a ball. She was naked in front of Quinzel. She had never felt so vulnerable since her mother's death. She hated Quinzel so much. Barbara told her those feelings were not good, that they killed a person's soul slowly, but she couldn't avoid it. Barbara never hated, no one; not even the mad woman that had taken the life of the man she loved. She had difficult days after it, she had cried for hours.

Wade had brought light into her life, the possibility of once again feeling like a woman.

Quinzel had stolen that, and Helena never heard Barbara say "I hate that woman."

Slowly, she opened he eyes and stared at the far wall, Barbara's face came into her view. Only thinking of he redhead made her feel secure, relaxed. Whenever she felt alone, hurt or scared, she went to her. She always felt safe with her. Barbara was her home, her refuge, her life…

When Barbara was with Wade, Helena had felt her soul dying slowly every day. Every smile, every caress hurt like hell. She had contained herself to avoid pouncing on him and taking him down. She couldn't, he was Barbara's happiness, and Barbara's happiness was more important than anything.

She loved her so much, she could love her much more than anyone else; she loved her more than her own life. For that reason she hid her deepest feelings at the bottom of her heart. Barbara could -

never know. The redhead had easily accepted that Helena was gay. The brunette had feared for such a long time that she would be disappointed, but Barbara had reacted well.

Helena needed her so much and she didn't want to lose her. She was the air she breathed, without her, she would die. But after this…

She didn't know what to do; she was confused, she was not sure what was real or not.

Now, in this moment, feeling so scared, so weak, she wanted to run to Barbara's arms. She wanted feel the security that she only felt in her arms. And she couldn't.

She squeezed her eyes shut, feeling tears forming in her eyes. She wanted so much for Barbara to be there at that moment, comforting her. She sobbed, feeling tears running down her cheeks.

Barbara would be terribly disappointed if she told her the truth about the nightmares. She had asked her to trust her and she had failed. She kept silent because she was so ashamed of those dreams; of the way she felt her body responding. And now, the possibility that she was remembering and not dreaming scared her like hell.

She couldn't stop crying, she felt so alone, so dirty. She loved the older woman so much. It was so hard to feel so much love for someone and keep it inside. She wanted to cover her with flowers and kisses, to take care of her day and night... or just hug her and feel her warm body next to her….

"The police still don't have any idea what happened. She can't break the glass from inside."

"The impact is from the outside?" the redhead asked.

"I've never seen anything like this," Commissioner Gordon explained, as he moved to the side to let his daughter wheel inside Quinzel's cell at Arkham, "Someone hit the plexiglas cell, and didn't leave any evidence. The guards moved Quinzel out of her cell immediately. They are investigating the incident and will repair the glass."

Barbara had called her father and met him at the Asylum. She was worried about the possibility of Quinzel escaping; the woman was totally insane. Jim Gordon was still a powerful man in town. He easily got permission to examine scene.

Barbara checked the reports on the Delphi after the alarms went off. They were disconcerting and she wanted to know exactly what had transpired. When the guard arrived at the mad woman's cell, the security cage was down and the wall her cell was cracked.

Cracked from the outside, but there was no trace of anyone.

The Commissioner knew about his daughter's skills as a detective, she had helped him solve some cases. It was not strange for her to show interest for Quinzel or for her to ask him to get her access. The criminal had killed her boyfriend months ago.

"Someone was in here... that is a fact, Dad. The video cameras didn't catch anything?" Barbara asked, wheeling toward the cell. The break looked like a spider web.

"No," he followed her. "The person who was here was very smart. He taped over the original video with another image. When he was inside the room no one could see him."

"Just Quinzel." The redhead stopped in front of the broken glass, her eyes fixed in the impact zone.

"Exactly, but she won't say a word."

"Fingerprints?"

"No."

"The Plexiglas was hit with a small object," Barbara said, examining the area around her. She looked for something that could have made the crack, but there was nothing.

"Yes, and it was hit hard, but we can't find anything." Her father waved his hands, frustrated. This was a crazy case. It was as if a ghost had been inside. They couldn't find any clues. "It's disturbing. We can't figure out who was here or how he got inside or what he wanted."

"Him?"

"We think it was a man."

Barbara frowned and extended her hand toward the glass but didn't touch it. "I don't think so." Green eyes fixed her attention on the glass broke.

"Why?"

"Could be a woman… or a young boy." The redhead put a plastic glove on her hand.

Jim observed her with interest. She closed her fist and moved it toward the glass, putting it over the main break. She pulled her hand back and then moved it again toward the glass.

"Looks like it was a fist," she finally said.

"Interesting. Yes, it could be," he acknowledged in surprise, leaning toward the glass. "But the fist was small… the strength of the impact was… unbelievably strong. Only a person with superhuman force could do it."

"Maybe a meta-human."

For him, it was not strange to hear about meta-humans. Being a close partner of Batman had made him aware of the strangest and most dangerous criminals, from animal hybrids like Killer-Croc and Man Bat to powerful criminals like Poison Ivy and Catwoman. It was curious as to how his daughter had taken own one of the most famous criminals in Gotham City. He noticed Barbara was staring at the grill of the air conditioner duct on the ceiling, almost fifteen feet above them. She wheeled toward it.

Gordon read her mind. "…Yes, the air conditioner duct, but it's too small for even an average sized man…" he walked behind her, "but not for a meta with special powers or a small woman. The grill was closed perfectly when the guards arrived, no ropes, no signs of entry. They checked inside."

"Someone was here, Dad. The person hacked the cameras, entered using the air conditioner ducts and cracked the Plexiglas. A person with super-powers or abilities could do it. The meta was fast and agile. For how long was the video signal blocked?"

"Almost 10 minutes. What was he looking for? Was he trying break her out?"

"I don't think so, it would be a stupid way to do it."

"What was he looking for?"

Barbara remained silent for long seconds and an idea came to her mind. She turned to face her father.

"May I talk with her?"

The door opened. Barbara wheeled inside the cell. It was similar to the one that was under investigation. What was Quinzel planning? Someone had been inside her cell. If she was planning something, Barbara needed to know. Quinzel hated them and wanted nothing more than to destroy them in any way possible.

She maneuvered her chair, feeling uncertain about what she would face. She hadn't seen Quinzel since the trial after the attack on the Clock Tower, in which she had been a witness. Quinzel was locked up for life, but knowing her, she was not going to accept it so easily.

The evil woman sat in a chair with her back to the redhead, reading a book. She was wearing the security eyeglasses.

Barbara was certain the woman heard her enter, but she didn't move. The redhead stopped behind her and leaned back in her chair.

"Hello, Harley," she said softly.

"Well, well… Barbara Gordon, what a surprise," Quinzel said, closing her book.

"I'm sorry I can't say the same."

"Always so hostile!" Quinzel said, feigned insult, she stood up. "It hurts me, really." She put a hand over her chest and turned to see the redhead.

Barbara took a deep breath and looked at her without say a word.

The blonde put a finger over her mouth thinking. "Well, then...let me guess why you are here… Do you need a therapy session?"

"No, I'm sorry, I have no use for an insane woman as a therapist."

"Helena didn't think the same, she enjoyed the time we shared, talking about her life… her secrets and yours too..."

The redhead sighed. "I'm not here for that, Quinzel, you know it."

"Oh, please, it's Harley -- Harley Quinn It's a shame, it would be such a pleasure help you… It's not easy help an angry orphan to grow up, and even more so if you are crippled. Tell me, how did you feel when you knew you would never be able to walk again?"

Barbara didn't blink. She expected this of the mad woman.

"How was it? Tell me, how did it feel to know that you would be tied the to a chair for the rest of your life?" Quinn crossed her arms and looked at her. "How did it feel to know that you would never be able to stand up and be Batgirl?"

"Don't worry, Harley." She was not going to give her the pleasure of seeing her hurt. "My life is just different, but I enjoy it just as much as when I used to walk. I have discovered new and marvelous things."

The blonde laughed "Maybe you want talk about your boyfriend? His soft lips? So sweet and tender. I still remember that cute little trickle of blood running down the side of his cheek when he died."

Barbara bit her lips. Quinn was trying to make her lose control. She was not going to give her the satisfaction. "I want know what happened last night in your cell."

Quinzel laughed and turned her back to the redhead, looking up to the ceiling. "I thought you would love to know about the last moments of your boyfriend…. Anyone would be curious to know the last moments of their lover. Because he was your lover, right? Helena told me."

The redhead ignored her comment. Years of practice allowed her push down all emotion. "What happened last night?"

The blonde cocked her head, examining her curiously. "Do you want to know who was here last night?"

"I want to know what happened."

"Why?" Quinzel smirked, crossing her arms.

"I want to be sure that you will remain here for a very long time."

"At least you are honest, Barbara Gordon. I'm impressed. Well, first, I had my dinner -- the chef has improved his skills, by the way. Maybe I should invite you someday."

"Thanks."

"Oh… but you were asking about last night…. So, then, I re-read my favourite book." The blonde lifted the book and caressed the cover. "A pretty interesting book, Bluebird: Deliberate Creation of Multiple Personality by Psychiatrists by Dr. Colin Ross Have you heard of it? It is just fascinating."

"Yes, it's a book where a psychiatrist, Dr. Ross provides proof, based on 15,000 pages of documents obtained from the CIA under the Freedom of Information Act, that the Manchurian Candidate is fact, not fiction. He describes the experiments conducted by psychiatrists to create amnesia, new identities, hypnotic access codes, and new memories in the minds of experimental subjects."

"You always impress me."

"Thanks… So, about last night, you were saying?"

"You are so impatient, Gordon. Tell me… you really don't know who was here?" the blonde asked in amusement as she crossed her left arm. She rested her right elbow on it and then rested her chin on her index finger. "So… again the person that you think is your best friend betrays your confidence. She doesn't trust you… Oh Barbara, how could it be?"

The redhead watched her, unmoving. Quinn smile got bigger.

"Would it flip a switch, somewhere deep in your psyche, to know that Helena was here?"

Helena.

It struck her like a blow to the back of her head.

Helena was the one who had been in Quinzel's cell last night. Surely, they had argued and the dark haired woman lost control and cracked the glass of the cell in anger, but why? Why hadn't she told her about it? What had Helena discovered that had made her feel like she had to sneak in to see Harley without telling her? Many questions flowed in her mind.

"And I guess, then, that you don't know about her nightmares…." The petite woman smirked.

"I know about her nightmares." She tried remaining calm. So, Quinzel was involved in this. The brunette hadn't told her the entire truth. The dreams that were disturbing her young partner were increasing; she was acting weird, she remembered when Helena had attacked her at her home and the disturbance at the bar.

"You know about her nightmares…" the blonde said ironically, pacing slowly around her cell, "You do you know what they're about? Or is she lying to you?"

"She never lies to me."

"So, tell me about her dreams…. Tell me,.. tell me if you know that every time she closes her eyes, all she can see is me fucking her?"

This time the redhead felt a cold shiver running through her body and she couldn't hide her surprise.

"Yes… I see you didn't know…" The mad woman laughed in delight. "She can only dream of us fucking, fucking and fucking."

"You are lying…." The redhead clenched her teeth, her hands tightly gripping the arms of her chair.

Quinn stood in front of the former Batgirl, grinning. "She is mine. It's too late, Barbara Gordon, you can't do anything for her."

"Don't be so sure, Quinzel." Barbara needed all of her control to not show any emotion. Helena was in an enormous amount of danger and Barbara needed as much information as she could get.

"She was mine once, she is mine now, my voice is a Siren's call that she can't refuse."

"You won't win, Quinn. We defeated you once and we will do it again."

"She is lost, Oracle, and you know it." The blonde pointed at her. "She can't handle it by herself any more, she has no control of her dreams. I'll drive her mad… mad with guilt and uncertainty." The blonde kneeled on the floor to face the older woman. "How about if I told you she was mine once? That she cried out in pleasure in my arms? We fucked… Did you know it?"

This time Barbara couldn't hide her surprise.

Quinzel licked her index finger obscenely. "I love her taste; she loves feeling me inside her. How does it feel, Barbara Gordon? How does it feel to know your best friend betrayed you… again... to your worst enemy?"

"Helena would never do it."

Quinzel laughed and stood up. "We did it! Do you want to know when? When she was hypnotized a few months ago, when she gave me the discs with the all the Clock Tower information, we fucked on my desk. She is wild, passionate…" She closed her eyes and lifted her head, hugging herself. "I still can feel her hands running over my body, her lips on mine… Oh heavens, she is fantastic, an untamed animal in bed. My perfect mate."

Barbara clenched her fist in anger. "I don't believe it. I will never believe it." She was playing with Helena's mind. Now she understood the young woman's behavior; Quinn was making her believe things that were not real.

"We fucked, Barbara, and not just once… multiple times, but she doesn't remember it… she thinks they are nightmares… but, no, they are memories." The blonde smiled, feeling she had won this time. She knew how hurt Barbara would be, knowing that the young crime fighter had been controlled in that way "She dropped in yesterday to ask me about the dreams… I told her they weren't dreams… She is remembering what happened. When she was with me, I knew you would break the hypnosis sooner or later, so I worked with her subconscious and I created a bond between us… I trigger those memories. I'm controlling her mind, I'm making her crazy, you can't stop it. She was mine… and she will be mine again"

"Damn crazy bitch, never…" Barbara said angrily. She would never forgive her if her words were true. Had she really taken advantage of Helena in her hypnotic state? Yes, she would do it. She was insane.

The blonde smiled, noticing the redhead's face had paled. "How does it feel, Barbara? Knowing I stole your boyfriend's life? And now, knowing that I am stealing the person closest to you? The person whose heart belongs to you?"

Barbara stared at her.

"I've stolen the one who loves you again…" Quinzel grinned, seeing the redhead's face. "You didn't know? Oh God!" She clapped her hands. "I'm so enjoying this moment… She loves you, Barbara, she dreams of you, all her life is around you. She's like a love sick puppy waiting for you to see her."

"You are lying…" Barbara muttered.

"No, I'm inside her mind, I know what she thinks, what she wants. My meta powers have been increasing. She will never be yours. You will suffer, watching me destroy her slowly."

"That will never happen, Quinn. I'll stop you. I promise you that."

"Never. You can't do it. She will destroy you and, then… I'll destroy her."

Helena felt angry, tired. She still couldn't believe Harley's words. She lowered her head, feeling the hot drops of water falling on her back. She was lying, she must be lying.

She hit the wall with her fist.

She needed to find a way to end Quinzel's control over her thoughts. It was affecting her, she was dreaming while awake and it was causing a lot of trouble. She had hurt almost hurt Barbara and had created mayhem in the bar.

They were nightmares. Just nightmares.

They couldn't be real memories. She put her hands against the cool shower tiles.

She was lying.

"You are so tense…."

Helena turned and found Quinzel standing behind her. How could she…?

"Damn bitch…." She growled and raised a hand to hit her.

"No, easy, kitten." The blonde took her fist in her hand. "You don't want to do that…"

The brunette froze in her place.

"You can't fight me," Quinzel said

Helena stared at her; her eyes locked on the blonde's. Why couldn't she react and just rip her head off?

"You want me…" The petite woman moved closer and licked her cheek. "You want me." Quinzel turned her head and kissed her deeply; Helena kissed her back.

The blonde moved closer still and Helena felt Quinzel's naked skin against her own and lost herself in the sensations coursing through he body.

The mad woman moved back, smiling, and turned the brunette gently against the wall. Her hands worked up a lather and gently began to massage it into the other woman's back, up and down, slowly. Helena stared down at the swishing water. She leaned her head against the walls and tried to concentrate on the coldest of the shower tiles. She tried to think of anything except Harleen. The sensations flowing over her body were making her hot.

She felt the blonde's hand move around her waist. The blonde rested her cheek against her and whispered: "Do you want me to stop?"

Helena breathed heavily, she could feel her skin against her own. Her voice low she responded the only way she could, "Please, Don't stop."

"You love this." Quinzel smiled, she felt Helena shivering when her hand washed her belly, then, her hand got higher and began to massage just under her breast.

Helena felt her clit throbbing. She could feel the blonde's lips on her neck as her hand moved toward her breast. She gasped feeling Harley's free hand on its way down her belly towards her pubis.

"We always will be together, you are my mate." Harley smiled, as she continued to kiss the other woman's neck. She touched the brunette's fine curls and teased her for long seconds. The brunette began to rock her hips back and forth, feeling naked skin against her, hard nipples against her back. It was too much.

Suddenly, Helena turned and they kissed. Quinzel pressed her against the wall and moved her hand through Helena's messy hair, grabbing a handful. She tugged at it roughly as she kissed her. Her other hand played between Helena's legs. She parted the pouting labia and slipped two fingers into the brunette. Slowly; she began to move them in and out.

Helena growled, wrapping her arms around the other woman and biting her shoulder. The feeling had numbed all her senses. She couldn't breathe. Blood pounded through her ears and she could no longer hear anything other than her own labored breath.

Helena snapped her eyes open, she was lying on the floor of her apartment. The first thing she saw was Quinzel. She pushed herself back.

The blonde lifted a hand to her.

"Don't you dare touch me…" the brunette growled, feral eyes threatening the woman who was trying to get close to her.

"Helena, easy, it's me…. Helena, you know I would never hurt you."

Images flashed in the brunette's head, she and Quinzel, touching, tasting. The brunette pushed herself back with her feet, only to be stopped by the wall. She didn't want to look at her face; she knew that if she looked at her again, she would be lost, lost in her spell. She closed her eyes and covered her face trying to get those images out of her mind.

"Hel, focus on my voice," Barbara said gently. After her unsuccessful attempts to reach the brunette over comms and on the phone, she'd gone out to look for Helena at her apartment. She found her lying on the floor, unmoving, staring vacantly and totally lost. The redhead had moved out of her wheelchair and had to practically slap her cheek to wake her, but Helena still seemed to be dreaming.

Worried, she noticed the younger woman was shaking. She dragged herself slowly to where Helena was curled up against the wall.

"Helena… it's me, please concentrate on my voice, I need you to wake up."

"No…." The young woman tightened in on herself even more.

"Breathe, take a deep breath… breathe and calm down…" She noticed Helena's trembling began to diminish. "That's it, that's it."

Helena was numb, drained. She opened her eyes slowly and stared at the floor, still afraid to look up.

Barbara watched her carefully. She looked tired, with big rings under her eyes. She noticed blue eyes finally lifting to look at her.

"Barbara?" she mumbled.

"Are you all right?"

The young woman nodded. She felt so tired, mentally exhausted. She wanted all the nightmares to stop, so she could sleep and rest. She was losing the control of everything. The last thing she remembered was walking into her apartment after her shift at the bar… and then… she thought she had gone to take a shower and Quinzel…. It was all a dream.

She felt tender fingers caressing her back and she jerked back at the touch. Barbara looked at her, startled.

"Please, don't touch me…" she mumbled. She needed to organize her ideas, her thoughts. Everything was so confusing.

"Let me help you," Barbara requested softly.

"I'm okay…"

"No, you are not okay. Please… let me help you."

Helena raised her head just enough to find tender green eyes regarding her. She felt so ashamed and she lowered her eyes. She couldn't face her. "I'm okay… I just fell asleep... and…"

"I know, Helena," Barbara said quietly.

"You know?"

"I know… I know about your dreams."

"They're just nightmares, Barbara." The brunette sat with her back against the wall, trying to catch her breath.

"I know that Quinzel is behind this… I talked to her a few hours ago."

"Crap…"

"I know about your visit to Arkham last night. Why didn't you tell me before, Helena?"

"They are just dreams, Barbara!" The brunette stood up, annoyed.

"No, you know that's not true! Stop saying that! She is trying to drive you mad."

"Stop! Just stop!" Helena closed her eyes and clenched her fists.

"Please, Helena! They are not 'just' dreams, let me help you. Quinzel told me everything, she told me she is controlling your dreams, your mind -- and she is not lying, each time will be worse than the last, you pass out while you are awake; you wake up frightened, not knowing if you are dreaming or not."

Helena crouched down and covered her ears. She was so confused and so ashamed. Barbara knew… knew she had been having sex with the insane woman. How could she face her now?

"Helena?" Barbara tried to touch her.

"Please, don't…" Helena stepped back again.

Barbara felt her heart break seeing the intense pain in the blue eyes.

"We fucked… I don't know how many times, but I did it…." the brunette said, almost in a whisper. She felt she couldn't face Barbara anymore, she had failed her again. She hadn't told her the truth in the beginning and, now, Quinn had told her they were not just dreams that they had slept together. She loved Barbara more than her own life. How could she fail her that way? She could never forgive herself. Barbara had always been so loving with her, always thinking of her, taking care of her. "I failed you, Barbara… I never… I love you so much… and I failed you."

Barbara noticed tears filling her eyes. "You never failed me."

"I failed you… I…."

"And we will fuck many more times. I need you, kitten."

Helena's eyes widened. Barbara's face changed into Quinzel's.

"No…"

"You love it… you need me, you want me."

"Fucking bitch! No!" … She suddenly ran and jumped through the window, breaking the glass, not giving Barbara any time to react.

"Helena! Dammit!" the redhead cursed, angry at her own limitations that prevented her from standing up and running after her.

She scrubbed at her face with her hand and noticed that she, too, had been crying.

"I can't find her," Barbara said, frustrated. She covered her face with her hands. To stop this nightmare, she needed Helena with her, so she could understand what was happening inside her mind and block Harley's influence. She had run away, totally disoriented and confused. Barbara looked for her everywhere she could think of, but she seemed to have disappeared. "I have tried in all the places she should be… and not a single trace of her."

Dinah turned her chair to face her mentor, "I called Reese, he is helping."

"I hope he has more luck than I did. I called Gibson. Maybe our friend at No Man's lands can help, too."

"She'll come back by herself, Barbara."

"I'm not sure…" the redhead leaned back in her chair, biting her lower lip. "I'm worried, she is not well. She seemed very disturbed, she is not in control of her actions. She just vanishes and falls into a deep dream. The dreams come regardless of whether or not she is awake." Barbara looked at the young teen. "She is dangerous… I'm afraid she may even try to kill herself…. Quinzel is pushing her so far. And I couldn't talk to her, I don't know exactly what she is dreaming."

The older woman was silent for a few moments.

Damn Quinzel.

She was screwing with Helena's mind. Would there ever be a day when they would be free of her? She was trying to destroy her by using Helena. That was not fair. Quinn was obsessed with Helena, she knew it, but she never thought her it would turn into a sexual obsession.

Helena was beautiful, sexy.

The image of the young woman, smiling, appeared in front of her. She smiled lightly. Thinking about how the psychotic "therapist" had taken advantage of the young woman in her hypnotic state made her blood boil with anger; that was so low and sick.

Her mind went back to the prison and remembered each word that she had exchanged with the blonde. She needed to remember everything -- maybe something that the blonde had said would help her find her young friend.

"Barbara?" Dinah's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"She mentioned a book." An idea came to the redhead's mind. "Bluebird: Deliberate Creation of Multiple Personality by Psychiatrists by Dr. Colin Ross'"

"And?"

"It provides proof, based on 15,000 pages of documents obtained from the CIA under the Freedom of Information Act, that the Manchurian Candidate is fact, not fiction. He describes the experiments conducted by psychiatrists to create amnesia, new identities, hypnotic access codes, and new memories in the minds of experimental subjects."

"Hypnotic access codes?"

"That must be the clue. Somehow, she created an hypnotic code in the Helena's subconscious when she was hypnotized a few months ago."

"She's smart. She knew you would break the spell."

"Yes… and she must have programmed Helena to trigger the code after a certain time period or when she heard a word."

"Can you stop it?"

"Yes, but I need to find her first."

Barbara resumed her research. She couldn't stop.

A thought hit her mind. Helena loved her.

Quinzel had told her. She never imagined Helena could have such deep feelings for her. They had lived together for so many years. It was natural that they spent so much time together. When had Helena's feelings for her changed? Why hadn't she noticed it before? Helena was sweet and tender with her. Always keeping an eye on her.

How could it be?

How could it be that a beautiful and strong woman like Helena could see her, in her current condition as a woman? Maybe she was confused by her feelings, mixing up gratefulness with love.

But, meanwhile, Harley Quinn knew about those feelings and she was trying to destroy her by using Helena. Helena felt guilty.. And she knew the feeling was killing her, she had seen the pain in her eyes, the sorrow.

It pushed Barbara to keep going, to not let the woman win. Helena was strong. Barbara would not let her fall into Quinzel's hands.

Helena stumbled on the floor feeling spent. She had run between buildings for hours. Running, she thought she would escape Quinzel's voice echoing in her mind, calling her. She laid on the cool ground of the rooftop, unmoving for long minutes. She was exhausted; she didn't have the strength to keep fighting. She couldn't handle it anymore. The sensation of cold snowflakes make her open her eyes, her head throbbing.

She still felt so tired, and sleepy. It was like being drugged. Her thoughts were confused and distorted. She only could think of Harley. And she didn't want to.

It couldn't be… she was a criminal. She was using her.

Her eyes closed and she could see the blonde calling her; asking for her.

"No..." She needed to go back to the Clock Tower. Barbara would help her.

She needed to clear her mind, but the confusion didn't allow her to think. She felt her body trembling, fighting Quinzel's spell, she was trying to control her actions, her thoughts, her mind.

The voice of sounded louder in her hears. She closed her eyes, trying to focus and not listen to Harley's voice.

Barbara's face appeared in her thoughts.

She loved Barbara, she couldn't betray her. She needed to go back to the Clock Tower. She needed to clear her mind. She slowly raised her hand toward her necklace. Call Barbara, she must call Barbara.

Quinzel's voice again got louder in her head.

She covered her hears with her hands and winced. She wanted it to stop. It was making her crazy.

"Barbara… please…" she mumbled.

Dazed, she half-opened her eyes. She couldn't refuse the call, but she couldn't betray Barbara, she loved her.

She needed to fight.

Fight against the fatigue she felt invading her body, against the heavy eye lids…she couldn't sleep, she would be in another Harley nightmare.

But her body betrayed her and, against her will, she passed out.

The blonde turned the page of the book in her hands. She loved this book, maybe she would write a book, too, and give tips about how to get rid of annoying crime fighters. There were just so many creative ways. Yeah, it would be helpful. Who said that being a superhero was a good idea? She would have been rich years ago if superheroes were just in comic books.

She raised her head and noticed a dark figure standing against the wall.

"I was wondering where you were." She stood up and turned to the wall. "Damn, Helena, you are so hard to control."

The young woman stepped toward her. A light from the dark cell lit her face. Her expression was serious and cold. Quinn observed her and smirked.

"I thought it would be easier, but I was wrong. But you need me, you need me more than the air you breathe."

Helena remained unmoving, staring at her, fist in balls.

She was struggling against herself. Her mind was telling her to stop, that this was wrong, but she couldn't control her feelings, her instincts.

She closed her eyes.

She wanted her. She wanted that woman.

Barbara.

She loved Barbara, this was so wrong.

"Helena.." Quinzel said, knowing the brunette was hesitating. "You are mine, you can't fight it… you can't refuse the call of my voice. You want me, you want me more than you have ever wanted anything."

"I…" the brunette felt her body humming. Her desire growing.

"You need me, Helena, you need me more than you have ever wanted anyone."

The young woman walked toward her, slowly.

"Yes, come to me… You owe me, you are mine…."

The young woman put her hands on the glass and rested her forehead on it.

She wanted Barbara, she loved Barbara. But the voice, the voice was a damn call she couldn't refuse. She was trying, but the voice was overwhelming all her senses, all her reason.

"Now, my little pet, it's time to go. We have a lot of work to do. Get me out of this cell and we will go. Break this cell open."

Helena raised her head and looked at her.

"Let's go home."

"Everything is in that book, the Bluebird. I need to find out how Quinn can control Helena's mind, thoughts, dreams," Barbara said, checking in the library upstairs at the Clock Tower. She was sure she had seen that book somewhere.

Dinah helped her, checking in the next bookcase. Her fingers moved over the cover of some books looking for the correct title.

"It's a blue-grey cover, white letters. Bluebird was approved by the CIA director on 1950. The Project was renamed Artichoke. Artichoke documents prove that hypnotic couriers functioned effectively in real-life simulations conducted by the CIA."

"Here it is," Dinah said.

"Oh, excellent."

The Delphi alarm filled the entire place. Both turned at the same time. Barbara wheeled toward the rail and noted the red alert sign on all the Delphi screens. Dinah frowned, she had never seen the system so noisy.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Arkham, someone is trying to escape." Barbara wheeled toward the elevator.

"Oh no." The blonde ran stairs down.

As soon as the redhead was in front her monitor, she took control of her keyboard, typing as fast as she could. Several windows opened on her screen. A cold shiver ran through her body when she saw the main window. "Quinzel."

"What?"

"The alert is for her, someone broke inside her cell."

The teen sat in front of the next monitor.

"I'll check the cameras." The young woman entered the security cameras system. Arkham was in chaos. Police were running in the corridors and outside. She clicked over to the camera showing Quinn's cell. The main glass of the cell was broken, she turned the camera and noticed the metal door had disappeared and Quinzel was gone.

"Dinah, zoom in to the door on the floor." The redhead noticed it and pointed at the screen from her place.

The teen obeyed.

"The door was ripped off," Dinah said.

"Helena."

"What?"

"Must be Helena…" She turned back to her monitor, looking for the tape file. After a few minutes she found the files. A knot formed in her throat.

It was Helena.

The images showed her inside the cell, helping Harley escape. Dammit! What she had done to her?

"Barbara?" Dinah's voice was at her back. The teen was standing behind her, surprised by the images on Barbara's screen.

"Quinn is controlling her," the redhead mumbled, rubbing her forehead with her fingers.

"Oh no…"

"Damn bitch… she is playing with her mind." Barbara was overcome with guilt. Why hadn't she paid more attention to Helena's nightmares? She could have stopped this in time. But she couldn't waste time thinking of this now. "Help me look for them. Check radio signals."

The blonde sat at her desk and began to search all the police frequencies. The redhead hit a button on her console, bringing up the feeds from the security cameras all over the building. Her eyes fixed on the screen, looking for any sign of them. She looked in the corridors, on the rooftops, in the offices, in every corner but she couldn't find any sign of them, they had already disappeared.

They were gone.

"Delete all the files where Helena appears," Barbara told Dinah, turning toward the next computer, "and save it in the computer."

She checked for them on the cameras watching New Gotham -- streets, alleys, buildings, trying to find them.

Hours later, Dinah had gone to bed and she was exhausted. She kept working, but couldn't find any trace of the evil woman and Helena. She put her glasses on the desk and pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes.

She needed to find Helena, before Quinn could hurt her more, and before she used her in her evil plans to control New Gotham. The dark woman was a lethal weapon.

Her fingers pressed the right button of her mouse. And image played on her screen: Helena was on the screen. Her brow furrowed as she followed Helena's movements inside the Asylum. She pressed the pause button and stared at the clear image of Helena standing in front of Quinzel's cell in silence.

"Oh Hel," she whispered, "what's going on in your head?"

Part Six

New Gotham hills.

Almost at the top of one of the highest hills, below the deep forest, there was a hidden entrance. Quinn had kept the hideout prepared just in case her attack on the Clock Tower failed. Her instinct hadn't failed. Her team had been working non-stop, buying high-tech weapons.

The same criminals for which Oracle had been looking for months.

Quinzel walked inside her new hideout, followed by the brunette. It felt so good to not have those damn glasses covering her eyes. "Oh, Helena, this is so marvelous!! This time no one will stop me." She began to dance around the place moving her arms side to side. Her dream would soon be reality.

Helena remained still, watching her.

Oracle had screwed up her plans, but her plot for revenge was working flawlessly. Her plan was perfect, she knew that Barbara would try to break the hypnotic spell on her young partner, so, Halrey had designed and implemented a devious plan to control her with a hypnotically implanted trigger. When Barbara dehypnotized her, she activated the time trigger, which was scheduled to turn on exactly five months later.

Helena had a strong mind. To control her, she first needed to eliminate all her defenses. The best way to do that was to confuse her. The erotic dreams were perfect to confuse her... and since the brunette had confessed her love for Barbara, she knew there was no way the brunette would ever talk to her partner about the dreams. It was a beautiful plan.

After two weeks of dreams, her subconscious would trigger the second suggestive implant in which the dreams would increase and she would start to dream while wake and see Harley everywhere. It would cause her to confuse reality and illusion, make her avoid sleep and, in turn break down all mental defenses.

It was then that the third hypnotic implant would activate. Helena's mind would begin thinking of Harley with sexual desire. In her weak and confused state of mind, she would be unable to fight it and she would start to hear Quinzel's voice calling her and feel her body humming, creating an irrepressible desire to be with the blonde.

Which, of course, meant that Helena would free her from jail. Her plan had worked.

And, along the way, she smiled to herself, she was hurting her worst enemy, by turning Helena to the dark side.

She was a genius.

"Look at all this equipment ready to help me to conquest this city!" the blonde said in delight. "New Gotham will be mine." She turned toward the brunette, cupped her cheeks in her hands, and looked into blue eyes. Her eyes twisted in madness, capturing the young woman's gaze.

"As you are mine now," she whispered and kissed her.

Helena kissed her back and wrapped her arms around her. She felt like her body was in heat, she absentmindedly ran her fingers through golden hair. Simultaneously, Quinzel was caressing her arm. She didn't know why, but it was a damn sensitive spot on her, her inner arm.

She felt Quinzel move her hand to palm a soft, warm, firm mound. Helena growled and bit the other woman's neck. Her blood was blazing. The rush hit her with full force, humming through her entire body. She wanted to get lost in Harley's skin.

"Touch me…" she mumbled, between gasps. She needed to feel Harley touching her.

Quinzel smiled, noticing the intense look in Helena's eyes. She was very clearly filled with desire. The next kiss was rough and hard.

The brunette pressed her against the wall and put a leg between Harley's thighs.

"Wow, kitten, you are improving." Quinzel gasped, moving her head back. "But not now."

"Please touch me…"

"Not now, kitten." She gave her a soft kiss on her lips. She loved to tease her.

"I want you," Helena said hoarsely.

"Yes, dear, I know… but not now." She caressed her face with her finger. "We have work to do."

"I want you now."

"I said no… not yet…" Quinzel silenced her with an index finger over her lips. "First, I need you to complete some tasks. Later, you will get your reward."

"But I…"

"We must focus now on the conquest of this city and, then, I'll enjoy your lithe body and I'll touch you until you cry out in pleasure… But we must finish our task, first."

Helena nuzzled her head into Quinzel's shoulder, nodding. It took her a few seconds to recover her breath and come back to her senses. She was confused.

The blonde leaned in and kissed her head.

Barbara couldn't avoid the feeling of emptiness in her soul knowing Helena was totally in the hands of Harley Quinn. She worked persistently at the Delphi. Quinn had disabled Helena's necklace, -

knowing Barbara would use it to track her young partner. Over the last couple of days, there had been some new robberies, at the US army storage facility. Four big containers with high-tech weapons had disappeared.

Helena was behind all this. Barbara knew her style, she knew her movements. Quinzel was preparing to create a big war. She bit her lips, feeling so useless at that moment. All her attempts to find the mad woman had been unsuccessful. Reese was helping her by sending reports from the Police Department, but nothing had work panned out.

Quinzel, this time, seemed to have covered all her tracks.

"Linda MacDonald was a victim of Dr. Ewen Cameron's unethical, destructive mind control experiments between May 1 and September 12, 1963." Dinah read, in loud a voice, from a page of the book she had in her hands. She was seated at a desk behind the redhead "Dr. Cameron used a "treatment" which involved intensive application of three brainwashing techniques; drug disinhibition, prolonged sleep treatment, and prolonged psychological isolation. These were combined with ECT Electro Convulsive Therapy treatments. His depattering technique resulted in the programming of people mind's and complete amnesia. It would trigger with a word or after certain amount of time. People would be completely disoriented, and didn't know their own name, age or where they were. People couldn't recognize their family or friends."

Barbara raised her head and stared at the wall for long seconds.

"Barbara?" Dinah asked.

"She was pretty smart," the redhead said, turning to look at the teen. "She must have programmed Helena's subconscious when she hypnotized her months ago."

"I don't get it."

"It was the second part of her plan, if the first failed," she explained, removing her eyeglasses. "I could pull Helena out of the hypnotic spell, but I never checked her further. Quinzel must have implanted a subconscious program."

"And, then, something triggered it."

"Yes, the nightmares were a signal that the program had started. It started as common nightmares and began to build up. She couldn't control the dreams…" The redhead ran a quick search in her computer, looking for the video from the bar. When she found it, she zoomed in on Helena's face. "Look at her expression, she's sitting... she talks with the waiter... and then just watches the people dancing downstairs. But here…" she pointed at the screen, "look at her expression, she suddenly seems to be lost, she lowered her head and her eyes are half closed. She is completely still for the next five minutes."

"The dreams started to occur all the time, not just when she's asleep." Dinah said.

"Yes, they began to increase and were so real that she was confused, she attacked me the other night, here, and she created a mess at the bar. When she attacked me she was angry--"

"She thought she was with Quinzel."

"Exactly."

"But why did she dream she was having sex with Quinzel? That is so sick."

"Quinn programmed her to dream that; it would confuse her. Helena didn't understand it either, it made her feel guilty; dreaming about being in bed with your worst enemy is terrible. She got Helena thinking of other things and not about the purpose of the dreams: control. She caught her off guard." Barbara shook her head.

"And the programming Harley created worked well."

"Yes, it began to control her step by step." Barbara used a finger to push her eyeglasses up her nose and sighed. "I didn't see it coming. Now she is under Quinn's control… again."

"But what could trigger the program in her mind?"

"I don't know." The older woman leaned back in her chair. "It could be anything - a word, an image. Quinzel could have used anything as the trigger."

"But you can break the spell again this time, no?" Dinah asked, worried. She knew that this time things wouldn't be so easy.

The redhead thought about the question a few seconds before answering. "This was work deep in Helena's mind. Harley used the technique in that book; she programmed her. But the problem is that I don't know what she used to do it, and what trigged it. We need to repeat the same procedure to totally reverse the effect and annul the trigger."

"So, we first need to catch caught her, then make Quinzel confess what she did, and, then, reverse the program. Easy task," the teen mumbled.

"Very."

"So what's our next step?"

"They are behind these thefts of high tech weapons and they need a place as a hideout."

"Our usual informants don't know anything about this."

"I know. But 'impossible' is not in our vocabulary."

She loved her. She had known it for so long. She could see Barbara's face smiling at her from the Delphi, Barbara in that sexy training outfit, fighting with her in the training room, showing firm muscles with every moment she made.

Barbara Gordon.

Her mentor, her partner, her confident for so long. She still didn't know when her feelings for the older woman had morphed into love. She'd wanted to confess her love so many times, but she had stopped, she respected her too much. She just wanted stay with her the rest of her life and couldn't risk Barbara pushing her away.

She raised her head. Was she dreaming again? Why she was dreaming with about these kinds of things?

What was she doing here?

"Helena?"

The brunette turned, cocking her head. Harley was there, wearing her red and black skin-tight costume. She felt her heart beating faster. Why couldn't she just jump one her and knock her out? She was a mad woman whose only goal was to hurt Barbara and her.

"Helena, disable it."

She was Harleen Quinzel, Harley Quinn, the girlfriend of the Joker. The man who had crippled Barbara... but she wanted her. When had the blonde started to turn her on? She couldn't remember. Why did everything seem to be a foggy nightmare where she lost control of her emotions and reactions? Why was it so hard to remember things lately? It was like being inside a deep, crazy dream, where up was down and down was up. She couldn't understand what she doing and why she was doing it.

"Helena? Darling?" Quinzel walked toward her, noticing the hesitation. She cupped the brunette's face in her hands. "I want you to disable the system. We need to go inside and steal the wonderful weapons that are waiting for me."

Helena remained still, watching her in confusion.

"Listen to my voice." Her eyes fixed on Helena's. "You can't refuse my call, you want me, you will do anything for me," she said in a soft voice. "I'm your life; I'm in your mind and in all your deepest thoughts and desires. I can make all your darkest dreams and wants a reality. I can give you anything."

The dark woman felt dazed, trapped in her spell. The woman was so beautiful, so desirable. Her red lips screamed for attention, she wanted lick that white skin, trap the red mouth and kiss her until she didn't have air in her lungs. She leaned in, searching for her lips.

Quinzel smiled and moved back. "But work first, Kitten, then pleasure."

Helena tried to kiss her again; Harley laughed and took a step back. "We are working, darling; we'll have fun later. Let's go, time is running."

The dark head ducked and hid behind messy bangs.

"Come on, Helena, do it."

The dark woman trapped her wrist and pulled her against her. Her lips found their target, the kiss was hard and intense. She pressed the blonde against the wall and, with her hand, she trapped one of her breast.

"I want you," she growled pressing her thigh against Quinn's crotch.

The blonde gasped at the surprising attack; Helena's eyes were feral. She wrapped her arms around the young woman's neck and Helena began to move her thigh against her. The feeling was exciting, but she didn't have time for this now.

Quinzel pulled back. "Later, Kitten… it's too dangerous now."

"I don't care."

She tried to kiss her, but the blonde stopped her movement. "I said later, understand? Get to work," she gasped between laboured breaths.

The dark woman growled, but obeyed. She couldn't refuse her orders.

"All right. Let's do it." Helena said, turning and began to disarm the alarm system.

It took a few seconds for Quinzel recover her breath.

It took Helena all of half a minute to disable the alarms. "It's done," she said.

Quinzel smiled and clapped her hands, laughing. "Go! Tell them to come inside-- we don't have much time."

The brunette nodded and ran outside.

"It was too late, when we arrived they were gone," Dinah said.

She looked tired and exhausted.

The blonde let herself fall on a chair behind Barbara, who was still sitting at her post in front of the Delphi. Barbara had thought that a storage facilty close to New Gotham Bay would be the next target, so she'd sent Dinah and Jesse there, they'd just been too late.

"Did you find any clues?" Barbara asked, hopefully.

"I took pictures of the tire tracks of the trucks." She handed over a USB key. Dinah crossed her arms over her legs. She was frustrated. She wanted Helena back. Helena working for Quinzel and being out of her mind was a very dangerous combination.

The older woman put they USB key in her computer.

"It was fast and clean." Dinah said, "They stole four cannons."

"Not good."

Barbara studied the pictures on the screen and selected the print of one of the trucks. She then initiated a search to find a truck to match them. A beep called the older woman's attention. She felt her heart beating faster. "An incoming message…. It's Harley."

Dinah stood up immediately and went to stand next to her mentor.

Barbara took control of her keyboard again and opened the main message. It was a video message. Quinzel appeared.

Hello, Barbara Gordon, nice to see you again. I must say you can't stop me this time and I suggest that you don't attempt to interfere. It will piss me off.

"You will never win, Quinn."

Well, that's what superheroes always say and they always win, but only in the comics.

"I caught you once and I'll do it again."

Oh, don't be so sure… this time I have everything covered and do you know what? She began to walk and stopped next to her young partner.

"Helena…" she mumbled.

Yes, Helena, Quinn took the brunette's hand and rested her head on the brunette's shoulder She is an incredible warrior, and this time she lifted her face, inches from Helena's. You can't break my program. You will never do it.

The dark woman leaned in and kissed Harley on her lips. The kiss was deep and passionate. Barbara felt like a knife was stabbing her chest, the air was gone from her lungs and she couldn't breathe. Helena was kissing her. The image multiplied inside her head, like flashes of light blinding her.

Quinzel laughed and turned to look at Barbara. She is mine, all mine. Your dear Huntress has given her body and soul to me. My prince stole your ability to walk, I stole your love and now, I'm stealing you the soul of your best friend, your confident. How do you feel?

"You will never have her. You are using her and I'll stop you. This is not over." The redhead, with a knot in her throat, made her best effort to not show her anger. The kiss, that kiss, had been the hardest blow Harley had thrown at her. She couldn't describe the pain crushing her heart.

The mad woman laughed again. My poor, Barbara, always dreaming of justice... But you are right, this is not over. I'll destroy you. I promise you that...

The image disappeared as fast as it had appeared.

"Shit…" Dinah mumbled. Barbara was so stunned that she didn't scold her for the use of that word.

"That sicko is so...sick." She watched her mentor's shocked expression, "Barbara?"

The older woman blinked. "Damn bitch," she mumbled. "I must rescue Helena. I must rescue her."

The obsession overwhelmed the redhead. She couldn't get the image of Helena kissing Quinn out of her head. She worked, then, on getting the video from the storage facility. It was a piece of cake.

Dinah looked through the videos, including the ones from inside the storage facility. Helena was helping the men put the heavy boxes on the trucks and, afterwards, covering their escape.

The trucks were hard to see in the dark, Barbara wasn't sure of the model, but her search for the tire tracks on pulled a few models of vehicles using that kind of tire. Dinah was working on it

Hours later, Dinah had gone to sleep. She had been watching the videos of the recent assault several times, she checked the one at the guard's office; the only one she hadn't watched thus far. Helena was there… and Quinzel too. Helena grabbed Quinn roughly by the wrist and pulled her against her.

She felt dizzy. When the brunette pressed the blonde against the wall, Barbara noticed the clear movement of Helena's leg against the criminal. She like she was being cut in half, the anger boiling inside; she squeezed her fists in balls harder, making her knuckles turn white. Helena was trying to… seduce her, she clearly was trying to… the redhead's eyes lifted toward the image frozen on another screen, from the recent message of the crazy woman. Quinzel kissing Helena. It was obvious it was a real kiss and not just a touch of their lips.

She had watched Helena grow up, she had been with her every minute of her life after her mother's death; she had been her confident, her partner, her best friend; she had seen her turn from a small, angry child to a young, strong and beautiful woman. Yes, Helena was so beautiful, with a sexual magnetism that attracted many people, even her… even her? Well, it was natural to recognize beauty in another person. She couldn't deny and it would be stupid to deny Helena was beautiful and sexy-- her smile, her body, she was perfect.

Looking again at the image of Helena grabbing the blonde's breast with her hand and her thigh… between the crazy woman's legs made her want to rip off the blonde's head, hit her hard. Helena was hers. She noticed then, that she was crying, in anger, in frustration… in… jealousy.

She wiped her tears and covered her face with her hand.

Dammit, she was not thinking clearly. She was tired. Helena was gone and she didn't have any idea of how to get her back.

"Perfect, just perfect." Quinzel caressed the wooden box in front of her.

She and her gang were inside her hideout in the side of the hill. Inside, she had a big storage area which had several dozen boxes. The blonde walked around, some of her henchmen, dressed in black, were with her; Helena stood to the side.

All her plans were successful, luck was smiling on them. Her dreams were coming true. She laughed hard and opened her arms. She could finally make her dreams come true.

"We must work a bit more before getting our army ready," she said, looking at them. "I need to check our new plan to complete our acquisitions. We still have a long way to go…." She turned and rested her back on a wooden box, looking at Helena, she extended her hand to her. The brunette leaned down and kissed the back of her hand. "And you, my little pet, you are part of the success of my new plan." The blonde smirked, covering the strong hand with her own.

Helena smiled lightly.

Quinn enjoyed her victory, her plan was working and the fearsome Huntress was in her hands; she had total control over this powerful and beautiful woman.

"But…" she walked toward one of her men and took the pistol from his belt. "I need fix to a little mistake."

She turned and shot a man that was standing to her right. The bullet hit him in the middle of his head. The man hit the floor hard.

"Clean up the floor," she ordered, giving the gun back to the man from whom she'd taken it. She clapped her hands and exited the room. "Let's go, we have work to do."

The brunette followed her.

The blonde walked inside her bedroom, an elegant and comfortable space on the upper level. She removed her blouse and left her red bra on. Helena, at the doorframe, observed her.

"Why did you shoot him?"

"He was useless," Quinn said, looking at her face in the mirror. "At the storage facility he was slow and weak, he couldn't carry a box of weapons by himself, he needed the help of the other guys. We need to be fast; I need strong and capable men."

The dark woman walked toward her and hugged the blonde around her waist, pressing her body against her back. She kissed her neck.

"Please…"

Quinzel smiled and turned in her arms. She raised her hand and brushed dark hair back. Helena closed her eyes, enjoying the caress, she took a deep breath.

"I need to do a job for me," she whispered.

"You don't want to sleep with me." Helena said in a low voice.

"We'll do it, I told you. When we finish all of our tasks and I control New Gotham." She loved to taunt the younger woman, having her drooling and begging to make love.

Helena pressed Harley tightly against her. "Just once…"

"No, not yet, kitten." She kissed her neck "And, besides, I need you to do a job for me."

"A job?"

"A special job... for me."

Barbara had her head covered with her hands, staring to her notes in the dining room. She had been reading all her papers over and over, but she wasn't getting anywhere. The tracks form the truck and the dark images of the videos showed they had used army trucks, so she knew Harley needed a big place to hide them.

She couldn't forget the image of Helena kissing Quinzel. It left a painful, gaping hole in her chest. She was having trouble sleeping and when she actually did sleep, it was restless. She was so tired and she knew that she needed to rest in order to think clearly.

The mad woman had planned everything perfectly this time. It had been almost seven days since Helena had disappeared, since she had seen the confusion in her face that Sunday night after her visit at Arkham. She could still see the confusion and pain in blue eyes when Helena told her about her dreams. She still could feel the ache in her heart when Helena refused to let her touch her.

And she had been kissing Quinzel.

She was afraid. She hadn't told Dinah, but she was afraid that she would never see her again, that Quinn would kill her before she could rescue her because Quinn knows how important Helena is to her… and how much Helena loves her.

Helena loved her.

The confession still left her shocked.

Helena, her fierce partner, the strong, beautiful and independent crime fighter that had became the most important person in her life… loves her.

She removed her hands from her face and froze.

The brunette was there, staring at her, standing at the entrance of the kitchen, her hands inside her long black coat. She hadn't see her in almost eight days; her heart beat faster in joy. She hadn't known where she was or how she was doing. Barbara had spent sleepless nights thinking about her, thinking about how to bring her back, and now she was here.

The young woman looked terribly beautiful. If she hadn't been in her wheelchair, she wouldn't be able to stop herself from running to her and hugging her.

-

"Helena?" she asked, hopefully. "Are you all right?"

The thin woman walked inside and stood at the other side of the table. "I knew I would find you here."

"How are you?" Barbara asked, carefully, quickly realizing this would be like the last time she had been hypnotized. Her gaze was as cold as her words.

Helena touched the table of the dining room with her fingers and lowered her head. "I'm fine… you?"

"How did you get in? I changed the codes." The redhead carefully moved her hand to the side of her chair. Her hand found her escrima sticks.

"Well, I had a good teacher." She shrugged her shoulders. She still didn't look at the redhead. "It was easy to find the code."

"Quinn sent you?"

The young woman smirked and lifted her head to meet Barbara's eyes. She circled the table slowly toward her. Barbara suddenly knew what it felt like to be prey stalked by a hunter. She instinctively moved her chair back.

"Is that a problem?" she asked.

"You are under her spell, Helena, let me help you."

"I don't need any help."

"Helena, please…" Barbara raised her hand.

The brunette grabbed her wrist and smiled. "Your time is up, Oracle, I'm sorry."

Out of nowhere, the brunette felt a hard blow on her head, she fell to the floor. Barbara wheeled back a few meters. She looked downstairs, she had been working on a device to dehypnotize Helena, but it was at her desk near the Delphi. She knew that running was useless, Helena was strong and fast. Her only opportunity was to face her.

"Damn stupid bitch!" the dark haired woman growled, standing up.

She pounced on her, but Barbara blocked her with her sticks. She hit Helena again, on her knee and she bent over; the next blow hit her hard in her gut. The brunette, annoyed, finally grabbed Barbara's wrist and twisted her hand painfully. With her other hand, she grabbed the redhead's other wrist and slammed against the arm of the chair, making her release the stick.

"Now it's my turn," Helena growled.

She lifted her from the chair and smashed her back against the kitchen counter knocking dishes and glasses to the floor. Barbara winced in pain.

"What?" Helena grinned. "You aren't having fun now?"

She hit her hard in her face and the redhead saw stars. Without the support of her legs, she fell to the floor.

"Come on, Oracle, don't tell me you are so easily defeated." She lifted her up by the back of her shirt and threw her against the fridge. Barbara bounced and hit the floor hard.

"Well," Helena smiled, walking toward her "What happened, all-knowing Oracle? Is that all you have? You disappoint me."

Barbara coughed and spit blood, she had split her lip. She noticed Helena coming closer, she also saw her escrima stick a few inches from her. She felt Helena's hand on her shirt again, but this time, when the brunette lifted her, she slammed the stick across Helena's face, causing the dark woman step back and release her.

The fall to the floor was not soft. But Barbara didn't have to think about it. She dragged herself back and tried to prepare for the next attack. Before she could get ready, Helena was over her again, the brunette punched her hard in her stomach and knocked the air out of her lungs.

Helena put her hand around Barbara's throat. "Your time is up. Quinn told me you would mess with us, and I don't want anyone piss her off."

"Helena…" Barbara choked grabbing the hand around her neck "I can't breathe…"

"That's the idea…" Helena slapped her hard on the face.

She opened her mouth trying to get air into her lungs, but Helena kept her grip firm.

Suddenly, the brunette let go and, coughing, Barbara turned to her side. She could see Dinah out of the corner of her eye.

"Get off her!" the teen shouted. She had pushed Helena back using her TK and threw her against the wall. Helena quickly got to her feet.

"Good move, kid…" she said, smiling. "But now you are in trouble."

The teen, studying in her room, had heard the noise in the kitchen and had run out to see what was going on. She gasped in horror when she saw Helena attacking Barbara.

"Don't touch her again!"

Helena walked toward the blonde, her fists balled. "And who is going to stop me? You?"

"Of course…" the teen raised her hand and pushed her partner back again with her TK power.

Helena hit the wall again. Annoyed, she tried to jump on Dinah, but the teen pushed her back, yet again with her mental power, this time sending her flying away and hitting the floor below.

The teen kneeled next to Barbara. "Are you okay?"

"Careful, she is not herself…" Barbara coughed. "The device to dehypnotize her is on my desk, at the Delphi."

"Right. I'll try to stop her." Dinah righted Barbara's chair her and stood up, running toward the rail. Her partner was standing up, her feral eyes a clear indication that she was pissed.

"You are dead, kid." She growled.

"You have to catch me first," the teen said, moving her hand to throw a desk toward her. Helena ducked and avoided it.

Dinah ran toward the other side of the second floor, to the living room. Suddenly, Helena jumped and intercepted her.

"Hi kid… Going somewhere?" She threw a punch that the teen blocked. The next blow was blocked too. Helena smiled, grabbing Dinah's wrist with her other hand. "Hey, you are improving." She turned and kicked her in the side.

Dinah hit the wall. Helena jumped at her, but the blonde rolled to avoid her. Huntress' impact made a hole in the wall. The teen opened her eyes wide.

"Are you crazy?" she asked, kneeling. "You are going to kill me."

"That's the idea." Helena kicked out, but Dinah ducked, sweeping and hitting the brunette's legs, making her fall backwards

Dinah took the opportunity and ran downstairs.

Helena landed smoothly between Dinah and the Delphi. "Where are you going? We aren't finished." She threw a punch that Dinah blocked with her arm. They began to exchange kicks and punches; a fist connected on the teens jaw and she felt her knees buckle; she fell on one knee and lifted her hand, she pushed Helena back with her TK.

She was beginning to tire and Helena didn't show any sign of fatigue. She needed to keep her back with her mental power. Before she finished her thoughts, Helena was on her again. She focused on her and the brunette hit an invisible barrier between them.

"Ohh… a new trick, eh?" Helena grinned, she made a fist and hit the invisible barrier with all her strength. It was useless, so she hit it again.

Dinah felt a stabbing pain in her head. She fell to one knee. Helena was really strong.

"Stop, Helena! Quinzel is controlling you," she shouted.

"Oh, shut up… Your time is up." She used both hands to smash the invisible barrier again.

Dinah tried to hold the shield, but she was tiring quickly and each of Helena's blows made her feel weaker.

Helena realized this and taunted her. "What's wrong, blondie? Am I too much for you?" she kicked the barrier harder. Suddenly, she felt a prick on her leg. "What the f…?" She turned and noticed a small dart buried in her thigh. She removed it and lifted her head to see Barbara pointing at her with a dart gun.

Oracle had reached her chair and found a tranquilizer gun

"Shit…" Knowing she would be out very soon, Helena glared at her "Soon…" she threatened before running toward the balcony doors.

"Helena, stop!" Barbara yelled and tried to shoot her again, but the brunette was too fast. She jumped through the glass of the balcony, breaking it.

The teen let herself fall on the floor ,exhausted. Barbara hesitated for a second before wheeling toward the teenager.

"Are you okay?" she asked her.

"Just give me a few minutes," the teen said, catching her breath. "Where is Helena?"

"She ran away, but the dart will knock her out soon. We must find her."

The blonde paced furiously inside her hideout. Helena hadn't returned last night after sending her to kill Oracle. She was the only one who could do it. She knew the Clock Tower, all its secrets. She had waited until the first rays of the morning and she hadn't appeared. Then, she'd cursed Barbara Gordon, again Barbara Gordon was interfering with her plans; always Barbara Gordon. She swiped her hand over the table next to her, knocking all the objects to the floor.

She didn't expect his, she needed to stop her before she continued with her plan or the irritating woman would screw everything again.

"How the hell could you fail?" she shouted "You must kill her!"

Helena stood in the middle of the room, her head lowered. The dart that Barbara had shot her with last night had knocked her out and she had fallen unconscious in the forest on her way back o Harley. She'd woken at almost noon with a horrible headache. Angry because she had failed, she had returned to Quinn's hideout just to face her fury.

The brunette tried to touch her arm, but Quinzel moved back furious. "Don't touch me! You failed! I asked you to kill Barbara Gordon! A crippled woman! And what happened? She defeated you!" Harley stood in front of her and mocked her. "A disabled woman defeated the powerful, strong and fierce "Huntress"... Brave girl…"

"Dinah…"

"Shut up!!" Harley yelled, pointing at her "Don't tell me a stupid teenager is stronger than you!"

"She distracted me!" Helena said, trying to explain.

"Don't fuck with me, Huntress! You can defeat ten man! Do you expect me to believe that an invalid and a teenager are that much better than you?"

The blonde turned away, pissed.

The brunette felt ashamed. "I'm sorry," she mumbled wrapping her arms around the other woman's waist. "I need you."

Quinn freed herself from the hug and stared at the brunette in anger. "I don't care what you need! I need Barbara Gordon dead, understand?" she growled "Dead!! I don't want to see you again until you bring me her fucking, lifeless body!"

The blonde stormed out of the room, slamming the door.

"Harley…" Helena called her, but the blonde disappeared down the corridor. "Fuck!" Annoyed, the brunette took a chair and threw it against the wall. She paced frantically. She needed Harley, she wanted her. And now Harley was pissed because of her. To get what she wanted, she needed to kill Barbara Gordon first.

And she knew where to find her. She took her coat and walked out of the room.

They couldn't find her. They looked for the brunette in every corner of the city after she had been shot with the tranquilizer. She had disappeared. Dinah had done an excellent work; she had saved her life and risked her own facing a fearsome, out of control Huntress. She surely would have killed them both if Barbara hadn't managed to shoot her with the tranquilizer.

She and Dinah needed to prepare for her next attack, Helena was surely pissed and she would try to come back and finish her task. A task that Quinzel had ordered. Helena wasn't a person used to failing. She would try again, and again, until she accomplished her goal. Barbara knew her.

That made her more dangerous in her current state of mind.

She looked at her watch, time to go home and to continue her search for her young partner. She picked up her books and put them in her lap. Pressing a button on her wheelchair, she wheeled through the long corridor toward the exit.

"Don't forget the meeting tomorrow at ten, Miss Gordon," a professor said from behind her. He was Martin, the new chemistry teacher. He was a handsome and tall man that had just arrived a few months before.

"Sure." She smiled turning to see him. "I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"I'd love to get some coffee with you after the meeting."

"Oh… Thanks." Barbara smiled nervously. She had too many troubles to be thinking about a pleasant afternoon "But, I have a complicated week… Perhaps another time?"

"Sure, I'd love it."

She moved her chair toward the parking lot. She needed to get home early, she had promised Dinah. The girl had been so exhausted that she let her sleep late and skip school. Barbara suddenly thought of a new idea to try to capture Quinzel with a trap. Her father could help her with it. It was an easy plan and she was sure it would work.

She arrived at the hummer and after a few minutes, she was ready to leave. She fastened her seat belt and turned on the engine. She put the car in gear and drove toward the main street.

Helena.

She couldn't stop thinking about her.

Her window broke into thousands of pieces she bent over, covering her face.

"Hi." Helena grinned, hanging on the window "Did you miss me?"

Barbara, startled, looked at her. The brunette took the wheel and yanked it hard to the right.

"I'll kill you!" she growled.

They hit a parked car. Barbara tried to keep control of the vehicle and pressed the accelerator. Helena kept her grip on the wheel. The redhead unlocked the door and opened it, hitting Helena.

The brunette, annoyed, tried to climb inside the vehicle. She pressed the accelerator button that was next to the wheel. Her body was half inside the vehicle and Barbara looked frantically inside her pocket for an object. They crashed into the side of another vehicle and bounced against a third one.

"You are dead." Helena finally inside, grabbed the redhead by her throat.

Barbara raised her hand and shot a beam of light beam directly into the younger woman's eyes. Helena growled and covered her face. The redhead suddenly noticed they were about to hit a big truck in front of them.

The impact was hard, Barbara heard the sound of metal bending and glass breaking. Helena's hit the front glass windshield, breaking it and flying outside the vehicle. The air bags deployed.

She must have lost consciousness for a few seconds because when she came back to her senses, a man was checking on her; she was lying on the floor. She raised her head and noticed a light trace of blood. Her mind immediately focused on the brunette.

"Helena?"

"Don't move, ma'am, an ambulance is coming, you are injured," the man at her side said.

"Where is Helena?" she looked around. "Where is the woman wearing black clothes?"

"Easy lady."

She pushed the man back with anger and looked to the front of the vehicle. She gasped in horror. She could see Helena's feet on the ground between the two vehicles.

"Thanks, Reese," the redhead said to the handsome black man.

"No problem, Oracle." He carried the unconscious Helena in his arms. She had severe cuts around all over her body. "I drove as fast as I could when you called me. You need to take care of your head first.

Barbara touched her forehead and winced, but she knew it was nothing serious, maybe the glass had scratched her head in the accident. "I'm okay. She is more important now. The accident was awful." The elevator doors opened. "How are you going to explain that you kidnapped us?"

"That's a minor problem that we can solve later. The traffic was blocked for a march a few blocks ahead, so I can just say that you both needed to get to the hospital immediately."

The elevator doors opened and they walked inside. "This way," Barbara said.

"Barbara, what happened?" Dinah asked in surprised when she saw them appear. She was checking the latest news on the Delphi. Immediately, she stood up and followed them. "What happened to you? And what happened to Helena?"

"A car accident." Barbara explained, wheeling toward her cabinet in the lab. "Dinah, use the scanner on her. I need to know how badly she is injured."

The teen nodded and followed her instructions.

"Oh my…" Alfred mumbled, walking downstairs and seeing the former Batgirls' shirt covered in blood. "Are you all right, Miss Barbara?"

"Yes, just a few scratches and you know that head wounds bleed excessively, but I'm okay. Helena attacked me while I was driving out of the school. We fought and I had time to flash the light in her eyes to dehypnotize her. Luckily, I had it on my pocket, after the attack last night I kept it close."

"And it worked?" the butler asked, preparing everything Barbara would need to bandage Helena.

"I hope so. I blinded her and at that moment, we hit a truck, she flew through the windshield of the Hummer." She washed her hands in the sink. "I called Reese and he arrived in time to pick us up before the police and ambulances arrived."

"The Hummer?" Alfred asked.

"I called the insurance company. They are taking care of it."

"Maybe we should restrain her." Dinah suggested, finishing the scan on the dark woman's body and not wanting to fight her partner again. "If the light didn't work, we will be in trouble when she wakes up. She is okay, Barbara, no broken bones. She just has a pretty bad bruise on her head."

"Maybe she is right," Reese said.

"Yes…" Barbara nodded, if the light didn't work, Helena would surely wake up angry and would try to attack them again. "Dinah, look for the bands to restrain her; Jesse help me remove her coat, I need to clean her cuts. Alfred, I'll need warm water, antiseptics..."

"It's ready, madam," he said, walking toward her with a tray.

"You know that Quinzel will be very pissed when she find out we have Helena," the teen noted kneeling by the cabinet.

"Yes…" Barbara raised her head and looked the gentle butler. "Alfred, please, turn on all the security systems and lock all the doors."

"It's better if I leave," Reese said, putting Helena's coat over a chair, "I'll try to keep an eye on what Quinzel is doing, you will be distracted with her for a few hours."

"Thanks, Reese. I really appreciate it."

"I'll put two patrols around the building, just in case."

"Thanks again."

He smiled and nodded. His relationship with Helena hadn't worked out, but they remained good friends and partners in the fight against crime. He liked to work with these women. The black man exited the room and Alfred followed him.

"Let's get to work." Barbara said to Dinah, pulling on a pair of gloves.

It was like coming back from a deep, dark trip to the bottom of the sea. She felt dizzy and her head was throbbing; maybe it was what had wakened her. She was not good waking up after being drugged or knocked out. Her entire body ached; each limb hurt like hell. This time it seemed she'd had a hard time beating or being beat by someone. She tried to move her body to the side; that was when she realized was tied down. Okay, that was not good, she hated being restrained. She opened her eyes slowly; the lights blinded her and everything was blurry. It took her a few seconds to adjust her eyes. Blinking, she recognized the place; she was in the lab at the Clock Tower. She lifted her head and noticed her wrists and ankles were cuffed.

"What the f…?" She pulled on the metal restraint around her wrist, but it didn't move an inch. She tried her leg, with the same result.

"Barbara!" she shouted, pulling hard on her arm and regretting the movement instantly. It had hurt; she was really sore. "Barbara!" she shouted again.

She yanked her feet and heard the sound of the electric wheelchair. She looked to her right. The older woman and Dinah appeared in the lab.

"What the fuck is going on?" the brunette growled. "Why did you tie me down?"

"How do you feel?" Barbara asked, stopping her chair a few meters from Helena. She was not sure if the flash that she had used to dehypnotize her had worked. She had made a few changes to improve it, but, knowing Quinzel had used a different technique to hypnotize the brunette, the probability of bringing her back to normal were 50-50.

"Not happy, that's for sure." the dark woman realized Barbara had a split lip and a big bruise close to her eye. She frowned. "What happened to you?"

"An accident."

Dinah moved to the opposite side of the lab and put her hand on a dart gun. Helena noted the movement and glared at the blonde; she didn't like this. "What are you doing?" She pulled on the restraints again, angry. She was not exactly a patient person, and more so when she didn't understand what was going on. "What is wrong with you two?"

"What is the last thing you remember?" Barbara asked.

Helena sighed and rested her head back on the medical bed, that was a difficult question for anyone who was just waking up after being knocked out with who knows what. The brunette thought a few seconds in silence; it was hard, she felt confused and dazed. "I don't remember."

"Try, please…."

"I'm not sure…" The first thought that hit her mind -- she was visiting Quinzel at Arkham. Her damn nightmares and then… she was at her place and she felt sad, but everything was blurry and confusing. Many images swam in her head, but nothing made sense. "I was at my place… and I must have fallen asleep, that is the last thing I remember," she said, tugging her hands. She was uncomfortable and her muscles were protesting after being in the same position for so long. "Could you please take these off? They aren't helping so much and my legs are feeling numb."

"Do you remember the car accident?" Dinah asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What car accident?" Helena frowned.

"The Hummer? You crashed the Hummer," Barbara elaborated.

"Are you kidding?" Helena's eyes fixed on green ones, asking for an answer "Why?"

Barbara and Dinah looked at each other without saying a word.

"You are scaring me… Were you with me in the Hummer, Barbara? Is that why you are hurt? Why did I crash?"

"You tried to kill me," the redhead said in a soft voice.

"Come on…"

"At mid day," the older woman interrupted, removing the eyeglasses from her nose, "I was driving the Hummer, you appeared out of nowhere and broke the driver's window. We crashed into a truck and you hit the front window of the SUV, flying outside of the car. You were knocked out and Reese helped me bring you here."

The redhead's serious expression, her steely eyes, convinced Helena that she wasn't kidding. She felt a punch in her gut. That would explain why her body hurt so much. But still it didn't make sense. Why had she tried to kill Barbara?

"Do you remember anything?" The redhead noticed the confusion in her eyes.

"No…" She pulled on the chains angrily, "Let me go!"

Barbara knew how pissed Helena got when she was restrained. She looked at the blonde and nodded at her. They moved next to the brunette and unlocked her.

"You tried to kill me last night, too."

Helena froze. "What?"

"Harley Quinn was controlling your mind again," the older woman explained.

Helena sat up. The confession was like a hard blow to her head; her face turned pale, the room started spinning.

When?

She had seen her at Arkham, but the evil woman had her eyes covered with the protective lenses. She remembered being at her apartment; fighting against her nightmares; feeling as if Quinzel was inside her head, trying to consume her.

The nightmares.

She dreamt of Quinzel doing… things, and she hated it. They nightmares had begun to increase and confuse her. She'd wakened many times in the last months not knowing if she was dreaming or if she was awake. Once she had attacked Barbara, thinking she was Quinzel, another time she had destroyed the bar, she had seen the evil blonde in every corner and in the face of every person.

How could Quinn do that? She was in jail… Could she really have been fucking with Quinzel and just be remembering now? The damn dreams were so real… she could feel each touch, each movement. She could taste and smell everything...

"Helena? Are you all right?"

Barbara's heart clenched when she saw the pain in the blue eyes, which locked on hers, looking for an answer.

"We have a theory…" Barbara reached over to lace her fingers with the brunette's. She was unpleasantly surprised by the depth of pain she experienced when Helena flinched at the contact and pulled her hand back. She kept silence a few seconds before adding: "We think Quinn must have programmed a subconscious order in your mind, when she hypnotized you months ago. Something, we don't know what, triggered it."

"The nightmares were a signal that the program had started," Dinah said, moving a strand of hair nervously behind her ear. "Well, at least, that's what we think."

"It started as common nightmares and began to grow, you couldn't handle them." Barbara said, trying to make feel her better, "It is not your fault. You were dreaming them because Quinzel ordered you to do so. She confused and distracted you enough so that you were unaware of her main goal: controlling you."

"Will I attack you again?" Helena whispered.

"This was deep work. Harley used a different technique. She programmed the dreams, but the problem is that I don't know what she did or what trigged it. We need to repeat the same procedure in order to totally reverse the effect and completely erase her control over you."

"That means I could attack you again; she could control me again."

"I don't think so, we broke the spell, we just need to stop the hypnotic suggestion that creates your nightmares."

"But the possibility exists."

The redhead nodded.

Helena raised her knees and lowered her head on them. She could attack Barbara again and the next time she might not be so lucky. She had already tried twice and not knowing exactly how the hypnotic suggestion was overwhelming her, made her still dangerous for Barbara's safety. She took a deep breath.

"We must go see her," she said moving to hang her legs off the medical table. She winced lightly, her back was sore.

"Who?" the redhead asked.

"Quinn, at Arkham, she must talk."

Dinah met Barbara's eyes.

"What?" The brunette frowned.

"Helena, you helped her escape," the older woman explained softly. "Quinn is free and we don't know where she is hiding. You were lost with her for almost a week."

"Shit…" The room seemed to move around her again and she closed her eyes.

Barbara exchanged a look with Dinah; the blonde understood she wanted talk with Helena alone. She stepped back and silently left the room.

"It was not your fault, Helena. It was Quinzel," Barbara assured her. The young woman suddenly looked so fragile, so vulnerable; she wanted so much to hug her, to be closer, to comfort her, but she held herself back. Helena was avoiding her touch; she certainly understood her partner's refusals for the last few weeks.

"Quinzel said that the dreams are not nightmares…" the dark woman inhaled slowly, feeling a frustrated bitterness assaulting her soul, tasting it in her mouth, "they are memories… we fucked. We really did."

Part 7

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