Open!

[thegirlwonder]

Who| Helena Wayne and OPEN!
What| Helena dealing with undeath and meeting new people.
When| Post-Announcement
Where| District 4 Suites; Common Area; Training Centre
Warnings/Notes| None as yet?

[Prompt 1: District 4 Suites]

For the past few days, since returning back to life, Helena has holed herself inside of her room, fiddling with the communicator, studying a map of the city (because it was always good to be familiar with your surroundings) and listening to this whole destruction of District Three thing. She doesn’t have any emotional connection it, not yet. She’s still dealing with the fact that, somehow, she’s alive after having been killed.

I’m going to kill Loki. Possibly literally.

Still. It’s time for her to venture out. She can’t stay holed up forever. It’s not like her.

[Prompt 2: Commons]

Food. Food is good. Food is always good. Though what she’s craving is something hideously junky and laden with carbs and sugars and possibly everything that’s bad for her, she’s fought against the urge. If she’s going to stay in tip-top shape, if she’s going to win next time (and Helena really does hope that she’ll win), then she needs to stay healthy. Lean meats, lots of veggies, milk, and water. All the things a healthy, growing teenage girl needs.

And all I really want is a cheeseburger topped with bacon, chili, onion rings, and barbecue sauce.

But no. She can reward herself later. For now…well, for now, she’s going to try to be serious and healthy about this.

[Prompt 3: Training Centre]

She’s a fierce little fighter, but there’s not a lot of finesse there, as anyone watching would see. She’s a tough brawler - all street fighting fury but no martial artistic finesse. But she is working out her anger and her frustration, which is probably a good thing. She needs to be calm, cool, collected, and centered. She’s lost, but this place more than anywhere makes her feel comfortable at some sort of level. After all, this was what she’d done for hours at end back at home. Fighting, training, honing.

Between it all, though, she takes breaks. Rests. Watches everyone else, and scopes out the competition.

And maybe the possible allies? I don’t know. Can there be such a thing here?

Comments

[revvinguptheharley]

The reaction alone was enough to wash away Harley's grim feeling for a moment and set her into fits of giggles.

"I'm a Gotham Girl myself, born and bred. Graduated with honors from Gotham U, then graduated dishonorably from Arkham Asylum." She wiggled her eyebrows playfully and popped another chili soaked curly fri into her mouth.

[thegirlwonder]

Helena continued staring at Harley for a long, long moment.

Harley Quinn. Harley Quinn.

And she mentioned Arkham Asylum.

Slowly, Helena lowered herself back into the seat. "Gotham Academy," she said. "I'm not college-aged yet." She reached up, pulled the elastic off of her hair, and shook it loose before pulling it back up into a ponytail again.

"So. Who are you? The Joker's daughter?"

[revvinguptheharley]

Harley snorted and munched on some more fries before answering.

"Like that bum would ever have a daughter. I was Mr. J..." She caught herself visibly and corrected herself.

"I was Joker's second in command, and on again off again on again off again on again off again girlfriend. But that was awhile ago."

Turning the conversation back around "So in my time, Brucie only had three kids. All boys. You must be the lucky little sister?"

[thegirlwonder]

By now, Helena had been shocked into eating a few fries. "Three boys? No. There was only me. One daughter. No other kids." Alternate universes? There had been theories...and the fact that Helena was here proved that other universes definitively existed. But three boys? "You...you know who my dad is." Because Harley totally just namedropped him, right? "My mom is - was - Catwoman. Selina Wayne. Kyle. Wayne." And because she absolutely had to know... "Was that the case with...no, you know. I don't want to know."

She popped another fry in her mouth. "Wait. You were the Joker's moll. I'm Batman's daughter. This...we don't fight now, do we?"

[revvinguptheharley]

Now it was Harley's turn to be shocked, the first shock came from the revelation of her mother.

"KITTY?! No freakin' way! Her and Brucie?!" She shoveled some more ice cream into her mouth to balance out the surprise...

...and then she dropped the big bomb.

So shocked was Harley that she choked on her ice cream and flailed, eyes watering as the sticky goop fought it's way out of her lungs.

Wheezing and doubled over when all was said and done her voice came out a strangled croak.

"Bruce Wayne was Batman?!"

[thegirlwonder]

Had it been possible for Helena to go even paler than she was, she would have. Instead, she turned mildly green. "Oh god. Oh god. I just assumed that...I mean. You know. I just assumed that secret identities weren't...oh god." Helena slammed her head down on the table. "This place is screwing with my mind, and after years - years - of keeping this secret, I let it slip to the Joker's girlfriend. Ex-girlfriend. Whatever." Helena lifted her head up again and looked at Harley. "Nothing against you. But, you know. Secret identities and arch-enemies and...oh god." She shook her head violently. "I think I need a drink." Or a good, healthy dose of common sense. "I'm...I thought you might have...known."

First, she'd let herself get killed.

Now this.

Yep. Helena was batting negative-one-hundred.

[revvinguptheharley]

Harley wiped the tears from her eyes and predictably started laughing.

"Oh gosh, I just...after all these years! I shoulda known when he...ah haha HA! I've gone on a date with Batman!" She continued to laugh till she was slumped over the table with one chili dog and half her fries laying forgotten nearby.

The waiter, apparently sensed Helena's need because he arrived to see if they needed anything. Harley was still recovering and did not respond.

[thegirlwonder]

Helena didn't know whether to life or cry. She honestly didn't. On the one hand, she'd been so glad to find someone who was kind of familiar with Gotham City - even though she was starting to wonder if they were different Gothams because Helena couldn't for the life of her remember a Harley Quinn from her own world - but on the other...

My god. I'm the first, last, and worst Robin ever in the short history of Robins. No wonder Dad had his doubts.

She looked at the waiter, still pale, and seeming slightly nauseated. "Ginger ale, please?" she asked. "And also maybe a plate of Irish nachos. Because I need the carbs. And the cheese."

She turned back to Harley, then. "Are...you didn't just take a hit of Joker venom or something, did you?" Because she was way too amused.

Though Helena guessed that she couldn't really blame her.

I mean, with the revelation that...wait. Wait!

"You dated my father?!"

[revvinguptheharley]

It seemed Harley was finally calming down as she dabbed tears from her eyes with her bib.

"Oh sure! Then a midget that was even more obsessed with Mister J then I was tried to kill us. Your dad shot his blimp down though, really macho you know?" She grinned lecherously and wiggled her eyebrows.

[thegirlwonder]

"..." Helena blinked. "Yeah, that's my dad. Super...macho." She was really at a loss for words here. Helena gratefully accepted her food and drink from the waiter, and took a long, long swig of the ginger ale. "Alright. So...level with me, Harley. What does this mean. I mean, you know the family secret and I...well. I'm assuming who you were wasn't exactly all that secretive."

[revvinguptheharley]

Harley snickered.

"Nah, I'm sure everyone knows I was a criminal by now, but keep it down about your big secret unless you want the hidden cameras to broadcast it out all over huh?"

The last part she said with a smile but a rare serious tone in her voice.

"The Riddler was in the arena last I checked and if he ain't figured it out yet he'd be awfully steamed if a tabloid figured out the secret first."

[thegirlwonder]

"I would have kept it down. I just figured that you knew. You know, since you...heh." Helena shook her head. "Such a childish mistake." She raised an eyebrow, then. "So nothing we do at all is a secret, huh? Watched every moment? How very...big brother." And yet, there was something oddly familiar about that, too. After all, Bruce had his eyes on nearly everything too, back home. "Well, at least the Riddler won't necessarily recognize Helena Wayne. All things considered."

[revvinguptheharley]

"That's about the size of it. They even have information on our lives before we were brought here...but they aren't totally accurate." She explained with an eyeroll.

"Or if they are, they distort the information to make us more interesting, as if we need any help in that department." Another toothy grin.

Leaning forward she started in on her chili dog again as the ice cream dripped lazily down the side of it's glass. "Can't believe I never saw it before, that strong square jaw. Family tragedy. Three or four different robins, three adopted sons...who knows who the blond Robin was." She mused out loud. "Then there's the three batgirls, batwoman...I think there's a batcow."

[thegirlwonder]

They even have information on our lives before we were brought here... those words echoed in Helena's mind. Accurate or not, information was just that, and information was one of the most powerful weapons anyone could have.

"Daughter of...well. You know," Helena grinned, embarrassed. "I'm not sure what else they'd find out about me that could make me any more interesting."

Helena blinked, a piece of potato laden with cheese, sour cream, and beef halfway to her mouth. "Batcow?" What?

"None of this sounds familiar," Helena said, trying to move past Batcow. "Back home, it's just me, Mom, and Dad." She paused. "Well, just me and Dad, now. I'm Robin." Well, most of the cards were on the table anyway. What was one more little detail? She'd rather not have the assumption running around that she was Batgirl or Catgirl.

[revvinguptheharley]

The information about her identity was less powerful then what had come right before. Harley had been ready to finish off her last Chili dog when Helena dropped this next bombshell into her lap.

This reaction wasn't as over the top or funny however. Her face went slack and an off color for a moment.

"What um...what happened to her?" She asked delicately, setting her meal aside once more.

[thegirlwonder]

"Killed," Helena said. "While working on a case. It wasn't what she expected and..." She was able to get the words out, but it wasn't easy. "I went after the ones who did it. Without thinking, just rushed into the building." She looked up Harley, the tears in her eyes evident. "She was supposed to have nine lives. I don't know how or when..."

Suddenly, Helena seemed very young indeed.

[revvinguptheharley]

Harley's shoulders sagged, even her ponytails seemed to droop as she sighed heavily.

it's not your Kitty Harley. She's from another universe.

But reminding herself that didn't make it any easier.

Scooting her chair back she leaned into Helena wrapping powerful arms around her into a hug. Quietly she wondered if Batman was a hugger.

[thegirlwonder]

No, Bruce had never been much of a hugger. Maybe when Helena had been younger, but most of the parental love and affection that she'd gotten, it had been at Selina's hand. Selina had been Helena's primary parent in many ways, and though she loved her parents equally...well. Sometimes you just had a favourite, and it couldn't be helped.

Still, Helena let herself be pulled into Harley's hug. She didn't know what sort of relationship Selina and Harley would have shared - friendship, enmity, something halfway in between - but at least Harley knew of Selina.

And Selina on Harley's world couldn't be all that different from Helena's own mother, could she?

"I'm sorry," Helena said, her voice hoarse. "I'm fine. Really." In truth, it had been little more than a month since Selina had died. She was still grieving.

[revvinguptheharley]

"It's ok." She rubbed the younger girl's back soothingly. Being this close Helena could smell both the child's spice and a heady scent of cotton candy.

"I've lost a lot of friends already, but Selina would have been miles better then my mom. "

She loved her mom, but she was such a nag.

"We'll probably be doing a lot my crying before all this is over. But it's better to cry together then to bottle it up alone."

Especially if or when she found out that a version of Bruce had been here before and had died before any heroics could take place.

[thegirlwonder]

Helena didn't have a clue that anyone else bearing the name Wayne had been brought here - or had died here. At all.

Boy was it going to be a hell of a shocker when she eventually did.

"She was amazing," Helena said. "Smart. Strong. Sophisticated. Kept Dad in his place." She smiled as she said that. More often than not, Bruce had always given in to Selina. "I'm sure your mom was good in her own way, too?" Because Helena couldn't imagine not having a mother who you didn't get along with. A mother who wasn't your best friend. How did that even work?

"Has anyone...you know. Died died? Like. Permanently?"

[revvinguptheharley]

Harley couldn't help but smile at the girls description of Selina and even grinned when she mentioned keeping her father in line.

That expression soon fell when she asked that question and Harley tugged on her collar.

"Alright well...see the way it works is if you die in the arena and don't come back after awhile...it's best to assume the Capitol got tired of them or for whatever reason decided not to bring them back. Knowing that...yeah lots of people. Only a couple have died in the Capitol but it's implied that if you die in the Capitol you don't come back." Her voice was uncharacteristically serious here and her lips pouted.

"Kinda makes it hard to think about putting up a fight really if you value your health."

[thegirlwonder]

"Oh, wow," Helena said. "We literally are toys. They get tired of us, and then they put us away." Her eyes were wide at this. She didn't even want to ask the next question that came to mind - whether they got sent home after the Capitol didn't want you back or...if you were gone for good.

"I'm not sure how comforting this is."

[revvinguptheharley]

She offered a sheepish smile.

"I can sugar coat it for ya if you think it would go down easier. Or I could soak it in booze. That's what a lot of tributes do to stop thinking about it."

The hard part was how to give her hope without saying something that could get her in more trouble.

[thegirlwonder]

"Sorry," Helena replied. "Despite some of Mom's vices, I'm solely a ginger ale sort of girl." That's what her dad drank at all the parties, too. "But no. I wanted to be Robin. I should be able to handle all of this without the sugarcoating. I'm not in grade school anymore." If anything, she was a very determined young woman.

[revvinguptheharley]

Her smile melted into a sticky gooey one at her earnest and uncorrupted attitude.

"Well so long as you never give up sweets." She winked before her face became more solemn. The expression seemed unnatural on her usually smiling face.

"If that's how you feel kid...well there's some heavy big bombs I've been holding back. If you think you can handle em then I'll tell ya the worst of it. But if you wanna work up to it we can keep eating. Maybe swap stories about your mom." An encouraging half smile.