Ivy POV

Horrible ringing filled my ears and smoke clawed at my lungs. Body screaming in pain I scrambled around blindly, only to realize my eyes were already open. Once I registered the fact I was choking on gasoline fumes I managed to quickly crawl past the thick wall of smoke. I struggled but pulled myself far away from the wreckage. Then it dawned on me, we crashed.

"Harley!" I screeched, "Harley where are you?" All I could see past the flames and smoke was blood soaked earth. No, "Harley!" I shouted and froze in place, before I could search for her the fuel ignited and I hid behind a tree trunk as scraps of helicopter blew past me. I dropped to my knees, tears threatened to spill as I noticed the blood that washed up my arms wasn't mine.

Vomit forced its way up my throat and I doubled over, the remaining fire crackled in the distance. After ten minutes or so I stopped dry heaving and cradled my sore ribs. Moving away from the pungent smell I rested against another tree and stared down at the ground. Everyone I know is dead. I lay down and ran my hands across the cold, moist earth, and I killed them. My fingers dug deeper into the dirt, I killed all of them. Hurt, anger and guilt set my flesh aflame and whisked me out of my body. I watched myself tear out chunks of the earth and hurl them behind me, the sobs and screams I made were flooded with desperation and grief. My parents, Selina, and now Harley, I managed to go faster, I kill everyone I love. Suddenly a dam broke and I was sucked back into my own body, mud was smeared across my face and body."I'm sorry!" I shrieked my hands knotted into my hair, "I'm so sorry," finally tears poured down my cheeks.

"I'd do anything," I wheezed and collapsed into the shallow ditch I had hollowed out, "anything." Blood trickled from my torn fingernails, tears continued to trail down my face and pool in the shells of my ears. Worn down I lost myself in the sound of wind weaving through the treetops, and watched as leaves shivered against the lavender sky. I reached out with a bloodstained hand and willed the trees to flower, but nothing happened. That's when I noticed how quiet my mind was, it wasn't just the sedatives. "Damn it," I croaked, I have nothing now. Tired of the light I tried to sink farther into the earth and into the darkness. Cold air blanketed me and the hollow of dirt only gave me so much comfort. Now that I could produce them the tears wouldn't stop.

"Oh Red, don't cry," a voice sounded from a few feet away. A chill shot up my spine,

"Harley?" I got up as quickly as I could, "Where are you?"

"I dunno actually," she quipped, "But dead is dead is dead, right?" Am I losing it already?

"Wait," I felt sick, "How am I hearing you? How are you talking to me?"

"Would ya stop askin hard questions already? Come on, I hav'ta get ya somewhere safe, it's gettin dark."

"Where am I?" I took in my surroundings and nothing about it looked familiar.

"Somewhere in Peru I think," she mumbled, the lush forest definitely corresponded to that fact.

"Why did we crash?" I asked a voice I was most likely imagining.

"Well ya know, the Gotham Police didn't really like us takin ya back Red."

"You mean they shot us down?" I asked in confusion as I wondered through the forest,

"Nah, but they almost got us a few times," Harley giggled. "Foreign air space, ya know. They don't like us fugitives, not one bit. Bane tried to talk 'em out of it, shoot 'em out of the sky, to out fly 'em. But we were surrounded."

Gunfire and screams filled my memories; the image of Harley's broken and bloody corpse flooded my mind. I stumbled to the ground, the sight of her motionless burnt behind my eyelids and I couldn't wish it away.

"It's ok Red, I ain't in pain anymore."

"I have to bury you, I can't just leave you out to rot," I rose to my feet and started to head back to the crash site.

"And what use is that anyways?"

"You're my best friend Harley," I choked, "I just - I can't leave you that way."

"Yer my best friend too Red," she said solemnly, "That's why ya can hear me, I think. But I wanna be eaten up by the earth, cause then we'll always be connected."

"My powers are gone Harley," I chuckled hollowly, the sun sunk lower overhead,

"I'm sorry." In no time at all the Joker's and Bane's mangled forms were also fresh in my mind,

"Why didn't I see the bodies to begin with?" I whispered aloud.

"I dunno, ya know I ain't too good at that psych stuff. Never was," she said quietly, "Trauma can do crazy things to yer melon." It is getting dark. I really need to set up camp.

"Where do I set up camp Harley?" I asked the air around me,

"If ya go past them trees, there should be a nice grove." Once I caught sight of a sturdy tree I started to gather some thick leaves, not feeling anything when I plucked them from their stalks. I struggled to sew them together with some peeled bark. After making a makeshift blanket to ward off some mosquitoes, I climbed the nearby tree. Without the grip of long nails or shoes it took what seemed like days to reach a decent crook to sleep in.

Despite what Harley had said, the sun didn't sink any farther into the mountains, but remained a thin sliver of light. As I tried to sink into a permanent sleep the lush forest felt increasingly exposed, the chorus of insects and rich wildlife was stifling nonexistent. Neither sleep nor death would come to me easily, I couldn't shake the itch under my skin. Something was out there. Even though all I wanted was to sink into the darkness, I knew that same blackness veiled thousands of stares.

"Stop," I whimpered and tried to hide my face within my matted hair, "Just stop," my nails dug into my arms as I attempted to make myself small. Blood trickled down my skin and the weight of the eyes within the forest only intensified. A whisper froze me to the core, little more than audible as it lingered on the breeze.

"Ivy," the forest murmured coolly.

"I'm sorry," I pleaded desperately, hot tears streaked down my face, the voice slowly became louder, clearer. It was then that I recognized that it wasn't only one voice, but a chorus of voices. Four voices rung out clearly: my parents, Selina, Harley, but there were hundreds more that were unfamiliar and distant.

"Ivy!" The voices shrieked, some as close as a few feet in front of me. Fear shot through me and I silently begged for death.

"I'm sorry!" I sobbed and tried to shield myself from the pervasive voices and invisible eyes.

"Ivy!" the voices screamed and stole the oxygen from the air, the darkness felt too small, too tight with their rage.

"Just kill me!" I cried hoarsely into the suffocating abyss, silence suddenly replaced the ear-splitting screams.

For what seemed like days I stared up at the sky, waiting for starvation.

Without warning, a thunderous growl from the forest floor collided with my body. Shaking, I glanced over the edge of the crook I slept in and stared into nothingness as I searched for what I'd heard. To my horror haunting reflective orbs caught mine as something feverishly scaled the tree.

"Get away from me," I choked as I clambered for an escape route. I nearly fell when I jumped to a nearby branch, when I turned around she was staring right at me. "You're supposed to be dead," I wheezed. I braced myself after I slipped on a slick vine and a deep hiss shattered any semblance of calm I could scrape together. Icy yellow eyes glinted in the half-dark, once a guttural snarl met my ears I went from branch to branch, my tired body close to giving out completely.

Behind me I heard her crash and barrel from tree to tree, thick claws slashing and digging into wood. Fear shot up my spine when I found myself at a dead-end, I dreadfully turned to catch saliva drip from a bloodstained muzzle, and monstrous teeth gleam in the darkness. That isn't Selina. I kept repeating that thought, but the eerie glare still reminded me of her. It stepped closer and I anxiously searched for a way out, for a weapon, anything. Death was death, but something worse than death was promised in those familiar eyes. The jungle cat lunged toward me, nothing but muscle and ill intent. My scream filled the forest and I crouched down, and there I found a half-broken branch. Before I knew it I had ripped it from the trunk and thrust it outward, where it met heavy flesh. Hot blood gushed over my hands, and its thick claws sliced into my arm as it died, our blood mixed as I barely pushed it off of me.

Nowhere is safe, I watched with unease as its golden gaze went dull. I need to keep moving. The realization that the trees weren't safe sent me to the forest floor, which was moist and cold, and most of all dark. Some dwindling sunlight was scattered through the canopy and across the mossy ground, but for the most part I couldn't see my hand in front of my face. No matter how much pain I was in I trudged on into the silence, hoping to meet a clearing, or find a comfortable spot to die. Something dripped from my sternum, I investigated and my fingers returned black and slippery. Blood? When did I get hit here? I tried to piece together the puzzle, but was left confused. If I'm bleeding, I pushed my fingers deeper into the wound, which happened to be a handful of small holes, why am I not in pain? Now when I looked up, the sky was spinning and left me dazed. Once I broke my gaze, I had made it out of the forest and stood at the edge of a cliff.

This seems a good a place as any. I took a few unsteady steps back before sprinting and jumping off the cliff and into what I assumed was a gorge hundreds of feet below. The air cut into my skin and sent my hair whipping behind me, tears seared in my eyes.

"Ya can't just leave that easy Red," Harley's voice had my eyes snapping open. About 30 feet below me there was a basin of teal colored water. I relaxed my body into a dive and made impact, the cool water cradled me as I reached its depths safely. As I rose to the surface I floated, unsure if I was able to drown myself. A blurry image nestled itself in the corner of my eye, reddened pigtails bobbed as the figured turned to leave. "I got somethin' to show ya," her voice was soft and close. I scrambled to get out of the deep pond, once I reached the banks I saw her shadowy profile.

"Harley?" I called after her as she disappeared between the thinning trees. "Wait!" I chased after her, but my body wasn't responding, I felt like my body consisted of concrete.

"We don't hav'ta be alone, we got each other right?" Harley asked cheerfully. I finally broke into a clearing and found her.

"You're alive?" I asked hopefully, Harley didn't turn around, and my eyes ran across the bruises that littered her arms and legs, before settling on the large hole in her back. Blood seemed to seep from fresh wounds,

"Sorta," she quipped, "Just like you." What? What does that mean? "Stay with me."

"What's going on?" I gripped her shoulder, only for her to evaporate under my touch. "Harley?!" I collapsed where she had stood, and searched around me to see nothing but dirt and ash. The forest is gone. The stench of smoke filled my mind and made it hard for me to breathe.

Train tracks stood on either side of me and in either direction disappeared into the horizon. Without warning they began to angrily shake, between them a purple flower slowly pushed up through soil. I crawled over to it, a dahlia, I let the silky petals brush against my calloused and bloodstained hands. I fuck everything up, don't I? I inhaled the scent and pressed my palm into the dry dirt, and fruitlessly searched for any connection, an inkling of thought. Nothing. The rails rattled and the roar of pumping pistons reached my ears. A train whistled harshly in the distance. Soon the sound grew all encompassing, the ground quivered underneath me. I've always deserved to die alone. The light from the train was almost blinding,

"Ivy," a voice fluttered on the edge of my consciousness. "Ivy, you've got to wake up!"

The train was racing down the tracks, the light washed over me as I stood. I let my eyes close as the rumble of the train knocked against my ribs.

"Ivy! Can you hear me?" someone sobbed, I wiped wetness from my eyes. These aren't my tears. "Please," she cried, "Don't leave me all alone!"

Selina?!

My eyelids flew open to be bombarded by light. Above me bright florescent lights surged, electricity shocked my system. Cool gel stung against my breastbone as another shock went through me. Tears blurred my vision, but I caught sight of Selina's face. It was hard to move, there were too many people buzzing around.

"Clear!" one shouted, and everything stopped swirling and I could breathe properly. "She's stable, the gunshot wounds are relatively healed. The healing must have put too much stress on her heart." It felt like I was floating, but then I realized I was being carted away on a gurney. "Is the van to Arkham ready?"

"Wait, please give me more time. She nearly died," she cried, "You can't just take her away from me." Her voice was swimming around my head, but I was too exhausted to open my eyes again.

"It's not up to me or you. She's going."

To be continued...

A/n: Sorry for the long wait! If this chapter was jumpy, that's the way it was supposed to read. Anything not explained here will be. There's just one chapter after this!