Bruce cursed, not very quietly.

 

The last three days had been a complete mess. After Gordon's cross examination, the prosecution had immediately called for an end to the court's proceedings for the day. The judge- obviously anxious to go somewhere private and jerk off to a picture of Pamela Winters- had granted it, letting him and the defendants leave. He had gone back to his manor, and he and Ivy had celebrated the victory with sex for the rest of the day. Not that they didn't have sex every night, but those nightly sessions were usually just one-and-done before they fell asleep in each other's arms.

 

Then, that very night, a S.W.A.T. team raided his house, wearing full tactical gear. The only reason they hadn't fallen to the pheromones of the house was because they wore masks anyway. Ivy had jumped out of bed at the sound and hid under the bed to avoid being seen, but Bruce had just stood up and faced them as they entered his room so they wouldn't have been able to see that he was under Poison Ivy's control.

 

Naked in front of their bright flashlights and rifles, he had surrendered. They had let him put his clothes on. Alfred and Stephanie hadn't been in the manor at the time, but Tim was already downstairs in handcuffs. The team had then forced both of them into the back of a van with two armed guards as they were driven away from the manor. 

 

Both of them had known without speaking what the sudden arrest was about, and it wasn't because they knew he was Batman. It was because they had discovered that Tim had attacked the police station.

 

He had been carted off straight to Blackgate, as there was no police station in which they could be held in before the next arraignment. Ivy had arrived shortly thereafter, wearing her ring to disguise herself. She said that she would represent them both, one again claiming that her powers would be more effective than a real law degree. Naturally, there was no argument.

 

Before leaving, she had extracted a dose of the voodoo potion- the chemical she had used to trick him into turning off his detective vision the night she had beaten him, or so he had been told- and used it on the two of them. Ivy then implanted new commands in their heads, ordering them both to think about her the whole night. Apparently, since she couldn't have sex while he was in jail and she couldn't stay all night to use her pheromones, she had needed to be certain that they wouldn't break free of her control over one night without her.

 

Sure enough, they hadn't broken free from either the prison or her control. The commissioner himself had arrived to drive them to the courthouse for the arraignment. Tim had needed to be locked up in handcuffs the entire time, but Gordon hadn't cuffed Bruce.

 

Grange, Ivy and a new judge had already arrived at the courthouse and were waiting for them. The arraignment had begun without any warning, maybe even having started without them. Grange had immediately issued the charges against them; for Tim, the charges were thirty-one counts of assault on a police officer, one count of arson, and one count of vandalism; for Bruce, the charges were one count each for harboring a suspect, obstruction of justice, tampering with evidence (the GCPD camera footage had been hacked into by his Batcomputer and, in his haste, had forgotten to log off of the building's server when going to stop Ivy), bribery of a public official (this time for the judge of the previous trial), and contempt of the law.

 

At best, if they were found guilty, Tim was looking at life in Arkham, and Bruce would be in Blackgate for fifty years. At worst, Tim could actually be facing the death penalty for his obvious lack of regard for the people in the police building for lighting it on fire, and Bruce could spend the rest of his life in a federal penitentiary.

 

Grange had requested remanding, and this time, his motion was allowed. Ivy had begun emitting pheromones to try and reverse the decision, but it wasn't quick enough, and the judge had promptly ordered Bruce and Tim removed from the courthouse and sent directly to prison. Even Ivy had been stunned that all of this was happening so fast.

 

The commissioner had then taken each of them back to Blackgate, formally placing them behind bars of different cells with prison jumpsuits. Gordon departed with barely a sentence, and that sentence was uttered under his breath: "There's a rope under each of your cots."

 

None of this made any sense. The fact that the judge hadn't even waited for anybody's protest, the fact that Gordon had somehow been able to keep his eyes off of Pamela, the fact that all of this had gone down without so much as a single person sitting behind Grange.

 

Despite himself, Bruce actually felt concerned with his current status. Even if Ivy could use her pheromones on the people in the court, it wouldn't be enough. Bribery of a police force was one thing, but if Tim actually could be sentenced to death... This was going to get all the media coverage the world could ask for. Even President Miller's recent swear-in might pale in comparison to this.

 

The hallway door buzzed, announcing the arrival of the guards. Bruce smelled a light perfume in the air. The scent of the woman he loved.

 

Sure enough, his "lawyer" appeared outside of his cell with two men in prison guard uniforms flanking her. He smiled just at the sight of her, though she didn't return it. Somehow, it was still hard to believe that a goddess like her could ever love someone so unworthy of her affection.

 

Of course, he knew that his thoughts were symptoms of her control over him, but that didn't matter to him. It couldn't anyway.

 

One guard pulled a key off of his belt, inserting it into the bar gate and swinging the door open. Ivy stepped, empty handed. The guards didn't question her not having a briefcase, nor did they post a guard inside the cell; Bruce wasn't on trial for murder, nor was he the one who attacked the police station. Once Ivy stepped in, the same guard locked the door behind her, then left with his fellow man.

 

Since he was technically in solitary confinement, he didn't need to be taken to the interview room for a meeting with his lawyer. That room had a camera in it, and because Ivy wasn't so keen to be seen on a few random guards' video screens, she didn't request the room.

 

"Ivy," Bruce greeted warmly. 

 

"Bruce," she returned curtly. Neither one sat down on the bed in the corner. That was rare; every time they were in a room with a mattress, they would each be trying their hardest to push the other through it.

 

"It appears that we've run into a bit of a problem."

 

"Yes, I see." She narrowed her eyes. "Do you have a way out of this?"

 

"Several," Bruce answered. "A few of them violent."

 

Ivy furrowed her brow. Bruce wouldn't kill on his own, but if Ivy decided it best that he shoot his way out, he wouldn't hesitate.

 

"I don't want the police or your superfriends to hunt you down for busting your way out of prison." She shook her head. "No, we need to do this quietly. Maybe we can appeal the court."

 

Bruce cocked his head. He didn't correct her obvious error in how the appeal came after sentencing. The trial had yet to happen, after all.

 

"I need you out of here no matter what, though. You can't be in here for too long, or the police will connect the dots as to who you two really are. What do you think? Do you think I can do the same as before in the next trial?"

 

"Doubtful," he said. "Not only will there be a lot more people in the room, but a few of them will probably be my friends in disguise. If they sense your pheromones, they'll be onto us."

 

"Then I suppose we'll need a real lawyer. Perhaps one of your friends could help you in this?"

 

"I'm not sure. I know how to divide my mind and keep them from reading the truth, but Tim doesn't have that same training."

 

"You're a billionaire. Hire a lawyer for co-council."

 

"That might be best, yes." Bruce took a step closer. "And I can probably get out of this by suing a counterclaim of conspiracy against Grange, the cops who were bought off, and the last judge and waiving knowledge of the precinct attack." One more step in, and there was no more than a foot between them. "But there's video evidence of Tim attacking police. Even if I can prove I didn't know about the attack until after it happened, they'll still charge Tim."

 

"What do we do, then? If Tim goes down, you'll probably go down too."

 

"I don't know." He glanced at the cot. "There's a rope our beds..."

 

"And if Tim dies in prison, you'll make it out without anything to do with it," she finished for him.

 

"You said I need to make it out of here no matter what..." If sacrificing Tim could get him out of here fast enough to please her, then he'd do it.

 

"Good idea," she said quietly. "It's a shame, though. I could have used him."

 

"It's not the only option, Ivy," he said. "If you would like, we can fight the case cleanly, but that will take longer and we'll most likely lose."

 

"It is what must be done," Ivy said. "I'll go tell him." She moved over to the door, then shouted for the guards to come back. "Oh, and here." She turned back to him, handing over a small tube of lipstick. "If you're going to be here a while, I'll need you to paint your own lips with it until we get you out of here. In the meantime, I'll look for a new lawyer."

 

"Ask Alfred about that," Bruce suggested, accepting the lipstick and throwing it to the cot before the guards could return and see it. "He can get some of my company's attorneys involved."

 

The two guards reappeared outside of the cell. She didn't move.

 

"Ivy?"

 

"No," she stated quietly. "I think we need to do something else. I have plans for Tim." 

 

"What else?" Bruce whispered. "If we take this to trial, then we'll lose everything."

 

"I'll figure it out. I'll be back tomorrow; visiting hours are almost up." She turned to face the two guards outside of the cell. "I need to speak to my other client."

 

Without even a sigh or a grunt, the same guard as before removed his keys and let Pamela out, then locked the cell again. Soon after, the guard opened a nearby solitary cell, jingled the keys, and locked it again before leaving.

 

Bruce moved over to the cot and sat down, picking up the lipstick. Whatever Ivy wanted. He just hoped that whatever she decided, it would get him out of here so he could keep himself under her control.

 

 

 

 

Hal groaned, turning over onto his side and curling up for warmth. It was raining pretty heavily here, and whatever the precipitation was, it certainly wasn't water.

 

He saw a little red mix in with the soggy earth... well, the soggy "yheda" (Yheda was the planet's name, right?). That wasn't good; letting whatever that stuff was pouring down on top of him get into his blood was a sure way to get infected. 

 

Hal could already feel it, actually. That stuff was fast acting on humans, apparently, as his vision was already starting to dim. An infection from a substance foreign to his natural immune system was... well, pretty standard for him, actually. He'd dealt with this sort of thing at least a couple dozen times by now. This didn't feel different from all the other times, though it was certainly a different sort of infection. Not bad enough to cripple him, but he'd have to take a vacation after a few hours in the Watchtower. 

 

As long as he lived long enough to make it back there, he'd be fine.

 

A soft, quiet thump announced the landing of his opponent. He turned over on his shoulder, still curled up, and saw her with her hands on her hips, staring down at him pitifully. 

 

Elyssa had firm and taut legs that were completely exposed save for the pink "scars" that lined them from thigh to ankle in circular patterns. A purple mini-skirt covered up the rest of smallest amount her thighs that she could while still keeping the female parts of her covered. Above that skirt was a pink overlay that ran up to het midriff and then separated, revealing a massive amount of cleavage and neck. Her hair was of a pink shade, too, though not as eccentric as the clothes that covered her body. It was hard to believe he had actually turned down a sex offer with her.

 

Her face was one of absolute haughtiness. Hal recognized this stage; she had been rejected the lust she had wanted; she had knocked dramatically down the one who had rejected her; she felt that he was beneath her. He had faced this sort of aggression plenty of times from members of the Pink Lantern Corps.

 

She waited for him to regain his warmth and allowed him to rise- slowly- to his feet. He took a deep breath, trying to clear up his vision with calmness. It worked to some extent, letting him see her a bit more clearly. He breathed out. "Should I just go?" he asked. "It doesn't look like your ready to talk like and adult right now."

 

She growled, raising her left fist. A pink flash came from one of her knuckles, shooting a beam of light at him. Rage fueled her strike, making it zoom fast enough to hit him before he could react.

 

It didn't do anything, though. The pink ray hit him and bounced right off. He hadn't blocked it or used his own power to deflect it. It just failed on its own.

 

Hal had planned for this to happen; the ring she wore hadn't had that much charge left. The Pink Corps had been cleared out of the area and the source of its power scattered around the universe. It couldn't be destroyed, but it was possible to break into pieces and toss in opposite directions. Since the pink source didn't have the same sort of fuel as his own source, the rings wouldn't be able to have much power to be used. The beam she had made- and the prior assault that had knocked him down and drawn blood- had taken all of the energy it had had left. 

 

Elyssa looked shocked and stared after the beam as it flew away into the clouded sky. She turned back to him and threw her arm back toward him to try and shoot another beam at him. Nothing happened. Alarmed, she looked at her hand,then gasped and fell to her knees. The ring on her finger dimmed and turned dull as the circular pattern on her legs faded away. Her clothes did the same, leaving her bare as she struggled to take a breath. She was human, like him, but he still had his ring to provide him with the system needed to survive in this environment.

 

Hal didn't pay the slightest bit of attention to her admittedly impressive body. Not because he was a picky man or because he only has eyes for one woman, but because the infection in his blood made it utterly impossible to really care for anything other than laying down and going to sleep. He resisted the urge, knowing that doing so would mean that he'd die here.

 

Elyssa struggled for one last gasp of air, but she could find none. Her limbs slackened as she fell forward into unconsciousness. Hal shot out a beam from his ring, which expanded into a sphere around her body. The sphere encased her in a small prison, but one with the oxygen she needed to breathe. He waited, watching her back, searching for any movement. Thankfully, she gave him a sign of life, and breathed in quietly.

 

Her hair turned from pink to a light brown. She was the last Pink Lantern in his sector. Finally, after three weeks of hunting them down, it was over. He could leave the rest to the Guardians.

 

Hal sighed, bringing the hand that didn't have the ring on it up to his cheek. The hand came back down stained a deep black. The blood wasn't crimson any longer.

 

Shaking his head, he flew up into the Yheda sky with Elyssa in tow, heading back to the Watchtower. When this was over, he was definitely cashing in his vacation days.