"Look at what the cat dragged in, eh Red?" The hallway while heavily rundown and in desperate need of a few touch-ups, did in fact look a margin better. That old ratty carpet that appeared to be on it's last legs, with strands springing free from it's tight weave and a few unknown stains that were probably older than than a lot of people in that building, was now completely replaced by a smooth tan color. Freshly bought and shampooed, it for once, wasn't a complete torture sessions trying to navigate through it's fowl smelling corridors. There, leaning in a 'freshly' painted doorway was an athletic blonde women with chalky white skin and platinum blonde tied up in a loose, messy bun. Her voice was high and energetic, large blue eyes staring down at him with a subconsciously piercing gaze. Roving over his baggy sweatpants and baggier sweater, a lone eyebrow slowly crawled up to her hairline as she processed everything. "Red thought you made some fancy-smancy friends and forgot about little old us!"
"Do not put words in my mouth." A deadpanned voice, deep and somewhat sultry, could be heard from within the apartment.
"She's shy." Harley shrugged, before crossing her arms. Not moving out of the way in the slightest. "But it would've been nice to hear that you got home safely! Had us staying up half the night worrying that you didn't put a condom on! Teenage pregnancy is not an easy thing and I'm sure the new Commissioner would have your hide if he found out you knocked up his daughter!"
"Sorry about that." Albert smiled stiffly, she might've been joking partially but it was bad form to not at least send either of them a heads-up of his return. The events of last night had just drained him utterly and by the time Angeline dropped him off, he barely made it up stairs before collapsing into bed in his nice clothing and blacking out. Only to wake up with the sun barely peaking over the horizon and his face stuck to his sheets via dried drool. "I was too exhausted and only saw your texts earlier this morning...but I brought gifts."
"Gifts, huh?" She 'tried' to look uninterested, looking at the pink polish faking of her digits with an excess level of intensity. "Just so you know, Red isn't some cheap gal to bribe. She's been worried sick and almost went out looking for you, if I hadn't been the only reasonable here one then Gotham would've had some major issues last night."
Leaning to the side, he peaked inside and locked gazes with a pair of odd looking fully green eyes. They rolled hard a moment later, clear exasperation present.
"Well it's not a lot, but I do have something for you guys." Holding up the hefty bag, he awaited his judgment.
"I smell seafood." The blonde leaned right into the bag, taking heavy breathes through her nose. "That's...lobster? Shrimp? And Crab? Wait a minute! Stand strong Red! You can't show yourself to be easy! Where's your pride as an adult?!"
"There's also some cake in there," It was obvious she wanted her bribe as well as the red head hadn't said anything. Projection at it's finest. "I couldn't get a full cake, but the waiting staff there was nice to combine a few different slices. The majority of it is some sort triple chocolate but there's some red velvet and a single slice of angel food. That one seemed to be very pop-"
"Oh Al!" Harley moved like a serpent, ghostly hand whipping to snatch the bag straight out of his grasp. Her eyes growing as large as saucers as she hugs it to her front before opening up the door for him to enter. "You really shouldn't have! C'mon in! We have some nosy as hell neighbors!"
Nodding with a small grin, he slipped past her and entered into the apartment. Unlike the hallway, their apartment itself hadn't changed in the slightest. That same beaten up couch, the same old carpet that desperately needed to be changed and a table that should've been thrown away a long time ago from the deluge of scratches embedded deeply into it's surface.
"Night didn't go to plan?"
There, sitting like some sort of queen in an oversized long sleeve shirt hanging low enough to cover up a majority of her green legs, was what some people could mistaken for an accurate depiction of a forest nymph. That massive mane of red hair forced into a single ponytail and if his eyes weren't failing him, she actually looked to have lost a few shades of color. Her usual vibrant verdant skin now a faded jade.
"Red!"
Harley's called out from behind him, a clear scolding tone to her voice.
"It's fine, yeah you could say that." Albert replied dumbly, his grin growing a bit more strained. "I guess you could say that, let's just say things didn't work out between me and Barbara."
"Awh!" The blonde slammed the door shut, before skipping over and vaulting over the couch back. Landing with an audible thump and the sound of creaking wood, he quickly moved his feet out from underneath it's frame. He was already recovering from his past injuries, having his mobility hampered further would surely leave him completely helpless in his line of work. "While I am sorry you had to go through that...I'm not too sad about her being gone, she gave me a bad feeling. And y'know more than just that fact her father is King of the Pigs right now!"
With some reverence, she unwrapped the bag and passed along a hefty black styrofoam container to the red head before placing a large pastry box on the table. Opening the top, her already large enough grew two times in size. Drool dripping out of the corner of her mouth, before slurping it up loudly.
"But cheer up!" Harley continued, pulling him down to take a seat and slapping his back a few times. Shifting slightly, he tried to get that lone spring to stop poking him viciously in the middle of his spine. "There's plenty of women out there! And I'm sure you'll find someone!"
Someone without ulterior motives.
Were the words left unsaid. She wasn't stupid or blind, and it should've been easy for her to sniff out Barbara's falsehoods. While figuring out her true motives was impossible, just knowing they weren't anything lustful or romantic was more than enough of a reason to be concerned.
"Yeah, you're right." Just because he already knew that was the case, it still sent a pang to his heart. He'd never had much luck with the opposite sex, particularly in any romantic pursuit, back in his old life either, and it seemed like that trend would surely follow him in this one as well. That, and really he didn't accomplish overly much with his stunt. Sure he got in contact with a few high fliers and gotten her to stop buzzing around him like a fly, it still exposed him to a lot of danger in the process. It honestly felt like taking one step forward and falling back two. "Thank you, by the way. I'm not trying to be moopy or anything so I kinda want to move on fro-"
"Wait a minute…." The blonde froze, a slice of cake half eaten forgotten on the remaining pieces. Using them like a makeshift table. Leaning in closer, within mere centimeters, even causing him to begin leaning away to no avail. He could feel his retreat foiled by the stiff couch arm holding him in place and at that point, things were inevitable. Those large orbs morphed into narrow slits and with a lone, she swiped her finger across his face. Collecting a layer of make-up and exposing the bruised flesh beneath. From the corner of his eye, he could even see the red head slide to her feet. A bad sign indeed. Strong and steady hands gripped both of his shoulders, forcing him to lock gazes with the woman. Concerned eyes met his, a flicker of a dark wrath burning just beneath the surface. Speaking in a soft but urging tone, she began. "Who slapped you, Albert? Was it someone at the party?...No, it was Gordon...wasn't it?"
'Maybe I should've waited a bit longer.'
The character known as Harley Quinn was known as a deathly loyal individual. Separating the world up into two separate groups: her people and everyone else. And for her people, she would go to great lengths for them. Whether that meant getting herself in no end of trouble like jail-time or just something minor like missing a meal or two. And that aspect didn't go away in her real life iteration.
Combine that with her own situation with...her 'Puddin', it must've urged that deeper aspect of future her that would one day become her own person to act.
"Really, it's no big deal." He knew her all too well, she was probably imagining taking that iconic bat and hunting the streets of Gotham for the unsuspecting red head. "We had a pretty intense argument and things just got heated, I said somethings and she said somethings and I got this. It's over and done with."
"…." The blonde was silent for a moment, her eyes flickered every which as she looked into his for any falsehoods. For even a flicker of desire to enact revenge or retribution, but whatever she must've seen caused her shoulders to slump like they were slammed with weights. Sliding her hands away, she spoke softly. "Okay...if that's what you say, then I will believe you. Just...just wait here for a bit, I'm going to see if Arney has any bandages."
And like that, she slunk off the couch before quickly making her way out of the apartment. Not even bothering to put on her usual heavy duty combat boots that normally added a few itches to her height, in her haste. He could only sit there in silent disbelief, that was probably the quietest he'd ever seen the bundle of energy. He'd seen her grim and determined, but never dejected like that.
As though all the energy had been sapped right out of her through a straw.
A sudden weight besides him shook him from his stupor, and before he could even react a jade gently but firmly gripping his jaw. Poison Iv-no, Pamela sat besides him, holding his face still as she wiped away the make-up, exposing the mark to the world.
He'd already seen it in the mirror that morning and knew how mild it was. Frankly, if he had a healthy complexion then maybe it wouldn't have even been noticeable. Maybe the light swelling would've given it away but on his skin, it was clear as day.
"She gets easily rattled by these sorts of things." The red head said, her green eyes looking over the injury in that same bored way...but that would be inaccurate. It held something, somber and stern. Her other hand reaching out to nearby plant, it's massive leaf leaning down to deposit a small dollop, the size of a quarter, of clear liquid into her hand. It had a slightly sweet smell to it and after turning his face to the side, she began gently rubbing the sap onto the bruise. Instantly sending out a cooling sensation where-ever the liquid spread. But no matter how relaxing the feeling was, the impromptu medic was not done with him yet. "This should help with the swelling, It's not overly strong…. I put the majority of my babies to sleep. But it'll only help whatever Harley can scrounge up."
"Thank you."
And he meant it, she'd never seemed like the overly carrying type. Sometimes, if he didn't know better, Albert would've thought she merely tolerated his presence. But this...this showed otherwise.
"You can thank me by never seeing that girl again."
"Wha-"
"Just listen." Pamela continued on. "I can't put my foot down with Harley, but I can with you. I will not sit by and see my friends be abused. Not again. This will the last time I see you bruised or injured by a partner. Platonic or romantic. Nod if you understand."
In that instance, a sudden crash of guilt slammed into him. There were consequences for his attempts at playing a puppet master the other night and it just so happen to have stepped on the sore spot of his friends. Not just Marceline or Angeline but also spreading out to affect both Harley and Pamela. And he was sure if either Steve or Michael ever found out, then they too would be worried for him as well.
And that wasn't fair to any of them.
So despite that explanation struggling to crawl itself to the surface, that wasn't what was needed right now. Any attempts would make him seem as though he was covering for Barbara and that in itself would only make things worse. He wouldn't just trample on their concern.
Especially not with half-plant hybrid looking as she did. From this up close, he could see how rough she already was. With large circles beginning to form around her eyes, cheeks drawn and lips looking a small bit shriveled. Like that of a plant. Her hair, once a vibrant crimson now seemed faded. While he had some guesses as to why her appearance was losing it's vibrancy, now wasn't the time to ask questions.
Instead, he closed his flapping mouth and simply nodded.
Just then, heavy footsteps could be heard before the door was kicked open. Showing a huffing and puffing blonde with a large pure white metallic case clutched in-between both arms, a small red cross emblazoned across it's surface.
If this was normal Harley, then maybe she would've poked and teased at the pair for their, from an outside perspective, intimate position but she was in no joking mood. And instead briskly entered the room and laying out a pile of medical supplies. Gauze, band-aids, rubbing alcohol and the works. There was even a box full of medical tongue depressors.
Suddenly, he got the feeling that he wouldn't be leaving that apartment until everything in that massive container was used on him. Whether it was needed or not.
***
The air was cold and frigid, holding a moist bite. People, in all shapes are sizes were wearing more protective clothing. Long coats, thick jackets and even a few gloves for the few that couldn't stand the cold. Thankfully, there wasn't a pair of shorts in sight. None wished to play with fate on that day.
Moving along with the crowd of humanity, Albert hugged his trench coat closer to himself. Drawing in deeper in it's warm embrace and flipping it's collar to cover up his rather sensitive ears. From a passing storefront, he took a circumspect look for what felt like the twelfth time that day.
On one side of his face, a heavy application of bandages and gauze made him feel as though he was ready to tip right over. Maybe it was better to call it a mountain, bulging from his face a good solid inch. A mix of heavy application of cream and pas. Frankly, he looked a bit cartoony in that moment. And certainly felt that way as he imagined those judgmental stares hammering into him, but in reality he knew no one was looking at him.
Everyone in the crowd had much more important things to worry about that some weirdo, Gotham had enough of them to make that the norm. So another one wasn't even enough to make them blink an eye...but that still didn't stop him from scanning the crowd every once and awhile to make sure.
Harley had been….very enthusiastic about playing nurse. Her concern and desire to help was palpable and her heart had been in the right place but the methods itself could be considered a problem. He was sure there wasn't a single roll of bandages left in that first aid kit. That's how overboard she went.
'Enough about her.'
Complaining now wouldn't help him, only further distract him from the upcoming conversation that was long overdue. Sliding to the side, he came face to face with what looked to be a completely ordinary office building. A single floor but through the massive windows, he could see lines of employees crammed in tight in their own little cubicles with phones held up to their ears. Even from outside, the air of despair just rolling off them was nearly enough to make him roll over and die on the spot. To curl in on himself like a shrimp and just expire.
With a shake of his head, he pushed the door open with the soft chiming of bells. If he'd expected his entrance to draw any attention then he would've been greatly disappointed. Not a single head popped up to get a look at their new guest, each focused on whatever tiresome sales pitch that had been burned into the very surface of their bones. They spoke in a disorganized drone, each note trying it's damnedest to pull on his eyelids.
Pushing through the soul sucking atmosphere, he briskly walked past the lines of office drones. Taking notice of a single form on each of their screens, orders just waiting to be filled with personal information. Most of them didn't even try to hide anything sensitive, like addresses, names or even credit card numbers. If anyone less scrupulous wanted, they could pace around here for a few hours and come back with enough personal details to mortgage a home, max out a credit card or even personally visit their unsuspecting victim for a burglary.
They would be a fool to do so, especially here of all places.
As he reached the far end, he turned and instantly came across a lone door with opaque windows, letting him only see a few shadows moving in an unknown background. Reaching up, he gently knocked on it's surface. Feeling it's rather sturdy wood not even rattle under his barrage and barely a second passed before the door creaked open. Revealing a tall and dark woman looking down at him, her dark eyes scanning over his attire. Before they settled on the overly bandaged part of his face, clear confusion evident.
"Hello Willow."
Albert nodded in greeting, it had been quite awhile since he last saw the guard. While last time they met things had been pretty tensed but he didn't really blame her for that. At least half the blame landed firmly on his shoulders. He shouldn't have been literally playing with forces he didn't fully understand while handling an object of unknown origins. In some ways, he got off easy. With only a few scrapes and missing clothing, some sleepless nights and a fracturing ego...but it could've gone worse.
As for how worse? If Marceline were to be believed, he could've suffered a full mental collapse. Falling into a vegetative state that would've left him in the hospital for the rest of his life.
"Lovecraft." Willow, that luxurious mane now tied down into a poofy ponytail, nodded slowly. Reluctantly and uneasily. And he was sure if she wasn't trained in how to control her facial expressions, there would be a grimace on full display. Honestly, it was awkward. And that feeling was only growing with every passing moment. But soon after, moving her eyes away from him, she held the door open wide for him to enter. "She will see you now."
Nodding, he moved past the woman and came face to face with a rather simply looking office. Possessing a single table with multiple stacks of paperwork placed precariously, as if a single breeze would send them all tumbling to the ground. A lone chair faced it alone, like the final guardian falling with a kingdom. And there, in the middle of it all was a rather….small but ordinary looking woman.
That was just the best way to describe her. As other than the tight bun of black hair, he couldn't gather anything else about her. No distinguishing features to speak of. Not in the way that she didn't possess a face but more like his mind wouldn't note any of them down. Was her face round? Sharp? Did she possess brown eyes? Or did she have a much more rare eye color?
Freckles? Rough skin? Smooth skin? Blemishes? Or spotless?
But just as he began to spiral, the soft click of the door shook him from his thoughts. And turning, he could see Willows shadowy figure in the door window.
"Hello Lovecraft." Madame Clements nodded, placing down a pair of red glasses on the table softly before rubbing the spot between her eyes. Maybe she looked exhausted? "Still a dumb name, but thank you for reaching out to me."
"Hello, Madame Clements." He tilted his head forward. "It's no problem, I do appreciate you gave me some space. I think I needed a bit of a break from it all."
"Before we continued, I must apologize. That artifact should've never been placed before you and it was due to my carelessness that caused this. I won't offer any excuses, it was my slip up and I take full responsibility. And for that, I am sorry."
"And-" She continued before he could even open his mouth. "While I won't apologize on Willow's behalf, she's a big girl after all, I am sure she is also remorseful for how things went. Surprisingly, she's pretty shy. She'll make her own apology when she's ready."
"…."
It was rather surprising he didn't expect someone like Madame Clements, the matriarch that had her hands in ever pie would ever debase herself enough to apologize. At least that verbally, for a lot of people it would be a sign of weakness to do so. An opening for a rival to come in and slit one's throat. Frankly, he was more ready for a fruit basket to be delivered to his place with some soul-less, corporate 'Get Well' soon card. Not something face to face like this.
'Is it because of how rare my Spark is?'
A cruel but cynical part of his brain reared it's ugly head up to the surface, spewing venom strong enough to taint any healthy working relationship. From her perspective, being able to use him to stretch out into deeper into the artifact/antique trade was a massive boom. Especially with his ability to differentiate true treasures from forgeries. And if she could stumble across the occasional enchanted artifact then it was yet another card for her deck.
So, if he only took that aspect of things into consideration then that voice was right. But even if that was the case, was he any different? If he wasn't granted access to her skilled inner circle, then would he even look in her direction? Sure, she could've forced him into a contract but that was like sharpening a knife without paying attention. Eventually, it would cut her. Just how badly, depended solely on the duration of time.
From that point of view, they were using each other. So how could he feel cheated or jilted?
"I accept your apology." For their ongoing professional relationship, it was better to put a lid on this incident. They both already, silently or not, to be more careful when doing readings. So there wasn't really a lot he could do. But that didn't mean everything would just be swept under the rug. "But I do have a question, has the idol been destroyed?"
"No."
"No?"
That didn't make any since, that idol was cursed. Heavily, if Marceline's opinion on the matter was true. And wasn't it simply better to get rid of cursed items like that? He couldn't imagine gaining any sort of power from such object as from his understanding, it wasn't complete. Missing two rubies for eyes. Where they are, maybe only the anneals of time would be able to track them down. Did she just want the gems? Were they that high quality?
"No." Madame Clements repeated, stooping her hands together. "And before you ask 'why', there are plenty of reasons. First, the idol isn't technically mine. Yet. An old colleague of mine came back to town to get me to estimate it's value. As of right now, I am trying to buy it from them but...they can smell money a mile away. They've been yanking my chain for the last few days. And because of our past dealings, damaging it wouldn't be ideal."
Again, while he could wrap his head around the conundrum she was in, it was also hard to just sit there and listen as that thing was just out there existing without a hammer embedded into it's surface made his fingers itch. To strain against his own control to go out and hunt the object down and destroy it for good.
"And more importantly," She continued. "Well, in simplest terms, it's the key to a gold mine. Not to literal gold of course but to something much more valuable. From everything I've gathered, I believe this idol is the key to an unnamed ancient Magus's abode. A powerful one too if those augmented guards are anything to go by...hell, even if they were golems or anything along those lines, it would be more than enough to trigger a magical gold rush."
Greed.
A deadly sin more akin to a poisoned fruit. It's flesh bright and vibrant, just dangling there for anyone to take. Even the mere aroma was enough to draw the eye of even the most ascetic of people. And maybe they would be fine after the first bite, but just one would never be enough. Each bite, only further accelerating their end. Whether from choking on it's luscious tissue or succumbing to the slow acting toxin.
"So, with this information I want to fund and put together an expedition. Not anything soon, of course. It's going to need a lot of starting capital and maybe even some investors just to get it off the ground. And The Seven will want to have a say...along with their piece of the pie so I will need to negotiate with them if I don't want trouble later on down the road. So for now, it's still in it's infancy...but even then, I do have a few core candidates for this expedition. Particularly, Marceline and you just for each of your rare Sparks. What do you say?"
Just as he opened his mouth to immediately shut down the mad woman's plan, ready to spout the long list of tropes they were just falling right into, a simple notification caused his jaw to slam close with an audible click.
[Case Opened: The Clements Expedition!
Description: Madame Clements, your mysterious backer, has become a mighty bit interested in the affairs of ancient Magus's. From one of your readings, you've found evidence of a possible Magus's abode somewhere in South America. And now, after hearing of the fortune just waiting to be snapped up, she now wishes to form an expedition to go and unearth those hidden 'treasures'. And whose the lucky Psychometrist she invited first to her join on this glorious journey? Find the Abode, unearthed it's secrets and plunder its' treasures.
Requirements: Unearth the Ancient Magus's Abode.
Difficulty: C+
Reward: 3 IP, the small increase of 1 Statistic, and Unknown!
[Would you like to take on this case?]
[Yes/No]
Greed was a deadly thing, that he knew. Sickly sweet, delicious as it pricked his tongue and rolled down his throat. One bite was never enough.
(A/N: Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed this week's chapter! I know not a lot happened but I more wanted to build upon Ivy's and Albert relationship. I tried to do her justice in this scene, as from my POV she's already witnessed Harley's abusive relationship and feels ham-stringed by her helplessness to truly do anything that doesn't involve wiping the Joker from the face of the Earth. And now seeing one of her other, potential, friends going through something similar was a step too far for her. So it's more like she's projecting what she wants to do with Harley onto him. I might change some things later on with her and this scene but for now, it's a good wind down point for things to come. And as for the second part of the chapter??? You guys have to know, expeditions into ancient crypts and temples are a staple for ANY Pulp Cthulhu game! But don't get too exited, this won't come into play for awhile. Albert is nowhere near ready for what I have planned there XD, so this'll probably be after Volume 3. After he's begun delving into magic. But for now, take this as extreme foreshadowing! Don't feel too disappointed though, things are going to be ramping up. Many things in the background have been set into motion because of that Soiree! But that's all for now, thank you all for reading! And I hope to see you guys next week!)