[ 47 ] 2014

-

"We had to call in police detectives so that they could conduct an investigation. But they knew right away. It was the remains of a boy who was murdered in this house a long time ago. They collected the remains and arranged for him to be buried. I'm glad that boy can finally rest in peace."

-

Clad in her blue hospital gown and a thick sterile bandaging around her abdomen, Harley Quinn pushed herself off her bed and held onto the sheets as she tried to steady herself. Ashton was at her side in an instant, arms didn't know where to go for two reasons. He didn't want to hurt her, and he didn't want to accidentally touch her in any way that may be inappropriate or awkward for the two of them. He instead held his arms out, ready to catch her if need be, his arms close enough for her to reach, but far enough that he wasn't touching her.

Calum was still sleeping on the couch. He had spend the last couple of days in the hospital, having a rough time. Harley and Arthur were really the only two people he had left and seeing them in that amount of pain filled him with grief.

He had gone from one room to the other, keeping an eye on both of them. It was especially heartbreaking to him to see his uncle--Arthur--in that hospital bed unconscious. No one knew when or if he would ever wake up from it. The doctors said it was just a miracle that he was even alive at that point. He had been pronounced dead on arrival, and the doctors were able to restart his heart. Then it was predicted that he wouldn't survive the night. The latest prediction had been that he wouldn't survive his operation and the blood transfusions. 

But Calum had hope to see him conscious once again, if even for him to say goodbye to his loved ones. 

Harley didn't want to wake him and Ashton asked her in a concerned tone, "Where do you think you're going? You were shot at, you should be resting."

"I want to see my dad." She replied to him--talking about Arthur, since she had heard from Ashton himself that he was in a coma. "And I want to make sure my mum's okay. I don't want her stressing out for my sake."

Ashton shook his head. "You shouldn't leave your room."

"I'm fine." She assured him, and as she took a step forward, she felt the pull on her skin from all the needles that were hooked up to her. She winced in pain and reached for a rack near her bed where the IV fluids were connected and were administering periodical amounts of medicine and vitamins into her system. Dragging that rack along with her, she made her way out of the room at a slow pace with Ashton following behind her.

Each time she took a step, she could feel a pinching pain where her wound was located. The more she continued on her path down the hallway, nurses eyed her with suspicion, but she tried to pass herself off as a nearly recovered patient. It was difficult considering the pale state that her face was in and the snail paced steps she was taking with one arm wrapped around her abdomen as she began to feel like her body was beginning to fall apart. If she didn't know that it had just been a gun wound, she would have thought her intestines would pour out of it at any moment. 

Eventually, Ashton helped her walk by supporting her with an arm around her waist. But he bit his lip nervously as he saw the pain reflected in her eyes.

He helped her find Arthur's room first, since her mother was currently in labor. She entered the room to find there were three other teenagers visiting him. Paúl, Dempsey, and James. All three looked up, their saddened faces turned into looks of surprise as they saw Harley Quinn in the doorway. She entered the room with Ashton, closed the door behind herself, and pushed herself to hurry to Arthur's side.

She fell to her knees beside him and reached for his hand in hers. Arthur was the same way she had been, with all kinds of machines hooked up to his skin. Only there was one extra one that was providing oxygen to his lungs. 

"Has he shown any signs of improvement?" She asked, looking to James for answers.

He shook his head. "From what Dempsey tells us everything's been the same. Paul and I have been out most days, making sure the cause stays afloat."

He was talking about the hunters and their organization. Without Arthur, they had no one to lead them. They needed someone temporary to provide them with weapons, money, and other kinds of support for their missions. 

"He left Paul and I in charge in his will, in case anything were to happen to him, God forbid." He informed her. To James, that was merely an expression. People like the hunters for the most part didn't believe in a higher power--not in the way that humans did. On the other hand, Paúl was at least in some form religious since he performed the sign of the cross on himself at the mention of God. It made sense to her that they would be the two left in charge. Paúl was very much like Arthur, and he was one of the most responsible people that she knew. James was a bit more reckless, but he was willing to give his life to the organization. James continued after a short pause. "It also states that he wants his money to go to you...and Calum."

Harley gave a quick shake of her head. "Stop talking like he's dead already. He's going to live."

In that moment, James shot her a look of pity. "You have to accept it Harley. I want him to live too, he's like a father to me. But there's a chance that he won't make it."

"Okay, enough." Ashton stepped in.

He had been standing next to Harley, but in a flash, he disappeared and materialized right in front of James. His hazel eyes darkened with annoyance at the black clad boy in the room. "Stop saying those things, you're just making her stress out even more. Have some consideration, mate. She almost died, her mum is in labor, and her dad is in a coma."

"Do you want me to lie to her then?" James challenged.

Harley tuned them out and placed all of her attention on Arthur.

She remained there until a nurse arrived to check on him. She recognized Harley as another patient, due to the hospital robe she was wearing, and she called for other nurses to escort her back to her room. By now her wound had opened up, had managed to soak through her bandaging, and even her hospital gown.

When she returned to her room with the nurses, Calum was pacing the room frantically. He was only calmed when he saw her enter, but he worried once more when he saw the blood soaking through her gown. She got a scolding from Calum and the nurses that day, and even from Ashton, once the nurses were gone. But she didn't regret any of it because she had gotten to see her dad.

-

She spent another week under observation before she was released from the hospital. By that time, her mother had been released as well. But Arthur was still unconscious in his hospital bed. James was in between Perth and Sydney, tending to all the business that Arthur usually took care of. It was easier for him to travel between locations thanks to a hunter named Naileah, who had the gift of opening portals. He used them to go from one place to another within seconds.

Her parents picked her up from the hospital. Her mother Harleen appeared tired and slightly bloated from having given labor about a week prior. Even so, she was as beautiful as she had always been. Harley found herself slightly jealous of that fact. No matter what, Harleen Quinn was always beautiful. While Harley was sure that she looked a mess after just being discharged from the hospital. Her dad Aaron Quinn appeared equally as tired. Aaron and Billy were the same. The perfectly aesthetic Australian family. They arrived with a stroller for two babies.

Harley eyed them with curiosity. "So do I have a new brother, or sister?" She asked.

"Both." Aaron replied to her with a voice full of pride, yet there was still that tired undertone to his words.

Harley widened her eyes in surprise.

"Did you name them already?" She asked another question.

"We let you and Billy name them." Harleen informed her. 

Harley shot her mother a confused look. "I don't know how many drugs you were on, mum. But I wasn't there when you gave birth. I don't know who suggested a name to you."

Her mother laughed and gave a shake of her head. She proceeded to explain what she meant. "I know you weren't there, sweetie. I was talking about a name you suggested when you were younger. You once told me that if you had another baby boy, we should name him Kellin." Harley remembered that conversation. It was from when she was around twelve or thirteen and her favorite band was Sleeping with Sirens. She didn't think Harleen would ever take her childish request into consideration. It was one she had made when she had a crush on the lead singer, Kellin Quinn. "Billy chose your new sister's name--Ivy Bethany Quinn."

"Ivy, as in Poison Ivy?" Harley looked to Aaron.

"I may have influenced your brother a little bit." Aaron confessed with a small shrug of his shoulders.

-

She went home with her parents and her two new siblings and was greeted by a welcome party hosted by Billy and Cindy upon opening up the front door. They had decorated the living room with balloons and banners, and they even got her a cake. It had all been Cindy's idea, in an attempt to help Harley feel better after what had happened to her.

"Welcome back!" Cindy shouted happily and hurried to Harley's side.

The blonde threw her arms around Harley and hugged her tight, causing Harley to wince in pain. "Cin--" Billy tried to shoot his girlfriend a considerate warning that she was hurting his sister.

But he didn't get to finish his sentence because Cindy had already pulled back, bringing her hands to her face in embarrassment. "Oh my God, Harley! I forgot you got stitches there. I'm so sorry." On her face was a genuine trace that she felt bad for what she did.

Harley felt at her bandaged abdomen beneath her clothes, but forced a pained smile onto her face. "Don't worry, Cindy. Its fine." She assured.

"Cin organized this for you, all on her own." Billy informed Harley, walking over to the two girls and giving his sister a careful side hug. Harley hugged her brother back while her eyes scanned the living room area. She was impressed at how Cindy had decorated, just to welcome her back home.

Harley nodded towards Cindy with the smile still present on her face. "Thanks Cindy. This really means a lot to me. You're my best friend." She told her brother's girlfriend, genuinely meaning every word. Cindy had proven to be a good friend to Harley, even at times when Harley wasn't the most polite to her. As she remembered what had happened the morning she left to help Calum and Arthur, she turned towards Harleen. "Mum, remember that day? They found human remains under the floor boards of my balcony...What happened with that?" She asked her.

Her mother replied, her face dropping into a saddened expression as she also remembered the events of that day. "We had to call in police detectives so that they could conduct an investigation. But they knew right away. It was the remains of a boy who was murdered in this house a long time ago. They collected the remains and arranged for him to be buried. I'm glad that boy can finally rest in peace."

Ashton had already been buried while she was unconscious in the hospital. She thought it was his unfinished business--that he was never buried properly.

But the fact that he was still around told her otherwise.

Harley didn't want to make him move onto the next life if he had unfinished business to take care of. It almost seemed unfair of her to do that to him, especially when he had been such a good person to her from the moment they met.

She needed to find out what he needed in order to move on.

She wanted to help him.

-

i apologize if the ending to this chapter is rather crummy. its almost one in the morning and i didn't know how to finish the update. but i didn't want to leave it off until tomorrow because i didn't want my ideas to go to waste.

there's going to be one last bit of drama before this story ends and then im going to write the alternate endings. so please stay tuned for that.

thank you for all your support.

qotd: should michael make a final appearance in the story before it ends? and i guess luke as well? since ash and calum have made plenty of appearances so far. but the story is about them mostly. idk. let me know what you think.

-clary xx