Paralyzer [Gotham]

1

I took a slow breath when Victor walked through the door, setting down my glass of whiskey as he came close. "Hey," he hummed, a humored smile on his lips. I slid my hands up his arms and pressed my forehead to his, his hands slipping around my waist.

"Have a good day?" I chuckled, relaxing in his hold.

"These licenses make my job really fun," he informed, pressing his lips to mine. "Penguin wants you back." I shook my head, trailing my fingers down his jaw. It'd taken a while for us to get back to this comfortability, but losing a child either tears you apart or brings you closer together. Guess we fell in the second category.

"No, I'm not working for anyone for a while." He nodded as his eyes ran over my face, a small twitch to his lips.

"Just make sure you get your license before you make any decisions." He was trying to be rational, but I could also see he was concerned of the consequence.

"Sure thing," I breathed, turning in his hold and grabbing my glass. "Any other requests from the king pin?" He kissed my head before moving to the livingroom, picking up one of the books he'd left on the coffee table.

"He's holding his grand opening tonight," Victor informed as I refilled my glass, soon following his trail. "Wants you to go, really it's an offer you can't turn down."

"Because I have no choice," I sighed, sitting beside him and resting my legs across his lap.

"Something like that," he chuckled. My mind had healed from the virus but it left me different. I was cold on the surface, Victor was about the only person who could elicit a genuine emotional response from me these days - positive ones at least. He'd grown colder as well, masking it well under a mixture of enforcing Penguin's law and extreme amusement.

My mind had also adapted to his cruel tendencies, not backing down as easily as I once had, unblinking to his homicidal behavior. I may not be infected with a toxic virus that jacked me up on rage and adrenaline anymore, but a few tid bits carried over into my sane mind afterwords. I downed the rest of my liquor and laid back on the couch, closing my eyes as Victor ran his fingers over my calf. Despite it all, we'd returned to a sense of normalcy.

[]

"It's good to see you again, Lucian," Penguin greeted as I took in the minor redecoration. My memories from my mad dash through here were muddled, but I could tell it was mostly the same, if you discounted the man enclosed in ice at the center of the room.

"Likewise, Oswald," I hummed, turning my eyes to him. "You've done quite well healing the underworld." He looked expectant of me so I gave a short sigh, Victor either hadn't seen his boss yet - which was unlikely - or neglected to inform him of my choice. "I'm sorry, but I can't return to work just yet."

"I understand. The virus must've taken it's toll on you." I gave him a sarcastic smile, one that matched the thin, smug line on his lips.

"Sure it did," I hummed. "Congrats." I walked past him and went straight for the bar, glad that he didn't follow me over. I'd been served a bourbon on the rocks when a hand rested on my shoulder, snapping around to find myself at eyelevel with my nephew. "Bruce," I breathed, Alfred standing not far behind him. "You've really grown."

"Hello, Aunt Lucian. What brings you here?" I chuckled and sized him up.

"I could ask you the same." I took a drink and scanned over the club, catching the way Selina watched us, remaining discreet as Bruce turned his head to follow my gaze. "Some friends of mine are here," I exused. "They wanted me to have some fun." The words seemed lost on him, recognizing Cat from the back of her curly head it seems. "I see you have matters of your own to attend to. It was good seeing you."

"You too, Aunt Lucian," he responded disractedly as I touched the side of his head. I waved to Alfred as Bruce turned from me, a nod coming from Alfred as he pivoted and followed closely behind my nephew; wouldn't blame him, in a room full of known criminals. I leaned against the bar with my drink, my head turning quickly at the hand on my back but stilling when I caught a slight glimpse of Victor right up behind me.

"Keep your head down, it's gunna get busy," he informed just loud enough to be heard over the music, slipping into the crowd and instantly losing my gaze through them. I looked around a short moment and found a man looking out of the kitchen door window, surveiling the party. Another man joined him for a few seconds before both left my view, my heart rate picking up.

I finished my drink and left my glass on the bar, slowly making my way to sit beside the frozen man. I wasn't really paying attention at this point, trying to decifer who the man in the ice was; Victor probably knew. As if he could feel me thinking on him, I felt the weight of his stare, turning forward as my green eyes widened. Busy, indeed. Penguin had walked out several men before the bar, his security detail working as one, like they had choreographed their execution walk.

"For the past three months, I have given this city a tranquility it has never known," he reminded, his detail pushing the men to their knees as press all around me flashed pictures of the scene. "Now, I would like to ensure that peace for the future. In the weeks to come, you will hear whispers about what's happening on the streets of Gotham. All you need to know is that without me, this is what you get." He pointed at the kneeled criminals, my eyes drifting to security who stood at attention and Victor, his gun and wild eyes trained on the men bellow them.

At this point, I had to stand to see what was happening. "Men who want to bring fear back into our city, who promise a return to the old days. So, tell your families, tell your friends, it is Oswald Cobblepot who keeps them safe. Not the GCPD." I followed Penguin's gaze, taking in Jim Gordon's profile and grinning at the undermining he'd been dished. "You're welcome!" he bowed, encouraging his audience.

People around me errupted in applause, a quick look at Victor showed that he had joined in, clapping against his gun as his eyes found mine. I clapped too; if anything, Penguin had proven himself able to get things done. That alone in this city was a great feat. Penguin had turned and was knelt down, whispering to the men like the cocky little bird he was. "Wait!" Bruce interjected, tossing an interesting stone into the mix. "I want to know what you're gunna do with those men."

"You need not concern yourself with that," Penguin answered, voice dripping with condesension.

"Are those men going to be turned into the police?" Bruce challenged. My, my, what the man he's becoming. Penguin gave a short laugh, hobbling over on his cane as Alfred drew closer to my nephew protectively.

"Earlier today, you thanked me for making the city safer. Now how do you think that happened?" he asked quietly. Then louder, "I do the dirty work no one else will."

Bruce stared him over a moment, the tension between the two clear. Penguin couldn't let a child give him lip, but if I knew Bruce, he was headstrong and determined. "I understand. But I'm asking you, turn those men over to the police."

And while Bruce's eyes flitted over his face as if searching for something, Penguin's didn't move. "You're young. You have a good heart." He pretended to think it over a second before answering, "No." The lights went out and people panicked, fleeing as I took refuge on the opposite side of the ice sculpture when the men on their knees sought after escape. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust, listening to the sounds of a gun and minor combat until I could see again.

My breath caught in my throat as Penguin got sprayed in the face with something before he turned to the statue, I put some distance between it and I when a bullet ricocheted off the walls. Once he got a good view, he began screaming, falling back on the floor as Gordon and his buddies took control of the situation. I held my breath as Alfred pointed a shotgun at Victor, the latter staring down the sights of his pistol.

The man who sprayed Penguin got a good laugh in, that is, until Gordon punched him in the face. Once he placed them under arrest, both Alfred and Victor pulled back, keeping his gun drawn and pointed at the ceiling as he took slow steps back towards me. The press returned as Penguin threw himself at Gordon, giving Zsasz the perfect moment to slip out of view and take me from the Iceberg Lounge.