FIC: Green With Envy - Chapter Seven
Dear everyone,
Sorry this took so long, I've been working on three or four other fics at the same time. Yikes.
Can't say for sure when the next chapter will be, but there can't be TOO many left.
___________________________
Chapter 7
"Hiya, Red!" Harley said innocently. "How's it shakin'?"
Ivy sighed. "Why is she here, Harley? Why am I here, for that matter? You know how it sickens me to set foot inside any of your boyfriend's wretched hovels. And yet I find myself breathing in this polluted atmosphere. Would you care to explain?"
Andrea gaped. She couldn't tell if Ivy was channeling Miranda on purpose, or if she was just naturally this way when dealing with underlings. "Actually, she - "
"Please wait outside, Andrea. I'd like to hear what Harley has to say for herself, and you'd like to leave as soon as possible. Or am I mistaken?"
"I can't leave, there are deathtraps in here."
"That would explain the charming scent of burnt pillow. Harley, could you please turn off the traps so you and I can be alone without distractions? That IS what you wanted, isn't it?"
Sulkily Harley pulled a remote control out from between couch cushions. "Duck, hold still, and stay down," she snapped at Andrea. Then she guided Ivy by her elbow, moving her five steps to the left. Ivy didn't say anything and just looked on with a bemused expression.
Then Harley picked up the television set, put it on the couch, sat next to it, and pushed the button on the remote.
Andrea almost jumped out of her skin as the walls and ceiling erupted with gouts of flame, iron spikes, and what appeared to be a few gigantic power saw blades. A spray of goo dissolved the table that the TV used to be on. A trap door opened where Ivy had been standing. And something like a guillotine blade embedded itself in the floor just nine inches from Andrea's hand.
When the room "calmed down", a trembling Andrea glared at Harley. "I thought you were turning them off!"
"Puddin' doesn't really build death traps with OFF switches," Harley replied. "Where's the fun in that?" She sighed. "Go on, beat it. They're all used up now."
Andrea's legs still shook a little as she got to her feet. "What about the two of you?" she asked.
"We're just going to have a little talk," Ivy said. "Now shoo, Andrea."
Giving them both a wide berth, Andrea crossed the wrecked room quickly and made it through the front door. Going outside, she could see why the comedy club (FRIDAY ONLY - SAM KINISON, the marquee proclaimed) was abandoned. She was in one of the decaying sections of New York. Apparently Manhattan had them too.
Fishing out her cell phone, she hurriedly called Miranda. "Miranda," she said as the call connected, "it's - "
"Still alive, I see?" Miranda asked coolly.
"Barely," Andrea said awkwardly. She'd almost forgotten how the last time together had ended. "Harley kidnapped me and held me prisoner in some horrible place filled with traps."
"You would have been safer at the townhouse. It's your own fault this happened. I'm not used to making such generous offers to people, only to have my gestures refused, Andrea. I assume Pamela found you?"
"Yes," Andrea said, catching the jealous edge to Miranda's voice as she spoke. She was pissed, Andrea realized, because Ivy had been the one to save her, not Miranda. "And for the record, I was walking out of your house. I wasn't walking out on you."
"Mm. We can discuss the relative degree of your crime and the severity of your punishment later. Where are you? I'll send the car."
The severity of her punishment?, Andrea thought as she gave Miranda a general idea of where she was. Is that Miranda being kinky, or just herself?
"Goodness, Andrea, what are you doing in that part of New York?"
"It's a criminal hideout, Miranda. They're generally not in Central Park East."
Miranda snorted. "You'd be surprised. Take a walk through Central Park and find out why it's really considered dangerous. I'll give you a clue - drug dealers are also on Pamela's hit list. Something about killing plants and setting fire to their corpses. Just find some shelter. Your ride will be there shortly."
True to form, Miranda then hung up.
"Thanks," Andrea said to a silent phone. Take "shelter"? This was a rundown neighborhood. The only way she could take shelter was if she left the area entirely.
Swallowing, Andrea turned around and headed back into the club.
__________________________________
"It's your fault!" Harley screamed. "You were talking about how we could still 'talk on the phone' and 'go on double dates'. You were cutting me out of your life!"
Ivy wrinkled her nose. "Well, I suppose I DID lay it on a bit thick. But it was only to provoke a response from you, Harl. And I'm glad it worked, even if the response was something as harebrained as this!"
"What a surprise, you're not apologizing," Harley grumbled.
"Why was it necessary to abduct the woman you thought I was dating, Harley? Why bring her to one of your boyfriend's houses of horrors?"
"Because she was taking you away from me!" Why didn't Ivy GET IT?
Ivy's eyes narrowed. "I see. So it's not okay for me to have a girlfriend, but it's okay for you to have a boyfriend? It's not okay for me to choose her over you, but it's okay for you to choose HIM over ME?"
Harley flinched involuntarily. "Th-that's different!"
"Oh, okay." Ivy sat on one of the couch's armrests and folded her arms. "Enlighten me. How is it different?"
"It - " Harley's brain froze. She didn't have a good answer. She didn't have ANY answer. "It just is! You - I mean - "
Ivy said nothing. By the look of her, she was waiting for Harley to finish digging her grave and jump into it.
Why WASN'T it okay? When Red put it like that, it didn't sound at all fair to her pal. So why was she so upset? "I just - I don't like you deciding someone's more important to you than me."
"Well, that makes two of us," Ivy muttered. "The only difference is, you're still allowed to make that decision, and I'm not."
Harley cringed. She was very well aware of what Red wasn't saying. Red had made her feelings known a long time ago. She wanted Harley to leave Mistah J, and she wanted Harley to leave him for HER. And she had yet to change her mind on that point.
"Why shouldn't I get to be happy?" Ivy complained. "Why can't I have someone who loves me back?" She paused. "Maybe I should just cut my losses. Honestly, if you're going to be this selfish for the rest of my life and demand all my attention while you CONTINUE to give the majority of your time to HIM, then I should just move on and find someone else. It would give me something to do all those times you run off with him and leave me hanging."
This thought pained Harley more than anything else. "No," she whimpered.
"No? And why not? What's my incentive to stay in this nonexistent relationship? What will I get out of it?"
___________________________________
Andrea stood in the shadows and listened to every word. She'd been comparing Miranda to her sister ever since she'd first met Ivy, but for the first time, she considered whether Miranda was anything like HARLEY.
As ludicrous as the idea sounded - comparing Miranda Priestly to Harley Quinn! - Andrea thought about that last phone call and wondered. Was this what a relationship with Miranda would be like? She'd seen more than enough as her second assistant to know that a large part of her divorce from Stephen was the fact that Miranda was already married to Runway. When you came down to it, Stephen was always her second priority. She wasn't judging Miranda for the end of her marriage, but still, she wondered.
Would she be like Ivy, giving all of herself to this other woman, and getting only the scraps of her time in return? Would the relationship be all about Miranda's wants?
On the phone Miranda seemed to treat her more like an inconvenience and an ingrate. She didn't seem at all concerned that Andrea had been a maniac's prisoner, or relieved to find out that she was safe. But Andrea would probably be expected to drop everything if Miranda was having a crisis.
Andrea felt a tear roll down her cheek. Maybe it would be best for her to cut her losses too.
TBC . . .
_________________________
Author's Note - It's not a DWP fic, but I think fans of this story would be interested in the story at the link below. I wrote it for Halloween, and it takes another look at the screwed-up dynamics of Harley and Ivy's relationship. Oh, and it involves Broadway too.
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4626870/1/Defying_Sanity
Sincerely, Allaine
Sorry this took so long, I've been working on three or four other fics at the same time. Yikes.
Can't say for sure when the next chapter will be, but there can't be TOO many left.
___________________________
Chapter 7
"Hiya, Red!" Harley said innocently. "How's it shakin'?"
Ivy sighed. "Why is she here, Harley? Why am I here, for that matter? You know how it sickens me to set foot inside any of your boyfriend's wretched hovels. And yet I find myself breathing in this polluted atmosphere. Would you care to explain?"
Andrea gaped. She couldn't tell if Ivy was channeling Miranda on purpose, or if she was just naturally this way when dealing with underlings. "Actually, she - "
"Please wait outside, Andrea. I'd like to hear what Harley has to say for herself, and you'd like to leave as soon as possible. Or am I mistaken?"
"I can't leave, there are deathtraps in here."
"That would explain the charming scent of burnt pillow. Harley, could you please turn off the traps so you and I can be alone without distractions? That IS what you wanted, isn't it?"
Sulkily Harley pulled a remote control out from between couch cushions. "Duck, hold still, and stay down," she snapped at Andrea. Then she guided Ivy by her elbow, moving her five steps to the left. Ivy didn't say anything and just looked on with a bemused expression.
Then Harley picked up the television set, put it on the couch, sat next to it, and pushed the button on the remote.
Andrea almost jumped out of her skin as the walls and ceiling erupted with gouts of flame, iron spikes, and what appeared to be a few gigantic power saw blades. A spray of goo dissolved the table that the TV used to be on. A trap door opened where Ivy had been standing. And something like a guillotine blade embedded itself in the floor just nine inches from Andrea's hand.
When the room "calmed down", a trembling Andrea glared at Harley. "I thought you were turning them off!"
"Puddin' doesn't really build death traps with OFF switches," Harley replied. "Where's the fun in that?" She sighed. "Go on, beat it. They're all used up now."
Andrea's legs still shook a little as she got to her feet. "What about the two of you?" she asked.
"We're just going to have a little talk," Ivy said. "Now shoo, Andrea."
Giving them both a wide berth, Andrea crossed the wrecked room quickly and made it through the front door. Going outside, she could see why the comedy club (FRIDAY ONLY - SAM KINISON, the marquee proclaimed) was abandoned. She was in one of the decaying sections of New York. Apparently Manhattan had them too.
Fishing out her cell phone, she hurriedly called Miranda. "Miranda," she said as the call connected, "it's - "
"Still alive, I see?" Miranda asked coolly.
"Barely," Andrea said awkwardly. She'd almost forgotten how the last time together had ended. "Harley kidnapped me and held me prisoner in some horrible place filled with traps."
"You would have been safer at the townhouse. It's your own fault this happened. I'm not used to making such generous offers to people, only to have my gestures refused, Andrea. I assume Pamela found you?"
"Yes," Andrea said, catching the jealous edge to Miranda's voice as she spoke. She was pissed, Andrea realized, because Ivy had been the one to save her, not Miranda. "And for the record, I was walking out of your house. I wasn't walking out on you."
"Mm. We can discuss the relative degree of your crime and the severity of your punishment later. Where are you? I'll send the car."
The severity of her punishment?, Andrea thought as she gave Miranda a general idea of where she was. Is that Miranda being kinky, or just herself?
"Goodness, Andrea, what are you doing in that part of New York?"
"It's a criminal hideout, Miranda. They're generally not in Central Park East."
Miranda snorted. "You'd be surprised. Take a walk through Central Park and find out why it's really considered dangerous. I'll give you a clue - drug dealers are also on Pamela's hit list. Something about killing plants and setting fire to their corpses. Just find some shelter. Your ride will be there shortly."
True to form, Miranda then hung up.
"Thanks," Andrea said to a silent phone. Take "shelter"? This was a rundown neighborhood. The only way she could take shelter was if she left the area entirely.
Swallowing, Andrea turned around and headed back into the club.
__________________________________
"It's your fault!" Harley screamed. "You were talking about how we could still 'talk on the phone' and 'go on double dates'. You were cutting me out of your life!"
Ivy wrinkled her nose. "Well, I suppose I DID lay it on a bit thick. But it was only to provoke a response from you, Harl. And I'm glad it worked, even if the response was something as harebrained as this!"
"What a surprise, you're not apologizing," Harley grumbled.
"Why was it necessary to abduct the woman you thought I was dating, Harley? Why bring her to one of your boyfriend's houses of horrors?"
"Because she was taking you away from me!" Why didn't Ivy GET IT?
Ivy's eyes narrowed. "I see. So it's not okay for me to have a girlfriend, but it's okay for you to have a boyfriend? It's not okay for me to choose her over you, but it's okay for you to choose HIM over ME?"
Harley flinched involuntarily. "Th-that's different!"
"Oh, okay." Ivy sat on one of the couch's armrests and folded her arms. "Enlighten me. How is it different?"
"It - " Harley's brain froze. She didn't have a good answer. She didn't have ANY answer. "It just is! You - I mean - "
Ivy said nothing. By the look of her, she was waiting for Harley to finish digging her grave and jump into it.
Why WASN'T it okay? When Red put it like that, it didn't sound at all fair to her pal. So why was she so upset? "I just - I don't like you deciding someone's more important to you than me."
"Well, that makes two of us," Ivy muttered. "The only difference is, you're still allowed to make that decision, and I'm not."
Harley cringed. She was very well aware of what Red wasn't saying. Red had made her feelings known a long time ago. She wanted Harley to leave Mistah J, and she wanted Harley to leave him for HER. And she had yet to change her mind on that point.
"Why shouldn't I get to be happy?" Ivy complained. "Why can't I have someone who loves me back?" She paused. "Maybe I should just cut my losses. Honestly, if you're going to be this selfish for the rest of my life and demand all my attention while you CONTINUE to give the majority of your time to HIM, then I should just move on and find someone else. It would give me something to do all those times you run off with him and leave me hanging."
This thought pained Harley more than anything else. "No," she whimpered.
"No? And why not? What's my incentive to stay in this nonexistent relationship? What will I get out of it?"
___________________________________
Andrea stood in the shadows and listened to every word. She'd been comparing Miranda to her sister ever since she'd first met Ivy, but for the first time, she considered whether Miranda was anything like HARLEY.
As ludicrous as the idea sounded - comparing Miranda Priestly to Harley Quinn! - Andrea thought about that last phone call and wondered. Was this what a relationship with Miranda would be like? She'd seen more than enough as her second assistant to know that a large part of her divorce from Stephen was the fact that Miranda was already married to Runway. When you came down to it, Stephen was always her second priority. She wasn't judging Miranda for the end of her marriage, but still, she wondered.
Would she be like Ivy, giving all of herself to this other woman, and getting only the scraps of her time in return? Would the relationship be all about Miranda's wants?
On the phone Miranda seemed to treat her more like an inconvenience and an ingrate. She didn't seem at all concerned that Andrea had been a maniac's prisoner, or relieved to find out that she was safe. But Andrea would probably be expected to drop everything if Miranda was having a crisis.
Andrea felt a tear roll down her cheek. Maybe it would be best for her to cut her losses too.
TBC . . .
_________________________
Author's Note - It's not a DWP fic, but I think fans of this story would be interested in the story at the link below. I wrote it for Halloween, and it takes another look at the screwed-up dynamics of Harley and Ivy's relationship. Oh, and it involves Broadway too.
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4626870/1/Defying_Sanity
Sincerely, Allaine