Eclipsed

A Birds of Prey fanfic

A/N- This is my first foray into the Birds of Prey fanfic world, though I was a fan of the show when I was younger. It's been years since it was taken off the air, but happening upon a very well-written fanfic through a different site sparked my interest in it once again. I thought this song was very fitting for a pairing like Barbara and Helena, and decided to incorporate it into my story. The characters belong to the WB and those who claim copyrights to the Birds of Prey title. I merely borrowed them for my own amusement. The song, "Eclipsed", by the band Evans Blue, obviously belongs to them and whoever claims the copyrights to the song. I borrowed that, also, and have no intentions of infringing upon their copyrights or attempting to make money from the story. Please let me know what you think, and hopefully you will enjoy it.

Barbara shut down the comm link and sighed. It was nearly two a.m., and Helena would be arriving soon for her debrief. An eventful Fourth of July evening had brought out fireworks in more ways than one; with all the petty criminals and drunken fools Helena encountered on her sweeps that night, there were plenty of people seeing stars.

Dinah had already been called back from her night shift early, as Barbara didn't want the girl spending her entire holiday evening on duty. She was currently staying with her friend Gabby, and Barbara was confident that Helena would swoop in should any situations arise while Dinah was out with her friend. Helena wasn't always the warmest or most affectionate person, but she had eventually come to accept Dinah as part of their small family, and, while she wouldn't admit to it, kept a watchful eye on the younger girl whenever she felt it was needed.

A shadow on the ledge caught Barbara's eye, and as she turned, Huntress strode into the room without a sound, gliding past the redhead and bee-lining straight for the small kitchenette in the corner. Barbara spun in her chair, watching Helena as she dropped her long leather duster over the arm of the couch. It wasn't a conscious effort, but the brunette commanded attention when she was in a room. Her very presence was enough to turn heads, and the way she held her body, always poised for motion, assured her dominance was not challenged. At the moment, she was pawing through nearly-bare cupboards, seeking any sort of snack. After spying a foil-wrapped pack of Pop-Tarts on a shelf, she snatched it up and turned to the redhead.

"Geeze, Barbara, would it kill you to get some groceries every once in a while? Cuz it's about to kill me….I think I might drop dead from starvation."

Barbara rolled her eyes. It was true she had forgotten to move some groceries into the room from the main apartment, but Helena was in absolutely no danger of starving.

"Oh please, Hel… you are not going to starve. There's always something to eat around here."

The twitch of a dark eyebrow and an upturned corner of a mouth made Barbara's cheeks pink just a little.

It was true that Barbara and Helena had feelings for one another. It was undeniable, like a scientific fact. And how could they not? After everything they had been through together, the losses, the grief, the shared triumphs…how could they not love each other more than life itself? But admitting the intensity of the feelings was another thing entirely. Something neither Barbara nor Helena could bring themselves to do. So relentless flirting and awkward blushing would have to suffice for now.

"So tell me what we found out." Barbara changed the subject and turned back to her computer screen, pulling up her surveillance video from Huntress's last foil of the night.

Helena slid onto the couch; one leg draped lazily over the back, and spoke around a mouthful of Pop-Tart.

"Well, he pretty much spilled his guts. He told us who, where, why, and when. So I gave the info to Reese, after I went and tidied up the place for him. There wasn't a single meta in the whole group."

Barbara raised her eyebrows without turning from the screen. "So they were just naturally good criminals. Well, that makes our job easier. At least they aren't on the streets anymore."

"Yeah…" Helena trailed off, her thoughts suddenly elsewhere. Barbara glanced at the woman on the couch, a puzzled expression on her face.

"Hel, what's wrong?"

"I was just thinking." Intense blue eyes focused on emerald green. "I mean, what if there were no metas, ever. What if I was never created? Or Mom…" Her eyes clouded over. "What if there was never a Joker, or a Harley Quinn? What would your life have been?"

Barbara held Helena's gaze.

Once upon a time, she had been one of the most gifted gymnasts in the world. Before she got involved with Bruce Wayne, crime fighting, and the whole meta underworld, she was just an especially talented young woman. She probably would have gone on to be a trainer for Olympic gymnasts, being too tall for competition herself. She may have been a college professor, teaching biochemistry. But she never would have become paralyzed. She never would have lost so many people who were so dear to her. And she never would have met Helena Kyle, the cocky, athletic Huntress, who was just as broken as she and who had become the most important person in Barbara's world. Seeing Helena hug her knees and withdraw into herself, she wheeled over and placed a warm hand on the back of Helena's neck, lightly stroking the short hair.

"Well, I don't know what the world would have done to me in that life, but I know that I would never trade this life for that one."

Blue eyes, full of guilt and pain, searched hers, seeking the confirmation of those words. Apparently satisfied, Helena unfolded herself. Her lips briefly formed a pained smile before she stood. "I'm gonna step outside for a sec. Need a little air."

With those words, she made her way to the door beside the clock face and stepped onto the balcony.

Barbara shut down the Delphi and began to turn the lights off in the room, closing up shop for another night. As the room grew darker and darker, through the one-way-glass Clockface, the errant fireworks still being shot by late-celebrating revelers caught her eye, and so did Helena. The light from the full moon highlighted every muscle and curve, and glinted off her short, dark, hair. A strange thought crossed Barbara's mind as she let her eyes linger on her beautiful, broken friend.

We love our tragedies
We're both broken in our own little ways
We're broken, but we fit together just right
You know I saw the black inside your eyes
I saw they were eclipsed by mine and they looked just right

When our lights meet, will you know me then?
And will you want to know it?
It feels like I've known you for so long
When our lights meet, will you love me then?
And will you ever know it?
It seems like you've known me for so long

She turned off the last light and quietly retreated from the room, leaving Helena to her thoughts and preparing herself for another night of painful memories and restless dreams.

Helena could feel eyes on her. She scanned the rooftops with her instinctual radar, but nothing roused her suspicion. She concluded it was Barbara, and relaxed slightly. Being the Huntress, she was never truly relaxed. She sighed, but didn't turn around.

Ever since her mother had been murdered and Barbara had been shot, Helena had borne a guilt that she couldn't seem to shake. As she had grown older, more aware of who and what she was, she had realized her attraction to her sexy, flame-haired guardian, but her guilt had always stood in the way. And now, after the incident with Harley Quinn, getting Wade murdered and breaking Barbara's heart, she almost couldn't breathe for the guilt that weighed upon her chest. She could feel her own heart breaking because of her mixed feelings. On one hand, she wanted to confess everything to Barbara, all the feelings she bottled inside. On the other hand, she despised everything about herself and wanted to protect Barbara from what she, Helena, had become. But how could she ever leave? What she shared with Barbara was more than anything she had ever shared with anyone. She felt more natural and free around her than she had even with her own mother. She loved everything about Barbara, especially her strength and depth of compassion. After all, who else would have forgiven Helena for the things she had done? But then, had she truly been forgiven?

She closed her eyes and let her thoughts consume her.

I love your analogies
We're both crazy in our own little ways
We talk about the future and our past lives
I know I loved you then
I know I'd love you now
I know I'll love you then
I know I love you now

It seems like I've known you for so long

I will be everything you want, when you want it

Wait for me
Trust for me
Fall for me
Even when you don't know you fall for me
Will you fall for it? If it should come around again
But don't wait for me
And don't trust in me
Don't fall for me
Even when you know you're falling for me

A little while later, after the pops and whistles of the fireworks had ceased and the sounds in the city had become a light whisper, Helena went inside. After setting the security system, she quietly stepped into the secret hallway, passing by Dinah's empty room. The door to Barbara's room was slightly ajar, and Helena slipped inside, letting her eyes linger on the form under the blankets.

Barbara sensed Helena's presence, but didn't stir. Helena had done this before; crawling into bed with Barbara, seeking comfort from her inner demons. What she actually found as she lay next to the redhead, Barbara didn't know, but it apparently soothed her enough to invite repetition. Sure enough, Helena padded across the room, silent as the Huntress she was, and removed her clothes before sliding beneath the blankets. Barbara herself was already nude, and as Helena's skin touched her own, she felt each contact point burning as though on fire. The brunette snuggled up to her right side, laying her head and right hand on the redhead's chest. Barbara pulled her closer, and there they lay, falling asleep like that, finding comfort in what they both shared, and understanding, for now, that this was more than enough to express their love.

When our hearts meet, will we make it then?
Will we even notice that they are eclipsed?

Fin